Staring at the fine mare before me as she pulled her head back, I couldn’t help but appreciate what she had just offered to do. Not only would this help secure Four Ridges’ fate with her capable aim and fire-power, but it also seemed like I’d get a chance for some more... intimate fun.
Only time could tell for sure, but I had a feeling that there was something different about this mare. There was something beyond looks about her, that was for sure.

Oh, and now there was no doubt there was something different about her. Usually when a mare had said that to me, alarm bells rang and I’d have to quickly talk my way out of the situation, tell them I wasn’t ready for anything in particular and I was thankful enough for the night spent with them. Now with Cherry I didn’t get the same urgency or dread. I... I actually felt a little joyous about it, even.

Leaning in closer to her I pressed my cheek out to hers and began to nuzzle her softly, encouraging her to wrap a hoof around my neck and slowly but tightly hold me close. With every passing moment it felt nicer and nicer before the contact broke and a sure smile sat upon her face.

Giving Cherry a small nod, I began to decide what to do next. While we were here in Tank, the closest place to go would have probably been... Gummy. Plotting out the best course given the current wind conditions in my head as I mumbled to myself. “Perhaps if I take the route going through Rolling Hill-AUGH!”

I didn’t know what had just happened well and truly, but suddenly I found myself laying upon the ground and feeling winded. My side felt as if it had just been kicked by a brahmin as I tried to regain my bearings and orientate myself after whatever had just happened to me.
Down at my side sat Cherry Sundae, smiling at me as if nothing was wrong.

Looking back at her I began to shake my head in disbelief and pain, a pout across my own face in return for her smile.
Looking at Cherry, I began to whine. “Hey! You’re meant to be protecting me, not pushing me onto the floor when I’m trying to figure out how I’m going to get to Gummy. That hurt you know!”

With a carefree demeanour, Cherry let out a small shrug. “I thought you could handle me playing rough. You certainly didn’t whine about it last night. I was only having fun, I didn’t mean to knock you over or hurt you, just climb atop of you.”

With that, I shot her a confused look as I coughed in pain. “Climb... atop of me?”

“Yeah!” She immediately replied with a whisper of a smile on her lips.

Finding myself speechless for a moment, I silently babbled nonsense from my lips as I tried to understand the situation. Gradually I regained my composure and looked at her in those deep, beautiful and penetrating eyes. “So... let me get this straight. You were trying to climb atop of me? As in, get on my back?”

Cherry began to pout and cross her front hooves, looking sad at me. I couldn’t tell if this was practised or if she was genuinely upset and begging now, but either way it was working before she had even tried a thing. Her bottom lip quivered as she began to express herself, swiftly cutting through my defences. “Please don’t be mad. I really didn’t mean to hurt you, honest.”

A tear began to fill the corner of her eye as she looked up at me and I couldn’t take it any more. There was no way I could look at this mare and not want to hold her in my hooves, she was downright adorable and she seemed entirely genuine with her emotions, it was too sweet to be mad at.
Without a moments hesitation I lowered my head down to the ground and then levelled out my rear, allowing for her to easily climb atop.

As she looked at me she began to sniffle, the surprise in her voice obvious. “Wait, you’re not mad with me for knocking you over and hurting you?”

“Of course I’m not mad. If I was mad with you, would I be giving you a chance to get on without knocking me over? Besides, you only knocked the wind out of me, you didn’t break a bone or anything.”

The squeal of joy that came from her lips was like a filly playing with her new favourite toy for the first time. Less than a second passed before she picked herself back up and climbed onto my back, taking liberty to slide up and hold me as close as she could.
With a happy little sigh, I began to explain. “I just figure there’s something special about you, and besides, you did let me have some fun last night didn’t you?”

With that she let out a joyous giggle that made me feel all warm and fuzzy. “Yeah, I did. Don’t think that I didn’t have my fun from that too though.”

“And then you went ahead and volunteered first for the effort to protect myself and the caravans when we leave Four Ridges without knowing the full details.” I refuted, reminding her that she wasn’t acting selfish. “Hey, I don’t even know the full details myself yet you still stepped forward.”

“That’s my job, silly.”

“Yeah, well, it’s good enough for me to let you have another ride. Hold on tight now, okay?”

It seemed as if she hadn’t needed that advice because even as I began to say it, I could feel the press of her neck against mine and her legs wrap around my chest and sides.
Spreading out my wings, I decided that going directly to Gummy perhaps wasn’t the only choice I had... there was some lovely scenic views across the way.
Giving her one last chance before we set off, I turned my face around just enough to see her content smile. “Anything you need to either grab or drop off at your place?”

For a moment she placed a hoof to her mouth and looked at the rifle on her back, thinking about the options. “We’ll be staying within the vicinity of Four Ridges, correct?”

“Yup.”

“Any plans to go close to the walls again?”

“Not after last time, no. You considering dropping off your rifle for the time being then?”

She gave a small nod and another smile at that, looking relieved even. “Yeah... take me back to my place so I can put my stuff down.”

Spreading my wings, I took off into the sky with Cherry holding on tight. Her home wasn’t far away from here, it would be an easy flight.
The way the wind carried me and the extra weight was simply beautiful, my wings skipping through the air as if there was nothing there.
Cherry seemed surprised that I found it so easy, which I only noticed when I saw her gasp from the corner of my eye. Still, when your special talent was flight you made sure to practice it a lot and become adept at as many different ways to fly as you could.
I was no exception.

Within moments we were at her place and already I felt the temptation to try my hoof at getting lucky again, but no. This time I had to be a gentlecolt and withhold my desires and restrict my temptations.
Cherry didn’t take long in sorting herself out, as quickly as she had made her way into her home she had seemingly came back out.

“All set now?” I asked with a smirk at the mare who now had nothing covering her sweet flanks. I managed to get a good look before she stopped blushing and pushed me over playfully.

“Now now, Mister. Yes I am all set, are you ready to take us to our destination?”
With a nod, I confirmed I was ready. She took no time in climbing onto my back at this point, snuggling back into my mane.
“You really have soft hair, don’t you?”

“Stable life, could say it makes softies of us all. Not that I really agree with that, but I know a strong mare like you would have something to argue that we are, no doubt.”

“Are.. you are calling me fat?” Cherry let out with a huff and pout across her face.

Shaking my head, I leaned forwards and gave her a small, soft kiss upon her cherry flavoured lips. It was still astounding that she actually tasted like her namesake, prompting me to go for another in which she returned the gesture and began to hold me in an embrace as she did.
It was a little surprising the way she held onto me as she kissed, but it made it feel more intense for me and so I wasn’t going to stop it.
She just blushed and looked away after it ended, a smile from ear to ear showing her gratitude.

“If I wanted to call you fat, I would’ve said that I couldn’t carry you while flying. No, what I am doing is calling you physically strong enough to show me whose boss. Ain’t no shame in it because plenty of ponies are stronger than me, that doesn’t matter though. Thing is, how many of them have wings? I’ve got my perks.”

“Mhm. Like being a sweet talker who goes around stealing the heart of any mare he wants to?”

I had to chuckle at that, causing her to giggle in kind. She had a point, I did take and break too many hearts, but she was wrong about one thing, I never tried to.
Shaking my head I motioned to my back once more. “Come on then, hop on. We’ll head for Gummy. If you’d like to, we could take a quick stop around the lakes as well, if you’d like.”

Cherry quickly mounted me once more before leaning into my ear. “The lakes? Ooooh, they’re supposed to be beautiful this time of year. Though aren’t you supposed to be going to Gummy, Opal and then Angel? You think you’re going to have enough time in one day for all of those?”

“Probably not,” I chuckled, breaking my speech. “but I don’t see how I’m going to be able to fly the whole journey in a single day anyway. If I wasn’t carrying you around I could possibly do it, but it’d still be a lot of work and I’d rather rest for a while than be flat out flying everywhere non stop. Besides, like you say, the lakes look just like you do on a day like today and I’m thinking I could maybe make the weather suit us just right.”

Cherry gave no response to that, not a verbal one at least. Instead I felt the press of her cheek against my neck and could tell she was blushing from the extreme heat coming from her touch. Letting out another smile, I knew I’d done well.

Flying along the Rolling Hills was an utterly serene experience with Cherry upon my back. I had always enjoyed the scenery in the area, from both on the ground and up in the sky; but the sounds of a truly bewondered mare who would have never seen the view from this perspective really made it something else.
The way she seemed absolutely in awe by the way the lakes shimmered from such a height really felt moving. I was giving the chance to show another pony the world I saw on a regular basis and it felt almost like an important moment, somehow.

“Crimson! Crimson! Take me down to the lakes, please!” Cherry begged, holding on tighter than before.

Nodding my head in agreement, I instinctively began to dive towards the ground, looking to pull off a manoeuvre to impress the stunning mare.
Before I could think about the risk of it all, I felt the weight on my back come loose and suddenly drop away, a flash of red and pink flying past my eyes.

With a scream, Cherry cried out my name before shrieking in terror at her sudden descent. “Crimson! Help!”

Pausing for a moment, my mind failed to process what had just happened as it all happened so fast. Before I could consciously react however, my body had already begun a full dive to save her. My wings pulled back to take up the smallest and fastest shape as I sped after the quickly falling mare, trying to reach her before she hit the ground.

Adrenaline flushed through my system and tense seconds passed as if they were minutes while Cherry fell further and further, speeding up as she did. A part of me in the back of my mind questioned what the hell I had just done and doubted my ability to save her, but I knew I had to push that aside.
My talent was flight! There was no way I could let her die and have it be my fault! I couldn’t let it happen!

Pushing harder and harder against the force of the air below me I could feel the resistance getting thicker as she tumbled down ever closer to the ground, mere seconds before she would hit.
Looking into her widened eyes as I reached her, I could see she had given up hope but not her fear.
Grasping her in my hooves I managed to pull up and save her from crashing into the ground, coming just short of landing as the grass moved as if a tornado had made it’s way through.

Slowing myself down as quickly as I could, I gently lowered Cherry down to the ground before letting out a heavy sigh of relief and breath of exhaustion.
My muscles ached from the sudden exertion, though the fact Cherry hadn’t died because of my stupidity more than made up for it.

Looking at the quietly sobbing mare as she shook in fright I tenderly put my hoof on her shoulder as I began to utter my apologies. “Cherry, I-”
As quickly as I started the sentence I found myself doubled over in pain as hit me in the stomach and threw me down to the ground, pressing a hoof to my throat.

“What the fuck were you thinking? Were you trying to get me killed?!”

I wanted to respond, I wanted to tell her that I was sorry and I hadn’t meant to do it; that I hadn’t thought about my actions and hadn’t considered the fact I wasn’t flying solo.
Instead, I found I couldn’t say a word even as she eased off from my neck. The pain was simply too much to fight through the sudden exhaustion.

She stared down at me, her eyes filled with anger. “Well?!”

Breathing heavily, a tear ran down my cheek as I shook my head slowly. “I...” I began coughing, finding it hard to control myself before finally being able to splutter out a word again. “Sorry.”

Cherry glared down at me before releasing her own tears and simply fell onto me, wrapping her hooves around my neck in a much more forgiving manner than they had previously been.

Taking in a few more deep breaths as the mare laid upon my chest, I finally managed to speak normally again as my body recovered. “I’m sorry Cherry, I really don’t know what I was thinking. I’m not used to flying with somepony on my back, not like this. I’ve had ponies on my back when I’m just going around the Stable but-”

At that moment there, she pressed her hoof against my lips and I took it as a sign to just be quiet. She seemed pleased by my compliance and rested her head next to mine, letting out a deep sigh along with one last sniffle.

“Crimson, you almost killed me. I don’t know what you were trying to do or what you were thinking and I don’t expect some rationalisation or answer to that. By doing what you would normally, you almost killed me.” At this point she took a pause, almost prompting me to apologise yet again. Just before I opened my mouth to speak however, she continued. “And then you saved me. Without hesitation, without consideration for your own safety, you did what you could to save me; and succeeded. Normally I would say that you owe me for the fact you put me in such danger in the first place... but then you saved me and you don’t even seem mad that I just cracked you in the stomach and threw you to the ground. Can... can you forgive me?”

Letting out a long sigh of my own, I wrapped my hooves around her and held her tight before leaning close and whispering in her ear. “You don’t need to ask anything. Will you forgive me instead?”

At that moment, she turned and looked at me before pressing her lips against mine in one long, slow kiss. “I do.”

“Cherry?” I finally muttered after a few minutes of simply laying where we were.

“Yeah?” She asked in return, her voice a little happier and a lot calmer now. The strain and worry of what had happened not long ago finally wearing off. Looking at her eyes, they no longer tensed and had wrinkles or worry in her face. She simply looked beautiful now.

“Wanna head over to the lake itself? There’s a few trees we can go sit over by and rest our hooves in the water, if you’d like.”

The look Cherry gave me as I said those words, the way she pouted and pushed her bottom lip out at me as she spoke was pure evil. “Do... do you think you could carry me there? And no flying above head height this time. I don’t want to be at any height where I’d be hurt if I fell off. Not again.”

Rolling my eyes, I couldn’t do anything but give in. She was just too cute and there was no way to deny a face like hers when she smiled the way she did.

“Sure, climb on. I’ll make sure I don’t go any higher than skimming the ground, okay?”

With that, Cherry looked away shyly. “Well, you could maybe...”

Raising an eyebrow at her, I interrupted her mid sentence. “Go a little higher?”

Without bothering to respond, she began sliding her hips over my back and settling herself in for the ride. She was a strange mare, a strange mare indeed. Had to love that about her though, that was for sure.

Reaching the lake hadn’t taken much effort, and now we were here it felt good to just relax at the edge of the water and rest our hooves in the tip of it all.
Cherry laid her head upon my chest and looked up to the sky, sighing as she had.

“You know, I can only imagine how beautiful it could be here if there wasn’t all those clouds all the time. It’s a shame to imagine that there’s something beyond those that I’ll never get to experience. I’ve seen the pictures in books and posters when I’ve been out of Four Ridges and way back in my school days, but of course the wasteland can’t give such a pleasure to us.”

Smirking as I looked at her, I let out a small cough before talking. “Well, uh... do you mind for a sec?”

“Do I mind what?” She asked in confusion.

“Moving your head off my chest so I can move.” I replied plainly.

At first she just looked at me with disgruntlement but after a few seconds of huffing and puffing, she gave in and allowed me to get up. Stretching my wings, I knew I had my work cut out for me but I also had a special little feeling in my wings and looking up at the clouds... it seemed right. I could do this, I told myself.

Jumping up in the air and beginning to take flight, Cherry let out a small whine but I ignored it. I had to have my head in the game if i was going to pull it off, and I didn’t want to mess up and make myself look like a fool.
Spinning around as I gained height, I looked at my target; the cloud layer. I knew that they wouldn’t be gone for long even if I pulled it off, but perhaps even a few seconds would be something worthwhile for her.

The beating of my wings grew heavy as I reached my target, but the way the clouds felt... yeah, they were ripe. Throwing my back legs out, the first one puffed into thin air and the cover thinned out ever so slightly. Almost immediately the clouds around it began to pour into the break, but spinning around the outsides began to clear what was forming and then some.
It was hard work fighting against the current, but flying faster and faster I could see the effort of my work thinning out and even breaking through the cloud cover entirely.

Looking up, the sun bore down on me, almost blindingly bright as I looked into its beauty. My job was almost complete, but I had to make the hole bigger.
Pressing my wings harder and kicking every cloud I could reach, the sky suddenly tore open in a torrent of power as I used my wings to fan away the remaining clouds for the small area that I had managed to affect.
I’d done it. I’d broken the cloud cover and the sun poured through down to where Cherry sat, making the water below glisten in all its glory.

Floating down back to the ground effortlessly, I could see the look of utter amazement on Cherry’s face. It hadn’t been much of a difference, but I gave her the sun.
Nosediving down towards her, I quickly came close to her before sliding effortlessly into the water and began to swim under the surface instead of landing on the ground.
Swimming back up to look at her, I playfully splashed her with my wing.

With a smile, I spoke to her. “There you a-AHHH!”
Suddenly I felt myself fall back down into the water and her face was less than an inch from my own, her smile across her whole face as she pulled me back onto dry land and slid her tongue alongside mine as I gasped for air.

“Crimson...” She whispered, an overwhelmed look in her eyes as she uttered my name. “I... I can’t believe you.”

Drawing my breath, I shrugged as I spoke. “What? I thought you’d appreciate it, I guess-”

“I do!” She shouted at me before nuzzling into my neck. “I can’t believe you’d just go and do that for me! The sun! The sun, as in, the real sun! I never thought I’d ever have a chance at really seeing the sun! I mean, sure we get what comes through the cloud layer... but.. Oh Celestia it’s so beautiful!”

“Just like you are.” I responded, to which she looked away with a furious blush.

Taking the chance, I pressed my hoof softly to her cheek to swing her gaze back to me before leaning in close and returning the kiss she had given me only moments before. Seconds passed feeling like minutes as we stayed locked in the embrace of intimacy, our tongues swirling around each other locked in a dance of passion.

The heat of the moment was tantalising and my body knew what we both wanted to happen. Breaking the kiss and opening my eyes to look into hers, I began to breathe heavily onto her neck purposefully in an attempt to tease her.

“Cherry” I muttered as I planted small kisses down towards her shoulder, making her moan softly in the most alluring of ways. “I want you...”

For a moment she bit her lip and looked at me with nothing but desire, but as soon as the moment had come it was seemingly gone as she looked over me and out into the distance, her smile slowly dissolving from passion to content. “Well, looks like you’ll have to wait a little longer. We’ve got company, two of them children.”

Turning around to see what she was on about, I saw them too. A group of ponies who had made their way over from the other side of the area had come over towards us, all staring up at the skies as the clouds slowly began to patch together once more, bleeding the last of the fresh sun away from us yet again.
With a little sigh, I leaned down towards Cherry and began to whisper into her ear with a playful tone. “Me, you, tonight. We’ll make up for this, if you’re still up for it.”

“Sounds like a plan to me!” She quickly replied followed by a light giggle. The smile on her face brightening my heart such as I had just done to the skies.
Something about this mare made me smile more than any other had managed before and I loved every second around her for it.

Letting go of that previous idea, the water suddenly began to look all the more tempting to dive into. Looking into the lake, the temptation was growing by the second. Slowly getting up, I stretched my legs and wings before yawning casually. Cherry peeked her head up at me as I stood on two legs and began to wrap my forehooves around her.

“What are you doing Crimson?” She asked with a sweet, curious voice.

With a grin, I knew what I had to do. Lifting her up slowly, I looked down on the now ever so slightly worried Cherry Sundae.

“W-what are you doing Crimson?” She muttered as I lifted her up higher off the ground, my evil smile betraying my intentions as she looked back down. “You better not drop me again. I swear to Celestia, if you drop me... please don’t drop me.”

“Drop you?” I asked inquisitively, trying my best to seem innocent. “Cherry my dear! I would never consider such a thing...”

“Liar.”

Pouting upon the sudden accusation, I let out a huff before giving her a kiss on the nose. “I promise I won’t drop you. As for dunking you however?”
Before she could react, I swooped down into the water, pulling us both under the clear blue body. For a second she seemed shocked as bubbles of air rushed from her mouth, but quickly natural reflexes took over and she loosened her grip of me and swam to the surface while I continued to stay submerged, gently tugging at her legs playfully before surfacing for air myself.

Looking at the soaked wet mare in front of me, I smiled as she scowled. “Crimson.”

Doing my best to give a smile only a small colt could actually pull off as I looked at her without a care, I nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah?”

“You are in so much trouble, Crimson!”

Cheekily I laughed, unable to control myself as I tried to speak. “No I’m not.”

“Yes you are!” Cherry quickly responded.

With a wink and a large smile, I teased her. “You’ll have you catch me first.”
Without a moments notice, I dived again, quickly using my natural advantage of wings to help push me through the water and make tiny little nips at the frustrated mare’s hooves as she tried to catch up with me.
Dashing around under the water, spontaneously coming up for air as I needed it, Cherry’s annoyance quickly became excitement as she realised we were playing a game of predator and prey.

“I’m so going to get you Crimson!” Cherry called out with glee, finally getting into the spirit of things.

“Oh?” I announced, dipping in and out of the water as I looked at her. “Think you can catch me then, do you? Go ahead, try your best.”

Ducking out of the way of her immediate attempt to grab me, I began to realise she wasn’t slow in the water. She wasn’t slow on land either, but I hadn’t expected her to be as agile as she was. Swiftly my wings swept through the water, giving me the extra push needed to evade her attempts at grabbing me.
Feeling the air in my lungs quickly run scarce however, I found myself with no option but to go up, gasping for air as I breached the water line.

Looking around as I tried to regain my breath, I noticed all the ponies had begun waving towards me and one of the children pointed with a smile as I floated on the surface. Letting out a smile of my own in return, I waved back at them and forgot all about the danger that lurked below... until she grabbed me and pulled me under, wrapping her hooves around my stomach and cuddling into me as we rose up to break the waterline once more.

Almost instantly an audible ‘awww’ came from the ponies around us as Cherry nuzzled into my neck, holding tight.
Brushing my hoof through her wet mane, I gave her a small kiss on the forehead as I pulled her to my chest and began floating on my back with the added stability of my outspread wings.
“Wanna go back to the shore and spend a little longer cuddling, relaxing and talking?” I whispered with a warm tone.

Cherry pulled her face away before looking at me with those beautiful rose coloured eyes, gently nodding. before going back to her embrace. “Yeah... sounds perfect.”

What felt like an eternity of bliss was spent laying in the hooves of Cherry Sundae, my hooves gently wrapped around her shoulders and down her chest where she held them tightly. Being with the beautiful mare like this brought back so many memories, bringing a smile to my face as I reminisced.

“What’s got you all perky?” Cherry cheerily asked, surprising me as I hadn’t expected her to notice, at least not so quickly.

“Oh... nothing really. Just memories is all.”

“Memories? Of what?”

Rolling my eyes with a smile, I took a gentle breath and began to explain to the tender, attentive mare. “Years ago back in the days of my father being alive, he’d take me and my mother here when we had the free time to really spend a day doing not a great deal.
He loved these lakes, he always had. Said that despite all the different places he’d been in all his time as both an Enclave soldier and then as a travelling merchant guard, that my mother was the most beautiful thing he had ever set his eyes on and that the lakes were the only thing that could come close.”

With a little pout, Cherry looked up with the sweetest, most adorable eyes that begged me to give her the answer she wanted to hear. “I... I know that you’ve only known me for a day... but...”

With her stammering I immediately pre-empted her question by leaning in close and sliding my lips to hers, her eyelids quickly fluttering closed after a moment of shock as she began to appreciate the gesture. For the longest moment our tongues touched and gently curved around one another before breaking off from the kiss.

As she looked into my eyes, I gazed back and gave a small, slow nod in return. “You aren’t just as beautiful as these lakes Cherry, you’re more beautiful. I have never seen a mare quite as stunning as you in my life and I don’t know how I’ve never seen you before. You put the lakes to shame, even with how much I adore everything about them, there’s just no way to deny beauty like yours.”

In response, Cherry nuzzled herself deeper into my neck. Her gentle breathing tickling the short hairs of my coat as she lay there, serenely enjoying the moment.
A peaceful, happy feeling began to overwhelm all my senses, eradicating all of my thoughts and worries about the present and sending me back into the past.

“Back when I was a child,” I slowly began to murmur, softly stroking Cherry’s mane as I did. “we would come out here when the days were nice. We’d occasionally get shipments of special foods from the Society, over in Hoofington. Things like oranges and if we were really lucky, assorted berries and cherries too.”

With that, Cherry Sundae let out a small giggle, interrupting the flow. “Oh, you so didn’t just mention cherries just because of me.”

“I mean it.” I muttered back, a grin on my face. “We did.”

“I know.” She whispered back. “I was named after the recipe that my mother used to woo my father.”

I giggled at that, in the nicest of ways though. “Yeah, us guys and our stomach’s. My father would always make me the happiest colt around by letting me have an orange or two. Sometimes he’d have mum slice them up with her magic before putting them in his mouth and playing around with them like they were his lips. I could never get enough of how silly he looked.”

“Yeah, bringing you breakfast in bed seemed to work a charm.” Cherry softly announced with a giggle.

“What can I say? I like to be taken care of, it’s the way I am.” Letting out a content sigh and a smile, I continued to mutter quietly to myself as I enjoyed the view. “Just the way I am.”
Looking out to the horizon in the direction of Gummy, I let out yet another sigh, this time in inefficacy as I thought about the task at hoof that still needed doing.
“Come on Cherry, we ought to go now. I’d love to stick around here all day and just relax, but we really should be heading off towards the next town. What’dya say?”

Slowly rolling off of me and stretching out her shoulders as she laid on her back, Cherry gave me a small smile. “Okay, you’re right. Thank you for this Crimson.”

“Thank you? What for?” I asked in curiosity, failing to understand. “I haven’t really done anything.”

“You haven’t done anything, huh? So showing me the sunshine, giving me a nice chance to relax while doing my job and giving me a chance to enjoy myself isn’t something worth thanking you for now?”

Shaking my head slowly, I answered without thinking. “Well, no. Not really. Once I’ve done something other than have some mutually enjoyed affection, then you can go ahead and thank me.”

“Well Crimson, I enjoyed it here. So thank you regardless.”

I just smiled and prepared for the journey ahead. Gummy wasn’t a far way to go now.

“Crimson?” Cherry casually began to ask as she leant down closer to my ears, ensuring I could hear her properly through the sound of the wind blasting past us.

“Yeah?” I responded nonchalantly as I continued to focus on the flight.

“Have you heard anything from Gummy about these markings on the walls? Something about them has always looked strangely familiar to me though I could never figure out why. Nopony seems to be able to really place their hoof on what they might be but I heard that Gummy’s research teams took interest in them recently because they didn’t have a lot else going on. Did you ever hear anything about that?”

“A little.” Casually nodding my head, I thought about what I had been told. “I mean, last time I knew they hadn’t quite figured out what they were meant to be as of yet, though they’re definitely pre-war. They also resonate some ambient energy, thought to be solar powered, though given the fact that there’s such heavy cloud cover these days, it’s a little hard to be certain if that’s the case or if the equipment they’ve got is simply old and malfunctioning. I’ve actually been asked to help them out at some point with it, but hadn’t gotten around to it yet.”

“Any reason why?” I heard her ask in a curious voice.

“Bureaucracy reasons, mostly. I have a job to do in the Stable that takes up a fair amount of my time, usually. When I’m not doing paperwork and dealing relations issues, I’m probably in private lessons with my mother or tutor dealing with leadership. When I’m not busy with those I’ll either be doing my regular rainfall job for Angel or relaxing somewhere, perhaps having a flying session if the weather isn’t too brisk.”

Taking a moment to pause, I then continued. “Then there’s the fact I was always warned by my dad not to break cloud cover too much or too often. We’re not below any cloud cities over here, but there’s still a risk of upsetting a farmer or an Enclave patrol if I mess around with their clouds... or so he said, anyway. Never came across any other pegasai but he was adamant that I should be careful about doing it. While he was mostly laid back about things, he always had a lot of worry in his voice and eyes when it came to that issue, so I always took him seriously and still do.”

“So, breaking the cloud cover for me earlier...”

“Was something I won’t do again today or even tomorrow.” I quickly interjected. “It’s something I’ll do when the clouds seem right, when the circumstance behind it doesn’t put me or anypony else in harms way. As much as we’d all love the sun to be out all the time, my dad was always apologising as he said the world above wasn’t ready for it yet.”

“Okay.” Cherry said in a flat, downtrodden tone. It made me feel bad to deny her the right to see the sun on a daily basis like the Enclave ponies knew but I had no choice in the matter. I was only a single pegasus and no matter who I was, that wouldn’t be enough to stop some big angry group of pegasai if I kept messing with their clouds too much too often.

Regardless of how the conversation made me feel however, the sight of Gummy quickly perked me back up as we reached closer to the township. In the distance we could see the silhouettes of the surprisingly tall post-war constructed buildings.
I was always left in awe of how they had managed to gather the materials required to successfully build such structures, but the fact they were patchwork pieces put together in any way at all, built entirely for purpose and practical use rather than aesthetics told everything that could be said about them. These were homes and labs used by ponies just as eccentric as their designs.

As we came to the border of the town, I began to recognise some of the ponies walking around. With smiles on their faces they waved to me and greeted me a good morning, happy to see me on such a fine day.
Could I really blame them? Of course not! I was always doing what I could to keep them occupied with tasks they’d enjoy while not demanding results in some unrealistic time span. I really enjoyed the friendly relationship I held with the ponies of Gummy. They were nice.

With Cherry by my side, we casually strolled on through into the town. Now the majority of the ponies were walking around while carrying important looking papers and some even with their experiments, but they all smiled when they saw me even if they hadn’t been so quick to show pleasantries such as bowing as the others had. That didn’t bother me, I didn’t need everypony to treat me like I was the second coming of Celestia or some sort.
Overmare’s son or not, I was still just a pony at the end of the day. Just a pony like any of them.

Sneaking up behind one of the ponies I recognised the most, I went ahead and gently blew on the back of Subtle Solutions’ ear to grab her attention, a firm grin on my face as Cherry sulked at my playful greeting.

“Who the hell...” The turquoise coloured mare began to mutter before turning around and seeing me before jumping back in surprise and then wrapping her hooves around my neck instinctively. “Oh! Crimson! It’s you! I’ve not seen you in so long it seems.”

We both laughed at that moment, equally large smiles on our faces. Letting out a small chuckle I nodded as the embrace ended. “Yeah, it has felt like it, hasn’t it? How are you? Keeping busy?”

“Well duh, of course I am. I’m part of the team actively working on researching the turrets.” She replied with a small, professional looking smile.

“Say what now?” I immediately blurted out.

Cherry looked at Subtle, then myself and then back to Subtle. A twinkle in her eye and the curling of her lips into a smile was something I hadn’t expected. “Did... you just say turrets? As in, automated turrets?”

“Yes.” Subtle quickly reaffirmed with a polite nod. “Myself, Head Researcher Lavender Lakes and Mayor Blossom are actually just about to meet up and discuss recent events involving them. Would you like to come along with me to the meeting? I’m sure neither of the other two would have any objections to you being present and I have no qualms myself.”

“If he goes to your meeting, I’m coming too.” Cherry quickly blurted, a small trace of defensiveness in the way she spoke. Looking at her with curiosity and inability to understand why she felt she needed to act like she was, Cherry instead gave me a pair of begging eyes in return.

Letting out a small sigh with a shake of my head, I had to find the humour in it. Mares were so finicky at times. “Of course you can. I haven’t brought you this far to simply abandon you so I can hear about this, even with as important as it could be for all I know. I’m sure the Mayor will have no issues with it and besides, I have the authority to allow you access to almost anything should I see fit.”

With a gracious nod, Subtle Solutions pointed toward which building the meeting was in. “Come on then you two, it’s in the main research building, top floor. Mayors office, of course. Not that I’d really need to tell you where that is, Crimson.”

Walking through the doors of the main office, it was a surprisingly calm setting, a complete polar opposite of the hustle and bustle of the exterior. A single unicorn buck sat at a desk, smiling at us as we walked on by.

“Need any directions, Crimson?” He asked as we passed him, causing me to pause and apologise for not going through formalities. Shaking my head, Subtle Solutions quickly informed him that we were with her and knew where we were headed.
Making our way through a stairwell and up two flights, we reached the top floor.
As we made our way down the hallway, I took a moment to look at all the notes on the walls about the projects they were working on and how each team was doing. It was reassuring to see such organised reports, even if it was left in organised chaos at the end of it.

Knocking on the door to the office of the Mayor, a peachy response came from the other side. “Come on in!” Mayor Blossom happily called out to us.
Opening up the door, the blonde maned white pony stood there with absolute joy upon seeing me on the other side. Within a split second, she had gone from sitting down to having her hooves wrapped tightly around my neck and her muzzle pressed against my own.
Her bouncy blonde hair brushed against my shoulder and tickled me with the curls as she held on tight, making me giggle from the sensation.

Wrapping my hooves around her in return, I warmly began to speak to my old friend. “Missed me much?”

“Of course!” She announced as she pulled away, though the smile on her face remained. “It feels like the last time I saw you was when you were just a colt who needed foalsitting. Gosh, how the time flies by.”

Raising an eyebrow at her, my smile grew wider. “Well it was only what, two, maybe three months ago I last came here? It wasn’t that long, really.”

“Two or three months is a long time to not see your auntie Blossom, Crimson. I always do love it when you come to visit.”

“I’m sorry, I’ll try visit you more. I’m just always stumped down with bureaucratic work and when I’m not, it’s things like making it rain over Angel and when I’m not busy with tha-”

With a press of her hoof to my lips, I took note to just finish the sentence there as she nodded towards me. “I understand, Crimson. Things are much the same here, what with the constant projects we try to keep ourselves busy with. Speaking of which...” With that, Mayor Blossom looked toward Cherry and smiled. “I suppose you’re here to hear about the turrets along the walls? Well, find a seat and make yourself comfortable.”

Without hesitation, Cherry walked over to the closest two seater before giving me eyes that could have put a rope around my neck and pulled me on closer. Not a second passed before I made my way over to where she sat, quickly scuttling up next to her and sliding my wing around us as she leant into me.
Looking at her with a smile, it felt natural to have her pressed against me like this but I still couldn’t figure out why. I wasn’t used to this feeling, a feeling of something different, but I liked it.

“So,” Mayor Blossom began, a much more serious tone of voice taking place of her previously chirpy one despite the fact her smile remained just as large as before. “we’ve made some serious advancements in our research of the mysterious markings along the walls. As you would have guessed by now, we’ve found out they are turrets.”

Mayor Blossom looked at both myself and Cherry for a moment before nodding her head and continuing, seemingly having paused to let it sink in. “We found out that they were turrets on a strangely weak day on the clouds recently. More sunlight than is usual managed to break through the cloud barrier and this must have activated some solar panels we were not aware of because all of a sudden, there was a mechanical sound arising from below one of my researchers. Unfortunately for him, he didn’t think to move away from the location and his stallionhood took a hit.”

His stallionhood took a hit from a rising turret?I cringed at the thought, that really didn’t sound pretty. “Is he okay?” I quickly began to ask in concern,

Subtle Solutions nodded towards me as she began to respond. “He’s fine. There were some profanities at the time, but thankfully no serious damage was done. In effect, the damage was only superficial at best with some short term pain but no lasting effects. Likewise, the turret was left undamaged from the incident and from what we can gather, it’s actually functional still. We’ve not seen it in action per ce, but it does turn around as if searching the perimeter.”

“Any idea where the source for its instructions come from?” Cherry quickly asked, a mixture of joy and worry in her voice. “Every turret operated automatically has a terminal based system somewhere, after all. Finding out which system controls it could be crucial to our survival. If it were to be operated by the wrong hooves...”

“Not yet,” The Mayor retorted with a hint of worry in her voice. “though our best guesses would place such a terminal either within the Stable or at one of the security checkpoints in Tank.”

Cherry put her hoof up to her chin in contemplation and began to let out a little ‘hmm’ as she considered what had just been said. “With my experience with turrets, they can be a very powerful friend or foe. Usually their command terminals have been placed as far back within any given area to reduce the risk of an intruder sneaking in and turning the targeting systems from friendly to hostile towards the occupants. However, there has been times when poor planning has put the controls near the entrance to the facility, meaning what was just mentioned can happen with ease. It’s an obvious security risk though at the same time it also means you could activate the turrets as soon as you see a threat coming. A trade off, speed in activation for risk of it being turned upon you.”

Looking in awe, I began to mouth the words ‘how do you?’

“My personal assessment of the security systems would thus be that although having the command systems within the Stable would be the most secure, that the Stable would also have its own, individual security systems that while quite possibly tied in with the primary defence network, would be able to work independently from those in such an event.” Cherry continued, a small whisper of a smile on her face. “Given the other security measures of the great wall being in place and the checkpoint over at Tank, the natural environmental formations of Four Ridges and how there’s only one way to enter by land without either some heavy fire-power breaking down a part of the wall prior to an invasion or other such means, allowing somepony to activate security measures while in said checkpoint without having to go all the way to the Stable to activate them, would be a smart move. Four Ridges is practically impenetrable to land forces if a properly armed and organised force is defending. Our only weakness is the lack of specialised air defence which would have made dragon attacks devastating but anything short of that and the air corps would have had it handled... back before the war came to an end, that is.”

With a triumphant smile, Cherry took a moment to catch her breath, looking proud of herself as the Mayor and Subtle Solutions nodded their heads in agreement.

“Sounds like that could and might very well would be the case to me, wouldn’t you agree Miss Solutions?” Mayor Blossom said with a smile.

Subtle Solutions simply agreed with elegance. “Quite.”

Meanwhile, I was left shocked, jaw hanging as I continued to stare at Cherry. I hadn’t expected her to come out with all that! How did she have the experience to know these things? I didn’t question her answer since it all made perfect sense and seemed quite reasonable, likely even, but it had really caught me off my hooves!

“Well, that concludes the meeting pretty much.” The Mayor stated. “We don’t know much more about the turrets, but we theorise that every marking like the one we saw rise into a turret... is another turret, obviously. We’re assuming that they’re solar powered given that it rose on a uniquely bright day for us when the clouds were thinner than usual and now thanks to this young mare...” Mayor Blossom paused for a moment, indicating over to my accomplice.

“Cherry, Mayor Blossom. Cherry Sundae.” She stated happily.

“Thanks to you, Cherry Sundae, we now have a theory on the control systems. We’re happy to accept such thoughts from an obviously experienced source on the matter, so unless proven otherwise, we will happily accept them and list you as an honorary researcher on the project. Thank you.”

With that, Cherry let out a small squeal of delight and shyness in some combined, overly cute display. I couldn’t help but giggle at how adorable it was as Subtle Solutions began to leave the room and the Mayor waved her out. Both of them were seemingly impressed with her knowledge, I knew I was.

“Oh, and by the way.” Mayor Blossom began to say as she turned back towards us before giving a wink. “You two make a cute couple.”

Cherry lost it right there. All of her cool, all of her composure, she lost it all.
Immediately she began to stutter and blush, looking at Blossom and then myself.
Before my very eyes however, she suddenly disappeared in a gentle wave of pink.

Falling off the chair in shock and horror, I began to stutter myself. “W-where did she just go? What just happened to Cherry?” My breathing became quick paced and light, my legs trembling in fright. She was there one minute and go-
Suddenly a calming sensation of a hoof pressed against my cheek overwhelmed my outburst of fear and a split second later, a pair of lips reached mine. Closing my eyes, I didn’t know what was happening but the way it reminded me of Cherry soothed me instantly.

“It’s okay, I’m right here.” She whispered into my ear softly. “I’m still here.”

Blossom looked utterly astounded, but seemed to handle it a lot better than I had. Taking a moment to think, she quietly pieced it together in her head and spoke to me. “Damn unicorns. She’s using magic, Crimson. If you look carefully, you can see a little shimmer in the air. If I’m not mistaken... she’s using an invisibility spell, but there was only one pony who ever learnt how to go fully invisible in the records and her breakthrough is what led to the creation of stealthbucks. Can’t say I understand how she’s doing this being a earth pony myself, of course.”

As I opened my eyes, Cherry’s face slowly began to reappear above mine, an invisible wall flickering away as she revealed herself. Her cheeks still bore the blushing she wore moments ago but her smile was a caring one now as she planted another kiss upon my lips.
Without thought, I threw my hooves around her and pulled her close to me, not wanting to let go.

“Don’t scare me like that again, please. You have no idea how scary it is to have a pony simply disappear from next to you with no explanation. I didn’t know what to think, what to say, what to do! I-”

Again, I found myself interrupted with a kiss and I let the moment flow through me, melting away all the worry and fright of what I’d just experienced. I suppose this would be a good way of repaying me for the near heart attack.

“Like I said,” Blossom announced. “cute couple. Now, there’s got to be some other reason you’re here, right? I highly doubt you came here simply on the off chance you could come to a meeting that you hadn’t even known about and with your job, I’m going to guess that something serious is happening.”

Looking at Mayor Blossom with respect that just couldn’t end, I gave her a small nod as I began to inform her of the situation we were now in. “Unfortunately so, and worse, it’s something very serious.”

Returning the glance with a now worried expression, Mayor Blossom let out a small whinny of apprehension of what I was about to say. “So, what is it? It’s either something to do with your mother or the Stable, otherwise there would no doubt have been some other method of communication. Your mother knows we love to use our communication technology whenever we have the chance, but I know she likes to keep serious matters kept personal.”

“You’re right,” I agreed. “it’s about the Stable.”

Piecing what little information she had together in her head, Blossom’s eyes shot from corner to corner as she hummed to herself in thought over the situation. “Something to do with the Stable? You need mechanics then, mechanical engineers? What could have gone wrong? Especially something important. Well, it couldn’t be to do with the door, otherwise you wouldn’t have been able to get out in the first place, but it has to be something serious because you have somepony from Tank with you and I know you’re not the type to simply take bodyguards for no reason.”

Gingerly putting my hoof forward, I touched her shoulder and broke her chain of thought so I could interrupt with the answer. When she turned to look at me with those big, blue eyes, I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. “The water talisman is fractured. We’re unsure of how long it’s going to last before it utterly breaks. Melony Love is doing her best to run tests on it as we speak and trying to figure out how long we have left before it becomes completely dysfunctional. After that, it’s only what remaining reserves we have left before the region begins to die of dehydration.”

Mayor Blossom’s jaw dropped in shock, her eyes widening as she took it all in, leaving me to continue. “I personally would like you to set aside a team to work on a water collector for the town. I haven’t spoken to my mother about that, but I don’t doubt that even for a second she would think that it’s a bad idea for you to build up reserves with what you can. Maybe you can collect the moisture in the air or something, that’s all clouds are, right? Moisture in the air? Thus, I don’t put it past you and your teams to be able to figure out a way to get some use out of the idea. As well as this, we need two other things from you.”

At this point, I gave pause, allowing her to collect herself. “And they would be?” She asked moments later, her composure quickly restoring itself.

“Well, we’re organising caravans to leave Four Ridges, go out into the wastes and try to find any and all technology to help us survive. Our main goal being to try find a new water talisman over all else, of course.”

“I see,” The Mayor replied, gently rubbing a hoof against her chin. “and what do you need Gummy ponies for in that, may I ask?”

Giving a small nod in appreciation to her protective nature over the ponies under her, I begun to explain what I had in mind. “Well most of all, Gummy’s residents know technology better than anypony else, generally. They would be able to look at old technology and have some clue as to if it has any worth at all, and how much worth it might be. Chances are that we’d all recognise a water talisman, but not everypony would recognise a pre-war machine for what it really and truly is, be whatever it may.”
Taking a moment to breathe and let the Mayor think about it, I swiftly continued. “As well as that, we may very well find that there’s a settlement who need something fixed, to which they might offer us reward of some kind. Having the technical minds of a Gummy resident with one per caravan group would grant us that.”

With little more than a moment of thought, Mayor Blossom looked to me and smiled before wrapping her forelegs around my neck and holding me tight. “Okay, you’ve got a good head on your shoulders and your plan is reasonable. I’ll speak to your mother tonight about specifics, but I’m okay with this. I’ll start heading to the Stable right now, make what I can of the day with her after official business and letting her know we’re in agreement to your plan. Stay safe, Crimson.”

Wrapping myself further in her embrace, I couldn’t help but smile whenever I was around Blossom. She was just too lovely and my memories too fond not to do so. “Yeah, stay safe yourself, Auntie Blossy.”

It wasn’t long after that we had made our way out of the office and back to our journey to prepare the region for the upcoming task ahead of it. We still had to go to the very last town, Opal, and inform them of what was happening.
Opal would be essential to the effort, their traders constantly practising their skills on one another and anypony that visited from other villages and even the outside.
I spent a lot of time over in Opal, checking that things were still going smoothly and making sure contracts with outside sources were always being upheld to the best of our ability.

Our ability to trade with the world around us was part of what kept our reputation so strong. What kept us in the graces of powers like Red Eye whom ran Fillydelphia. It may have been Angel who farmed the crops for trade with the previously mentioned group and Tank who supplied some caravan guards for the trips, but it was Opal’s traders who would set up the deals and negotiate the trade on individual levels.
Of course it was my mother who had initially instigated the offer with Red Eye and oversaw the deal at every stage with myself watching and learning how it was all done, but it was still the opal traders who would eventually make that last step and collect the reward for us in the end.

I liked going to Opal for that very reason. They were good with their tongues and it always gave me something to appreciate when I could find others just like myself who could put me to the test in my own skills.

“So...” Cherry began to blurt out, gently stroking my mane mindlessly. “Opal, huh?”

“Yes, Opal.” I began to reply, uncertainty filling my voice. “Why do you ask?”

“You got any plans for what you’re going to do here? Mind if I go off for a little while to catch up with some ponies that I know of around here?”

Turning my head to look at her as I gently glided across the landscape, I gave her a confused look. “Of... course? Cherry, I’m not going to stop you from doing your own thing just because we’ve reached our destination and I’m not going to simply fly away because you aren’t by my side, either.”

“Promise?” She asked with a small squeak, her hooves holding me gently now.

“Of course, I promise. When I say that I wouldn’t do that, I mean it. Besides, I’m going to want to do some shopping while we’re here anyway, so that’ll give you some time to do whatever you’d like while I’m speaking to the Mayor and checking out the stands. Meet back up in the centre once we’re both done?”

“Okay!” She let out with a burst of happiness, a smile back on her face. ...Mares.

As we began to approach Opal, it’s radiant shine made me feel a little more confident in the world we lived in yet again, knowing such beauty could exist.
The magnificent white marble structure that stood in the centre surrounded by the clean stone pavement was something that caught the eye of any visitor as they made their way into the town, even my own.

Smaller, just as clean buildings stood around it, but none quite stood to the majesty of the town hall where Mayor Glitter Mist lived and worked.
Pristine glass reflected what light managed to break through the clouds, generating a warm glow onto the town below while merchants filled the streets with their stands, all eager to sell their wares to the days buyers.
If it wasn’t for the fact that I was son of the Overmare and had such a comfortable place within the Stable, my life would have definitely been here in Opal.

Upon noticing that there was out of town traders on the outskirts of town, I decided that flying on in probably wasn’t the best of options. Ponies who weren’t from Four Ridges, or at least familiar with me seemed to be very wary and sometimes even hostile about seeing a pegasus simply flying around like there was nothing different in the world about it.
To me, it was the truth. There was nothing different about being a pegasus and flying around as I pleased, though now I was the only remaining pegasus in the whole settlement, I could only guess what it must be like outside of it.

Settling down onto the ground, Cherry began to audibly whine. “Awh! Why are we stopping here, I thought you were going to fly us through Opal. It must look so beautiful from above.”

“It is, as beautiful as you are even.” I quickly replied, a sincere smile on my face. “But even from here I can see there’s a Tank escort down in the town, which means-”

Before I could finish my sentence, Cherry interrupted me by letting out a sigh and finishing it for me. “Which means that there’s some traders who aren’t local to town or even Four Ridges. Yeah, I remember. They came yesterday, before you arrived. I know one of the bucks put on duty to escort them. I still don’t get why that means you won’t fly me over.”

Giving a small shrug as I landed, expecting her to climb off, I answered her rhetorical question. “Because as much as I love to show off, doing so has caused some trouble in the past with visitors who either weren’t so educated or were simply prejudiced against me. Some would simply say the wings made it seem like I was trying to be better than them while others would call me a traitor for not opening up the skies... as if I’m supposed to be able to do that, single hoovedly. Because yes, one pegasus can clear all the skies in ten seconds flat, right?”

“Fine... but I’m not getting off!” Cherry insisted.

Kinking my head to look at her, I gave her a huge grin and raised my eyebrow. “Oh, aren’t you now?”

“Nope.” She immediately replied, crossing her hooves.

Nodding my head at her before rolling my eyes, I agreed. “Okay, okay. You won’t be getting off... got you. Suppose tonight will be all about me then.”

“I... hey! I never... I... I didn’t mean it that way!” Cherry profusely announced, trying her hardest not to stutter. “You... you turned my words around!”

“Well you’re the one who said you weren’t getting off.” I quickly quipped before continuing. “And if our last experience was anything to go by, I seem to be good enough for you to do just that. So I don’t know what your plans are, but I’m going to enjoy myself either way.” I cheekily suggested with a grin, knowing I had won this round.

“I... fine, I’m not getting off... of you. Better?” The rosy coloured mare declared.
Now I was laughing. Was there nothing she could say that I wouldn’t be able to twist around to my own benefit? It didn’t seem like it right now.
“What’s so funny?” She demanded as I continued to snigger to myself.

“Oh, well, you see Cherry...” I began, trying to hold back my laughter even still. “If you don’t want to get off of me, I won’t stop you. You can ride me all night long if you so please.”
It took her a few moments to think about what I had just implied, and the second that she realised a loud squeak erupted from her lips, her muzzle quickly burying itself in my mane.

Slowly as she grew confidence, I began to felt a slight tingling sensation on my inner thigh. A brushing feeling began to encroach closer to my personal region, the fuzzy feeling of magic as it encapsulated my inner thigh and began to lightly stroke teasingly, sending my thoughts wild with lust as my walking became awkward.
Cherry just giggled with glee and a sense of control as I gasped, embarrassed that this was happening out in the open while glad that nopony else was around to see.
Another part of me just wanted to throw her off and fuck her senseless right now, but I knew better.

“Why?” I asked, letting out a small groan and a grunt alongside my question. It was hard to think straight, but I needed to know.

“To tease you. To remind you that I’ve got the power to do that to you. To keep you in line and to stop you from teasing me. You can carry on walking to town now, but don’t worry, you can have some revenge later tonight.”

Beginning to move forwards, I suddenly felt an even faster sensation threatening to make me gasp in pleasure before it stopped completely. Turning my head back to her, I scowled at the devil in disguise. “You are evil, fucking evil. You know that?”

With a giggle, she nodded. “And you’ll punish me later, I was just making sure of it.”

Damn right I would.

Walking into town wouldn’t have been an issue, nopony would have paid attention to us. Hell, even flying into town with Cherry upon my back would have been much less of a spectacle, despite it all.
Instead, Cherry continued to sit and ride me into the town as I casually walked in, her back straight upright contorted into some weird posture as if trying to reach her head as high up as she could in a bid to show the world her gigantic grin.
Ponies turned their heads and gawked at the pair of us as we made our way through to the centre, where all of the really interesting stuff always went on.

“What is she doing?” One mare whispered to another in a hushed voice, seemingly trying to hide the fact she was talking about us.

“Do you see that mare simply riding the Overmares son? I would have never imagined..” I heard another pair trail off in conversation as I did my best to ignore them, continuing our path all the same despite the gossip.

Finally, a pair of fillies came dashing up to us both and the pair of them hugged one of my forehooves each, smiles on their faces. “Wow, a pega-uh... pega... pegasus! Are you letting ponies have a ride for caps? Can we have a ride, can we? Please?”

Letting out a sigh and rolling my eyes, I snuggled their heads with a wing each before letting them down. “Sorry fillies, I’ve got places to be and things to buy. Maybe next time I’m around, hey?” With that came their collective whining, but right now I had to stand my ground. I didn’t have time for playing around... until their eyes bulged and tears welled up in the corners. “Oh okay, give my lovely Cherry a moment to climb off and you can get on. Free of charge, but only this once. ”

The small cheers that erupted from them were simply adorable as Cherry climbed off and helped the pair onto my back, smiling at the sight. “You’re good with foals, huh?”

“I try to be.” I simply stated, spreading my wings before gaining just a slight bit of altitude. I wasn’t that much off of the ground, barely even a few inches, but it was enough to excite the pair on my back.

“Yay!” “Go faster, hehe!” They giggled in unison, impressed by the experience.

Quickly somepony I didn’t recognise trotted over to us, a bemused look on their face as he looked at me with a furrowed brow. “Who in Equestria do you think you are? Where are you taking my daughters?!”

Stopping in my tracks, the two ponies quickly jumped off and grabbed onto who I now knew to be the fathers forelegs as he waved them at me with upset. “Daddy no! He’s friendly!”

With an extremely angry tone, the trader buck now began to almost shout at me while talking to the fillies. “Friendly? Not in the wasteland. He’s a pegasus! If it wasn’t for all of these gua-” I wasn’t sure what he was about to do, but judging from the attitude he was taking, I didn’t think I was going to like it.

Midway through his sentence, both Cherry and a rather large buck stepped in his way, both giving intimidating looks to the now worried trader as he stepped back and gulped in fear.

In a deep, imposing voice, the stallion spoke. “You utter a single threat against the Overmares son and we will be escorting you out of Four Ridges by force. If you dare pose a threat to his life or resist our efforts to eject you from our region, well... Cherry?”

With that, Cherry nodded and finished his sentence in a very stern, dominating voice that I hadn’t heard from her before. “We don’t take kindly to threats towards Four Ridges. Anypony or anything we deem a threat will be dealt with using necessary force. The pony you just spoke to, as mentioned, is the Overmares son. Your daughters asked to ride on his back, he gave in and said yes to make them happy. Considering he doesn’t tend to let ponies ride him like that, I’d say it was a gracious act of kindness. Apologise and if he can forgive you, so will we.“

As the pair stepped aside for the trader pony, I noticed he looked a little pale now. His shaking obvious to me, the realisation of what a serious mistake he’d just made dawning on him. Slowly he began to speak with a crackling in his voice, proving how earnest his sudden fear was. “I-I-I.. I’m so-sorry.”

Putting a hoof on his shoulder, I gave a small nod of acceptance as he began to stiffen up. “I forgive you. Just be a little more patient when you’re in Four Ridges, okay? I can tell you’re from the outside now, nopony is going to hurt your children.”
Looking at him with a smile, he began to loosen up as he gave a nod in return, the mood lightening. “Besides, you wouldn’t have known any better. Fact is you know who I am now, but that rule still applies for our citizens too. We take our safety very seriously and while we welcome outsiders, we make sure to give every trading party an escort for a reason. The last thing we want is somepony sneaking in and trying to cause havoc from within... not that our guards wouldn’t crack down on that quicker than you could know, but still.”

“Y-yes, of course.” The merchant quickly spluttered, lowering his eyes in what I assumed to be shame. “I’m just worried about them, my daughters. Everywhere we go we have to be careful, young fillies are worth a lot to the wrong ponies.”

“I understand. Now try to have a good day and spend some caps while you’re here. You’re in a safe place and nopony is going to hurt you unless you antagonise us, so relax. Lastly, try not to blame just any and every pegasai you see for the clouds, those of us who live down here really can’t do anything about it and it’ll only piss us off.”

With that said I began trotting off, Cherry quickly making her way to my side, rubbing flanks as we walked.
Waiting until everypony else was out of earshot, I turned my head to Cherry and licked her ear to grab her attention, startling her in the process.

“Who-what?!” She immediately blurted, her cheeks flushing as she turned to me. “What was that for?”

“I wanted your attention.” I mentioned with a little chuckle. “What was that back there, with you and that buck? You two know each other, don’t you?”

With a dismissive nod, she casually answered my question. “Yeah, we’re in the same group together. I don’t just mean being part of the Tank Mercenary Group, but we’re in the same squad. He was allocated to escort duty for that trader.”

For a moment there was a wrinkle around her eye as she smiled at me, making me question just how honest she was being. It was obvious that she knew him and I didn’t doubt that they were part of the same squad, but something just didn’t quite seem right. Nevertheless, I let it go. It was probably just me thinking about the silly things too much as I prepared myself to barter with the merchants, anyway.

With a small release of held breath, Cherry reignited my suspicion for a moment before she kissed my cheek and make me forget about it yet again. “I’m going to go head off, speak to a couple of ponies I know around here, okay? How long do you think you’ll take, or when do you want to meet back up?”

“You want an hour to have some time with whoever it is?” I suggested, nothing too much on my mind as I did.

“An hour should be fine. Plenty of time, even. See you in an hour then, Wingsy.”

Wingsy... I liked that, It was a cute name.

Trotting around the merchant stands, most of them hadn’t anything too special in stock. Plenty of them had food from Angel, some even having exotic pieces from the likes of the Society over in Hoofington, but food wasn’t something of an issue for me right now.
What I really needed was a small gift for Mayor Glitter Mist, and if I could find anything, perhaps even a small something for Cherry Sundae.

It was beyond me why I acted and felt so differently around her compared to all the other mares I’d been with before. Of course there was the lust of it all, she’s just so beautiful and I wanted her body badly. But then there was something about her that just made me relax yet worried at the same time, I felt nervous on the inside but acted confident on the outside. She was something different, and now I had to find something to give her to hopefully keep her around.

Browsing through the stands, I finally found one that had some kind of relevance to what I was after, for myself anyway. There wasn’t anything that I could really use as a gift, but I did spy a few very nice holsters for the pistol I had acquired not long ago.
Picking one up in my hooves and feeling its weight, it definitely felt natural to the touch.

While I studied how it felt when wrapping it around my hoof to be sure, the market pony greeted me. “Hey there, Crimson! Interested in one of my wares, are we? Didn’t take you to be the shooting type.”

Looking up at the smiling buck, I let out a modest smile. “Yeah, got myself a gun yesterday, looking for a holster so I can draw it out quickly, rather than having to use my saddlebags. Thinking I might need it in the future.”

“Planning to go somewhere outside of the Ridges?” He said as he cocked a smile and raised an eyebrow at me, knowing he was likely to get the sale.

“Yeah, something like that. Don’t mind if I pull out my pistol to check the compatibility, do you?”

The merchant let out a laugh and shook his head at me, a grand smile beaming outwards. “Of course not, Crimson. Maybe I’d be a little more wary if you were an outsider, but I can’t exactly say I’m scared of you robbing me at gunpoint what with who you are. Feel free.”

Slipping out my nine millimetre, I casually slotted it into the holster and pinned it over. Thankfully, it seemed to be a perfect fit first time, making me gleeful that I wouldn’t have to browse the whole set of wares to find the right one.
Pulling tight on the straps to ensure it would be suitable, I swung my hoof around just to be sure.

Not taking my eyes off from the holster, I began to ask the all important question. “Looks good to me, what’s the asking price?”

“Thirty five caps.”

“Thirty five? Seems a little steep for what’s essentially just some leather.” I countered, still not looking up at the buck as I played around with the item in question.

“Thirty five is the going rate, Crimson.”

Looking up at him, I gave him a very self assured smile. “I could get something like this for fifteen if I asked the right pony over in the Stable. What difference is there between yours and a custom made one for me?”

“Well as you can see,” The merchant gulped, trying not to stumble as we began to barter. “this piece is a genuine leather piece, one hundred percent tanned brahmin leather. With a brass buckle for extra strength, it’s the care taken into producing it that makes it cost so much, rather than the actual material costs.”

Giving a small nod, I was inclined to agree. “Okay, so you’re being honest with me. I appreciate that and I can appreciate you’ve spent your time in crafting this properly. The question still remains on price, though.”

“I can’t go any lower than thirty, it just takes so long to make.”

Again, he had a point. I wasn’t a fool and I knew that to get a custom made one would take at least two days even with all the materials readily at hand, perhaps a week without them. I didn’t much fancy having to wait that long either. Still, I knew there was a deal to be had here.

“So, what about...” I began to murmur, carefully eyeing the rest of his stock. “This piece here?”

“The back holster? Do you have a long gun to holster on your back?” He quickly replied, unsure of why I’d wanted it.

“Not yet, but it’ll be handy to have all the same. Might grab a longer gun from the Stable armoury or might buy one. Hell, might even find one on the road, you never know. I’d rather be prepared than simply left wanting. Better safe than sorry, right? Besides, looks like I’d be able to hang my helmet from one of the strands. So, how much?”

“Another thirty five. Sixty five total, if you’re going to be buying both.”

“Ten cap discount, hey? What about you push that down to fifty.” I responded quickly, pressing my assertive side to the offer.

The trader looked at me with a scrunched up face as he considered his option before quickly declining the offer. “Fifty? No. I won’t go that low. Sixty.”

“Fifty five.” I immediately responded, putting my hoof on his stall to provide emphasis.

For a moment the buck looked around, though after a few seconds he let out a sigh and nodded. “Fifty five caps it is. I should’ve known to raise the price a little higher to begin with.”

Letting out a laugh, I couldn’t have helped but agree. “You’re right, nopony is safe if bartering is involved. Damn I love a good deal.” Pulling out my caps, I placed them on the table and handed him a bag of fifty and then picked out five more. “Here you are, fifty five caps. Thanks for the pieces!”
Strapping both of the holsters on tight, I then proceeded to move on off towards the other stands, now looking for the gifts.

Finding a suitable gift for Mayor Glitter Mist wasn’t hard in the least. A single campanula with the extra of a small ribbon made out of another flowers petals provided to be a very fragile but fitting present and I could expect that it would look absolutely gorgeous either in a vase or tucked into her platinum mane, reminiscent of her beautiful lavender coat.
While buying the flower, an item from the stall next to the one I was at caught my eye.

Before me a necklace lay, a truly stunning piece that must have been from before the war, given it’s quality. Quickly paying for the former item and making my way over to the latter, I inspected its quality with much more depth as quickly as I could.
The chain consisted of real silver, delicately pieced together with absolute care when it was made. At the bottom of the loop a pendant sat, holding a perfectly polished jade stone centrepiece. The way it glistened was simply astounding and from that moment right there, I knew I had to have it.

“Interested in purchasing that piece are we? Something new, just in from one of the outsiders. Said he found it while scavenging in the nearby town of Coltshire. Quite the beauty, isn’t it?” A mare said to me, making me avert my eyes from the piece of jewellery.

“Absolutely. How much did you pay for it?”

“Fifty caps. Which means I won’t let it go for anything less than a minimum of sixty... and a favour.”

Arching my brow at the mare, I took a moment to take in the way her mane wrapped around her neck in a very stylish fashion. It hadn’t hit me before because I was so focused on the ornament that I had completely missed out on the fact that the Glitter Mist herself was attending the stand!
Her radiant coat looking pristine and her eyes had their usual make-up, a rare treat for many in the wasteland though something she often spent a fair sum of her own personal caps on, insisting that the mayor of a town centred around beauty and trade had to not only look the part, but also be the part itself.

“Sure, what is it?” I asked with a gigantic grin on my face, happy to see her.

“For one, I ask you to go to my home and put the kettle on for us both. I’d love to spend some time with you and catch up on all the things that have happened with you and your mother since we last had a chance to speak. The other thing?” At this point, she gave me a very sly grin and a little wink. “I want to hear about this mare who has caught your fancy. She must be impressive for you to be lauding over her enough to buy her such a gift as this.”

“Sixty caps and that?” I replied with a very happy tone.

“Sixty caps and that.” She confirmed with her soothing voice. I had no desire to try and bargain her down lower on such a purchase like this.
Quickly making the purchase and trying to avoid making any squeals of delight over it, the transaction was out of the way in seconds and I made my way over to her home quickly as I could to do as she had asked.

Sitting down with Mayor Glitter Mist, one cup of tea in my hooves while she held hers in her magic, the beauty of her home was simply charming to the very core. Taking a sip, I thought about the present I had for her.

“I have something for you.” I proudly mentioned. “Although you probably saw me buy it.”

With a gasp, the Mayor covered her smile elegantly with a hoof. “Oh, you do? I wasn’t aware, no.”

Gently reaching into my bag with a wing-tip, I skilfully slid out the campanula and passed it over to her. She smiled with delight before tucking it into her mane as I had expected she might and kissed me on the cheek in return. “Always such a sweetheart, darling. As much as I love your mother, I must say I won’t regret the day you step up, take charge and become Overstallion. Such a pony as yourself has all the right qualities and you only prove it time and time again, thank you.”

Letting out a little blush, I didn’t really know what to say. “Awh shucks, thanks Mayor.”

Biting her bottom lip and playfully swinging her hoof towards me, Glitter mist giggled. “Please Crimson, I’m always telling you this. Call me Miss Mist.”

“Okay, Miss Mist. Anyway, I’m glad you like your present. I knew I couldn’t simply stop by without giving you something in return for your hospitality.” With that, I took a deep breath as I prepared to admit why I was here. “Especially with what I have to tell you, unfortunately.”

Miss Mist spoke with an alluring tone, punctuating her sentence with a wink. “Oh, you think you have to apologise because you’re no longer a single, fine young stallion for a beautiful older mare like myself to tease?”

At that, I had to let out a small chuckle before taking another sip of my drink. “Oh, it’s not that. Besides, I know you just like to tease and get attention. Can’t say I really blame you with how I act myself, I’m definitely no better.”

“Some would say you’re worse.” The sultry mare added with a cheeky grin.

“Oh, I am. I am and I know it.” I finished, laughing along with it. “But seriously, there’s important matters to talk about.”

“Indeed there is! This mare, the one who you carried here. Who is she? I’m interested. It’s not at all like you to act like that, Crimson. Stories always have you so distanced from mares emotionally, but you seem to be showing signs of this time being the opposite.”

Blushing a little and looking down at my hooves, I thought about how I felt for Cherry before responding. “She’s... something different, that’s for sure. Cherry Sundae is her name. We only met yesterday and of course we did all the usual.”

“Uh huh,” Miss Mist casually interrupted, nodding away. “All of the usual as in, you two relaxed the best way to do so in the wasteland.”

I had to hand it to her, she wasn’t stupid in the least. “Yeah, that. Anyway, she’s beautiful beyond words but it’s not just that. I keep thinking to myself about how she’s different, how I want to be around her for more reasons than I understand. There’s something about her in the way she walks, talks and seems to think. She’s playful but can be serious within a second if needed. She’s friendly and caring, even if she does seem to need a little caring for herself.”

“Crimson!” Mayor Mist blurted out in sudden shock at what I’d just said. “I hope you aren’t instigating that needing somepony to take care of you isn’t a bad thing. Everypony has their little things that we need somepony else to help us with. Even your mother had your father, and has all of us.”

“Of course not.” I quickly added. “I just meant it as in it’s one of her qualities.”

“And one you should cherish. So, it sounds like you fancy her. Tell me Crimson, have you ever truly felt for a mare this way? Not just sexual desire, but desire to be around them, be the stallion they want to have with them?”
Thinking about it, I hadn’t. Shaking my head, she simply acknowledged that before she spoke once more. “Well, watch out in how you act. If you truly do feel something for this mare, the last thing you’ll want to do is upset her and push her away. Just be aware of that, okay?”

Smiling at the Mayor as she smiled back at me, I felt glad she had approached the topic. With each time I talked about Cherry to others or even with myself, I felt a little more sure of myself and began to understand my feelings just that tiny bit better. It was different for me, and I liked it.

“Now, you probably had something else in mind, didn’t you? What is it you’d like to talk about?”

And just like that, the mood swung from high to low for me. Taking a gulp of air and letting out a long sigh, I prepared myself to explain what was happening.
Thankfully the Mayor sat in understanding silence as I began to tell her everything about the water talisman, how Angel was going to do their best to cope for the time being, and how each other village had agreed to do their part for the effort to re-stabilise the region.

“And so you’re saying that you’d like some of the traders from here in Opal to accompany these groups in an effort to achieve the best possible trading positions with any settlement they come into contact with?” The Mayor asked, stern faced but friendly all the same.

“Yes, I am. Any possible help would be appreciated because the quicker we manage to sort things out for ourselves, the better. On top of that, the benefit for Opal itself could be massive, building trading links with settlements you may not have had links with prior to the expedition.”

Rubbing a hoof to her chin, Mayor Glitter Mist considered what options we had swiftly. “I see your point here. What about the usual trading taxes? Do they come into effect on this?”

“No, they will all be nullified by my authority for the good of Four Ridges. I want everypony on board with this and that means there will be no taxes on any trades made by the groups out doing this mission. All other trading will still be under taxation, but any organised trades through the caravans will be entirely going to you and Opal.”

“And what of any ‘accidents’, robberies or murders?” She promptly questioned, her tone becoming warmer with each question.

“All shall be reimbursed depending on specific details. We’ll have to organise with my mother over the exact reimbursement values, but I expect caps and land may come into play given the severity of the importance of this happening. Rest assured, we won’t simply tell you that your loss is meaningless just because the trip is for the greater good. What is the greater good worth if you’ve not achieved it through fairness towards those who had made it so?”

“Okay,” Mayor Mist began. “I accept your proposal and the terms which come with it. I will contact your mother as soon as is possible to freely do so. And may I ask once more how many caravans will be going upon this journey and where to? Just to remind me.”

“So far the plan is looking like three caravans; one to go to Tenpony, one to go to the Society and a third to head towards Coltshire. I personally will be overseeing the caravan to Coltshire.”

“Thank you. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to find my three best willing ponies to fill the roles you ask. Stay safe, Crimson. And again, thank you for your present, it’s simply beautiful.”

Sliding my hooves around the unaware mare and returning the kiss she had planted upon my cheek earlier, I held the Mayor tight. “See you again when I next do, Miss Mist. Thanks for the advice and for accepting the task ahead. I really appreciate it. Now it’s time to find Cherry and head back to the Stable.”

Walking around Opal while the sky began to glow its orange hue as the night began to close was a sight beyond stunning. The way the walls and even the floor reflected what broke through the cloud cover and glowed a gentle, clean looking warmth simply filled my soul with glee.
This is what I would be fighting for, this is what I would be doing it all to protect. It wasn’t just Opal, mind you. It wasn’t any of the four towns alone, but Opal just showed it in such a light that none of the others could with how aesthetically beautiful it really was.
I was going to be doing this journey for the ponies that lived here, for the civility and safety that we represented.

The wasteland? The wasteland is a big hungry monster, always looking to turn out whatever lights it could - and we were a shining beacon of dignity and sophistication without pretentiousness.
And I had to play my role in its survival, no matter the cost.

Now that most of the stalls were closed, it was a lot easier to see everypony walking around. It wasn’t long before Cherry noticed me and trotted on closer with a happy smile on her face.
“Well well well, you did wait for me after all. I was worried you’d simply grow bored and fly off.” She murmured as she climbed onto my back. “And what’s this? Got yourself a few toys?”

And just like that, she had reminded me. “Climb back off for a moment.” I ordered, much to her displeasure. Despite her whining, I still insisted. “No, really. Climb off for a moment and close your eyes. I promise I won’t fly away.”

With a filly like voice, she questioned me. “Double promise?”

“Triple promise, now, please would you?”

With a sigh she did as I asked, giving me enough time to root through my saddlebag pluck out her new necklace with a wing. Holding it out for her, I grinned from ear to ear in anticipation. “You can open your eyes now.” I suggested.

At first she went silent, her eyes widening on sight of the necklace. Her bottom lip trembled and she lightly shook her head in shock and disbelief, traces of tears in her eyes. “N-n-n-n...” She began to stutter, making me feel horrible inside like I’d done something wrong.

“I... it’s a gift, for you.” I said sadly, my hopes of her enjoying it being crushed with each passing moment.

“Y-y-y...I-I... Why? You..? I? I don’t deserve this.” She stammered as she stared at the gift I had bought for her.

Trying to hold back my disappointed frown, I didn’t know what to do. I lowered my head in shame, I thought she’d have enjoyed it! It was beautiful! What had I done wrong?

Slowly pulling my head away, I quickly found it stopped by her magic before she forced me to look at her, tears dropping down her cheeks. “You bought me this? Why?” She asked.

“I... thought you’d like it.” I sombrely muttered, left with a completely bruised and deflated ego. I’d never had such a painful rejection before in my life as this moment here.

“Like it?” She asked as she tried to hold back her own tears before stroking my cheek with a hoof. “Crimson!” She shouted. “I... I love it! I just don’t understand why you...”

Looking up at her, I couldn’t believe it. Had she just...

Before I could think, her lips pressed against mine and our eyes both closed as she pulled me in closer and closer to her own body, the kiss not failing to remain the entire time.
Finally the kiss parted just enough for her to mumble her words as she stroked behind my ears. “You... you bought this for me. How could I not love something like this? I... I’ve never had somepony other than my parents do something quite like this for me before. I mean, we’ve only known each other for a day! I’m just overwhelmed is all. I don’t know why you’d-”

“Because I wanted you to see how special you are, Cherry.” I interrupted. “I mean it, I don’t know what it is but it has been going through my mind over and over about how you’re different, how you’re special, how you make me feel things that I’ve not experienced before and I’d really love you to stick around, so I figured I’d buy you a present to represent that and maybe win your favour.”

Cherry began kissing me yet again, this time only briefly before speaking again. “It’s beautiful and I adore it. You’re... you’re wonderful. I can’t believe it. I really can’t. Thank you Crimson. Now take us to the Stable, Tank is too long of a way from here and we won’t get there before sundown. You’ve not got any issues with me staying in your place for the night, do you? Return the favour and all?”

“Only as long as you don’t mind the possibility of the Stables’ head of maintenance coming into the room halfway through and joining in. Wouldn’t be the first time if she does do it.” I laughed, imagining the surreality of the idea. She hadn’t actually done that before, but it made for a good joke all the same.

Leaning into my ear as she climbed on my back, Cherry began talking in a sultry tone. “As long as I get to feel you inside of me and as long as I’m the one who feels your hot liquid love, I wouldn't stop her.”

Not knowing what to say to what I had just been told, I blushed. Cherry was an utter minx when she decided she wanted to be!

The flight to the Stable hadn’t been a harsh one. The winds were on my side and managed to take us pretty swiftly back home, though it still grew dark enough that Cherry was right about heading to Tank not being a wise option. Instead, my place within the Stable would be ample and in some respects, better.
There may not have been the light that would trickle through the windows like it had in the morning with her bedroom, but my bedroom had a larger, more comfortable bed and our options when it came to what to eat were a lot broader.

“Ever been inside the Stable?” I asked Cherry as we approached the main door, the great ‘58’ emblazoned on the front.

“A few times. Security detail duties, training programmes, once on one of the times where you had ‘open days’ when I was just a filly.” She replied cheerfully.
Looking around at her I could see the jade necklace hanging down and damn did it look good on her, the contrast of her red coat along such a strong green gem. Truly a magnificent sight.

Stepping down into the hallway, we made our way past the guards stationed at the entrance. While Cherry would have normally been screened and questioned, the mere presence of me being there coupled with the fact that she had been riding upon my back only moments before removed all doubt that she was allowed through. Some questioned the need for any security on the Stable, given the security from Tank Mercenary Group, but we still felt it prudent to keep our own security force trained and armed by our own source.

Making our way down the hallways, most of the ponies who would have been around during the day were now gone, returned to their own quarters as the day ended. They had their lives to live just like anypony else and sometimes even the Stable needed to sleep.
Of course we had shift rotations, but with possible maintenance crews from Gummy or simply waking critical staff from their sleep, it was only skeleton crews needed to keep the Stable running smoothly as night fell upon Equestria.
Before long, we’d made our way to my place to which I shared with mother.

Surprisingly she still sat upon the sofa, listening to the radio with a plate of apple snacks and grass sandwiches laid out on the table. “Well, he finally returns. How long has it been, Crimson? Does it really take a day and a half to-”
Upon turning her face to look at me, she laid eyes upon Cherry. “Oh.”

Cherry gave a small, squeamish hello, more of a squeak than actual words and I introduced the two. “Mum, this is Cherry Sundae. She’s from Tank and she’s been keeping me safe.” I paused, before turning to Cherry. “Cherry, this of course is my mother, Overmare Skies.”

“Charmed to meet you, Cherry. Please, call me either Grace or Graceful. I’m not one to worry about semantics of what the proper thing to do or say is, just as long as there’s respect behind it all.”

With a little smile, Cherry nodded. “Likewise. Say... you don’t mind if...”

Mother and I looked at her curiously as she backed up slightly, leading us to speak in unison. “Yes?”

“If I have something to eat? Do you?”

Without a word of warning, mother got up and nodded. “That plate was meant to be for Crimson. I hadn’t expected him to bring somepony home though, so I’ll have to get another for you.”

“But you can have it now,” I interrupted, despite my own grumbling stomach. “I’ll wait.”

“Are you sure?” Cherry asked in near shock, hungrily eyeing the plate of food before her. “I mean... I don’t want to impose.”

Letting out a small laugh, I stroked her mane softly. “Of course. Eat up, mother dearest will grab me some food because she loves me oh so very much,” And with that I turned to face my mum with the biggest beggars eyes I could muster before squeaking in a voice as if I was a colt again. “won’t you mother?”

Giving me a deadpan look, she held out for a few seconds before giving in. “Fine. Okay, back in a second.”

“Love you!” I quipped, a huge grin on my face as I made myself cosy next to Cherry as she ate. She was beginning to show a little more confidence now, which I really appreciated.
It was strange to see how she could go from being very confident and professional to a blubbering mess when I was around, but I found it cute. It made me feel powerful and as always, I liked that. I liked that a lot.

Moments later my mother came along with food and we all cuddled up on the sofa, talking about what had happened during the day. Mother explained that The Mayors had all contacted her one by one before we arrived, all the planning had already been finalised and ponies from Gummy and Opal were already on their way despite the time of day it would be by the time they arrived and Angel would be preparing the brahmin for travel in the morning.
Our estimated leaving time would be just at the start of mid-day, giving the ponies from Opal a chance to rest.

At that moment though, my mother looked at me with a raised eyebrow. “So Crimson, what’s this about you going too?”

This was it, the moment I had been dreading more than any other. Slowly I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, envisioning dad as I chose my words carefully. “I know you don’t like the idea of it. I know you’re likely afraid that I’ll be hurt or killed. I know you think that we’ve just organised these caravans with guards to do the job, but I’m not sitting out on this one.”

With crossed hooves, she continued to look at me expectantly, but still remained silent and allowed me to continue.

“When dad was around, he always said to me, ‘Crimson, the needs of the many’”

And with that, she interrupted me with a sigh. “Must always outweigh the needs of the few. Also that a greater cause built upon the backs of the ignorant, built upon the lies and deceit of those in power is not a greater cause at all, but a greater shame. I know. I just...”

“Worry about me?” I asked.

“Yes, I worry about you. All the time. You’re not the fighting build, you’re my Crimmy. You’re thin, you’re admittedly not the strongest, but you’re damn smart with words and you know how to play your charms. You’re not made for the darkness of the wasteland, you’re not a rugged explorer that’s experienced it all. You’re my child, my only child.”

“I know, I know. I love you and I understand where you’re coming from. I’m not a brawler, but I don’t need to be. Like you said, I’ve got the charm and the knowledge of what to say and how to say it. I’ll have Cherry and the other caravan guards to keep me safe. I’m not going out alone, I’ll be travelling with one of the groups.”

“I’ll still worry though.” My mother whined. “I don’t want you being hurt... but... you’re right.” And with that, she let out another sigh as wrapped my hooves around her and held her tight. “Look, do whatever you can to stay safe and whatever you feel necessary to get the water talisman, just, like I say, stay safe. Consider this your great journey, your test to prove your ability to be a leader. If you can manage this, you’ll have proven you can lead the community when your time comes despite whatever may come your way. Just... I love you.”

Wrapping her hooves around me just as tightly, Cherry let out an audible ‘aww’ as she watched us not break the embrace for over a minute. “I love you too, mum.” I whispered in her ear.

After some time, we all decided to retire to our quarters. I promised mum that I’d speak to her in the morning before I left, and Cherry came with me to my room. Upon opening up the door however, a sight I hadn’t really expected to see stared back at me.

“Melony! Augh! You’re wearing my armour again?” I cried out in frustration, knowing exactly what was about to happen.

“Yep!” Her booming voice called out, probably loud enough for everyone in the Stable to hear. “I heard you were back in the Stable and since you weren’t around yesterday for our scheduled fun and I really need that fun right now because my itch ain’t going t-!”

Slamming my hoof up against her muzzle as quickly as I could without hurting the damned mare, I shook my head before bringing my other hoof to cover my eyes as I spoke. “Helmet off. Right now.” I commanded.

Cherry stood there half afraid and half amused, not quite sure how to feel. “Ha.. ha... what the hell is going on here?” She muttered weakly.

“Melony is wearing my armour, to be precise, my goddesses damned Royal Canterlot Armour, to which the helmet has a special enchantment spell put on during the great war. Basically it makes the wearer’s voice extremely loud through some kind of megaphone type spell. It was handed out to the batponies of Luna's guard. My father found it while scavenging Canterlot back when he used to travel with merchants who wanted an extra guard. Melony Love here seems to think that wearing it is a sure-fire way of turning me on.”

With a cheeky grin, Cherry turned to Melony. “So, does it?”

“Oh yeah, it does alright!” Melony thoughtlessly blurted before remembering herself and taking it off. “Oops, sorry. Anyway, yeah. He loves ripping it off.”

“Because it was my dads armour! Not a toy!” I protested, but that seemed to go unnoticed by the pair.

“Well,” Cherry began. “Me and him have some unfinished business from earlier... I don’t know about you, but I’m going to be getting some tonight. You being here won’t stop me.”

Melony just stuck her tongue out at Cherry and grinned. “Oh, you think I’ve got an issue with mares? This tongue goes both ways, you know. Besides, he owes me a fuck, I’m collecting on it before he runs off on his journey.”

For a few seconds, I didn’t know what to say or do. The pair of them talking about me like that as if I wasn’t even there. Then suddenly, they both turned their heads to me and grinned. “Two on one?” Cherry suggested.

[Song: Wake Up - Coheed And Cambria Full Instrumental Exam Piece]

Laying in bed, a particularly fitting song began to play on the radio in an attempt to wake me up as gracefully as possible. Opening up my eyes, my mother stood at the side of the bed, a cheeky grin on her face as she rolled her eyes at me. “Oh Crimson... just like your father. Wake up dear, you've got a big day ahead of you.”

Groaning in displeasure, I began to shake my head. “Nuuu, it’s too early to wake.”

“Crimson, Cherry has already woken up and even made us all some breakfast. I tried to tell her it wasn’t necessary, but she said it was her duty to do so despite the fact she’s the visitor out of all of us. Now, you gonna get up and show some respect to the mare who is about to walk in and see me talking to you by waking up or are you going to slump in bed still?”

Thinking about it, staying in bed wasn’t really an option. If Cherry had gone to the effort of making me breakfast despite the fact it should have been the other way around this time, I would have no option but to do as mother superior said and get out of bed.

Climbing out, my mother smiled at me. “Good colt, even if you aren’t making her breakfast you can still make her feel appreciated.”

Nodding my head, I let Melony remain in my bed. Tucking her in for that little bit extra comfort and kissing her cheek as she slept. She may have used me like a tool for her own pleasure the night before, but she was still adorable and it really wasn’t anything I was against anyway.

Trotting out to the living room, I looked at Cherry who had obviously already taken the time to shower and clean herself before doing anything else. The way her still damp amaranth pink hair hung down against her carmine coat, swaying as she moved. With each and every passing second I was reminded with just how beautiful she was, although that was something I could hardly forget.

“I uhh... haven’t showered yet and you have.” I mentioned regretfully.

Cherry rolled her eyes at me, shaking her head before smiling. “Get some food down you and then you can go do that. I’ve been given permission by your mother to give you some of the special snacks your mother had hidden away, her treat for you before you leave.”

Looking at the pair in surprise, Cherry levitated a... my eyes widened in shock when I saw it. An orange! “You’re... you’re letting me have an orange?” I asked, quickly becoming excited.

Mum just giggled, taking in my excitement as I became like a foal again, holding out my hooves as if begging for the delightful fruit. “Yes, you can have an orange. I know they’re usually only for really special occasions, but seeing as you’re doing this, I would say that this is one of those occasions where we can celebrate with oranges.”

Pulling the pair of mares in with my wings, I rubbed my cheeks against them both before quickly digging into the succulent orange, the first one I’d had in quite some time. Oranges were a rare delight even for me because of how they had to come from the Society and cost a fair amount each time, so we made them last.
Cherry and my mother too each had an orange, much to my appreciation as having one to myself but not the others would have felt wrong.
Sweet juices rolled down my throat and a little bit dripped down my cheek, but I didn’t care. It was simply amazing and I licked it up once my mouth was free.

Rubbing my stomach happily, that was a meal to remember.

Fully showered, armoured up and holsters attached I looked over to Cherry. “Think I’m set now. Anything you need from here while we’re at the Stable?”

After having asked her that, Cherry gave me an inquisitive look, unsure of what to say. Instead of saying anything, I just took it as a ‘no’ and trotted on over to the armoury to collect more ammo for my pistol. Mother had spoken to the chief of security and they were willing to give me more rounds, six grenades and even some of their medical supplies, much to my surprise. Looking through the goods, I managed to find six healing potions, four bandages, a syringe of hydra and my favourite, a syringe of med-x... from that point on, I knew this was going to be a fun trip.

Making our way out of the Stable, my mother stood waiting at the exit. She was obviously holding back tears as she looked at me, but we both knew that this was necessary.
“Remember to stay safe, okay? I love you and I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you, Hunny.”

Wrapping my hooves around her one last time for however long it could be, I took the chance to really show her what she meant to me. “I know. I love you too.” I whispered in return. “Make sure things stay fine and dandy here for me, okay? Don’t wanna return to find the whole region is in chaos and my efforts have been for nothing, ha.” I quipped, almost refusing to let go for a few seconds as I didn’t entirely want to leave her.

“Come back soon.” She whined.

“I will.”

Now the stage was set. The day had come, the time was here. Travelling to Tank took us a little while longer while having to put up with the extra weight of my armour and waiting for Cherry to get everything sorted out with her home.
Slowly the groups arrived, one by one, as we stood by the great gate of Tank.
First the brahmin from Angel came, packed up with enough storage space for whatever any of the traders could want to load it with.
Soon after, the technicians from Gummy. Their work overalls covered in stains galore, they looked the part of a true wasteland mechanic team.
An hour later it was Opal’s traders who arrived, followed by carts of goods to be loaded onto the brahmin.
Finally, out of the blue in the final seconds of the merchants preparing their wares, the Tank Mercenary Group members came out of nowhere in perfect form and formation. Highly trained and disciplined soldiers trotting over to us, ready for whatever came.

Now, there was only one thing left to do before we left... my speech. Lifting on up into the air, I prepared for what was ahead of us. “Stallions, Mares, Brahmin. We’ve been called upon to provide a service to Four Ridges. A service unlike what many will ever be asked to do, a service that many would have never even considered that would be asked of you. I do not regret having to ask because I am proud that you all have volunteered to do this. What we stand here to do today is not for the sakes of ourselves nor even a few, but the many. This is far from some personal search for glory, this is an extremely important task that we have risen up and accepted out of honour and duty. Let it never be said that you have made no sacrifices, that you never did your parts. Today, we change the fate of this whole region and we either succeed and bring back prosperity to Four Ridges, or we fail and the whole world which we know burns around us. Let us not falter, let us not fail. We shall prevail!”

And with that, the gate opened... our journey began.

Footnote:
Level up!
Perk unlocked! Airline Pilot!
After much experience with carrying ponies on your back during flight, you’re even confident enough to do it while in full armour. Watch out though, stunts aren’t advised!

Footnote:
Cherry Sundae joined the party!
Tagged skills: Small Guns, Lockpick & Sneak.
S5 P8 E5 C4 I5 A6 L7

Footnote:
Cherry Sundae level up!
Perk unlocked! Active Camouflage!
While moving slowly, a magic spell you know can actively camouflage you to your surroundings! It can now also camouflage anyone touching your horn or face with perfect stillness!

Author's Notes:

So! It's taken me FOREVER but I've done it! Rewritten chapter two! Here it is. Half-way pre-read, but my pre-readers had to go do other stuff and I'm WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY too impatient for that, as you all know.
So enjoy!
I hope I've not killed any of the characters in the rewrite.
pls, no. pls.

Much love goes out to Kkat for writing the original and I also have to thank Somber for inspiring me to write in the first place.
Without those two, this wouldn't be a thing at all.
Dunno what else to say right now. I'm shocked I could reach over 10k views and I love you all? Because I do.
Thank you.