Love. Love is an incredible emotion, capable of reducing even the most stalwart of stallions to blubbering messes. It is a force of nature so powerful that almost nothing can stop it. So why then did so many ponies let love fall out of their lives and hatred creep into their hearts? Why then is love a fleeting emotion in the Wasteland? Why is love something so rare, that when you do find it you never want to let go of it?

Do I love her? Of course I do. I don’t believe I ever doubted myself there. She is my spark in the darkness of the world. I would gladly give everything to simply be with her. Sometimes I sit and wonder, if everypony had been able to experience the fleeting nature of love, would things have been different? Would we have been able to do better? Would we have been unwavering in the face of hate? Like always, I ask too many questions. And right now, those questions are pounding into my head like a griffon’s claw on a chalkboard.

*BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP*

I jolted awake to the blaring sound of an alarm. My head felt like several tons of bricks had been dropped onto my skull, picked up, and then dropped again for good measure. It was dark, and the alarm was still going off. Where in the Sorrel Hells is it coming from? I thought. I opened my eyes to the darkened room, trying to let my eyes adjust to the light. I silently thanked Luna that it was dark, as I don’t think I could have dealt with any sort of bright light at that point in time. My face felt numb and my eyes felt like they had been ripped out of the sockets. My stomach felt queasy, but at the very least I was warm… and lying noticeably in a large comfy bed, covered in plush red velvet sheets.

*BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP*

The beeping noise continued as it beamed its siren sound directly into my brain, causing the most massive headache I think I’ve ever had in my entire life. Clearly, I was not one for holding my alcohol well. I tried hard to remember the events of the night prior, but found myself drawing a blank. I shook my head slightly and resolved once again to find the source of the infernal beeping, so that I could kill it with fire. Lots and lots of fire. Adding alarms to the list of things that suck for sure now. Right up there with hangovers. Yup, those suck pretty bad too.

In the midst of my monologue, I became distinctly aware that I was lying on my back which was a highly unusual position for me, considering my size and all. I felt that my wings were gently tucked in and breathed a sigh of relief. I began to wonder then about the rest of my body as I let my gaze fall down to the end of the bed, once again trying to let my eyes adjust so I could see. It felt like my legs were squished into something warm and fuzzy.

*BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP*

Dammit! Where was that noise coming from? It sounded like somepony had strung up a cat by its nether regions and let it scream in my ears for hours on end! I started to shift my weight to the left in order get up to locate the beeping noise, when a sigh and the firm warmth of another body alerted me to the presence of another in my bed. I turned my head to my left, where there lay sleeping a beautiful green earth pony mare. She appeared to be deep asleep and was only reacting to my shifting. I realized quickly whom my legs were squished up against. My eyes instantly went wide and my queasiness disappeared as I recognized Patch. Ohhhh no no no, don’t tell me, we didn’t! Oh I am so dead, I thought as I began to take in the situation.

That was when the second sound occurred. I blinked, hearing a murmur on my right. I shifted my head so I could see, and nearly passed out. Immediately on my right, pressed up against me, was Violet. She began to snore lightly and whispered in her sleep. I noticed her PipBuck had a flashing light on it and that the blasted noise that had been plaguing me was coming from it. I lightly tapped a button with my telekinesis to turn it off, before staring back up at the ceiling, trying to process what was happening to me.

Oh… buck me, I thought as I lay there amidst the two sleeping mares. What in the world happened last night? What the buck did we do? I don’t remember!!! Oh Celestia, Violet is so going to kill me. But wait, she’s sleeping here too… so whatever happened she must be okay with it… right? Right? Answer me stupid conscience!!!

“Ouch. You’re loud, you know that?” my crazy voice whispered into the back of my head.

I silently thanked the Goddesses for crazy talk at that point in time. It was at least drawing my attention away from the massive headache that I had incurred from listening to that alarm.

Oh… no no no no, this is bad, this is really really bad, I thought, ignoring Spark’s intrusions. I panicked, trying to decide what to do. Do I get up and wake them up and possibly face the wrath of two little green mares, or do I continue to lay here enjoying the company of two little green mares? Curse my fate to the Goddesses above! I sighed even more as the two snuggled closer into me and I could feel my legs squishing further up against Patch’s body.

“Oh hey, good for you. You’re a pretty fun drunk, so I’m really happy for you,” Spark said, dripping with sarcasm.

I scowled. Seriously? I can’t even remember what happened. Don’t tell me you remember, I responded.

“Of course I do, but what fun would it be to tell you now? I was going to let one of these fine fillies tell you,” the voice said, chuckling.

I growled internally at my crazy. I was busy staring down my internal voice with furious heat ray laser eyes when a yawn broke my concentration. A green head on my right cracked her eyes open at me and stared at me intently. Oh Celestia no, I’m sorry please don’t be mad, please don’t be mad please don’t ---

“Star? Are you awake?” she said sweetly.

I nodded slowly, gearing myself up for the pain to come. It never did. Instead Violet snuggled close to me and sighed.

“Go back to sleep silly. It’s not even light out yet. You’re usually never up this early,” she said quietly. Patch shifted in her sleep and began to snore too, prompting a cute giggle from Violet. “See? Even she knows how to sleep in.”

I continued to stare at my marefriend like she was insane. What I wanted to say was things like ‘Who are you and what did you do with my friend?’ but about the only thing I could squeak out was “… okay.” She shifted, pulling herself out of bed and stretching. I watched silently as my green companion cracked her neck and looked back at me, a warm smile on her face. I am so confused, I thought as I watched my marefriend exit the room for what appeared to be the bathroom. As I gazed upon the room, I slowly realized this wasn’t the room we had been given to stay in, since neither Steeljack nor his stuff was anywhere to be seen. The shades in the room were drawn close, accounting for the darkness of the room that my eyes had managed to finally fully adjust to. A flushing noise alerted me to the fact that I should be asleep as Violet exited the bathroom. I snapped my eyes shut as I felt her warmth return to my side. A groan escaped her lips as she pressed against me.

“You’re not asleep are you?” I heard her ask.

My eyes fluttered open and I shook my head softly.

“Are you… aren’t you mad at me…?” I asked, feeling very confused and scared at that moment. My eyes drifted over to Patch, who was still asleep.

Realization dawned on Violet’s face as she began to work out what I meant in her head. She smiled softly and leaned in, giving me a kiss.

“Why in the world would I ever be mad at you?” she said softly.

“But I thought…” I started to say.

“Nope,” she replied.

“But I thought you…” I said, eyes glancing over at Patch again.

She looked disgusted. “Eww. No,” she said.

“So then we didn’t…?” I ventured.

Violet’s eyes widened further. “No!” she almost shouted.

Patch’s eyes flew open as she fell off the side of the bed, taking the covers with her. A few minutes of wrestling and cursing with the sheets and she was free.

“I’m okay! I’m alright!” she shouted to nopony in particular, before finally locking gazes with me and Violet. “Oh… good morning you two. Sleep okay?”

I blinked, even more terribly confused than I was before. The green mare smiled and pranced to the bathroom herself, humming a small tune as she did. I looked back down at Violet, eyes watering as she smiled.

“So what did happen?” I asked quietly.

“You had a little too much to drink last night, and you started acting silly. Then you passed out. Patch offered to put us up in her room for the night since it was closer than ours, and also on the ground floor. You’re really heavy you know that right? Anyways, we tried getting you into bed, but you wanted to roll off the bed… so we did the most logical thing we could think of. We sandwiched you in on both sides to keep you in place,” she replied.

I sighed as I pulled my love closer into a hug. I chuckled at the thought of it all. It did sound a little silly. I mean come on, what are the odds that I managed to have sex with not one, but two beautiful little green mares?

Spark you owe me an apology for lying to me, I said to the crazy in me, who didn’t respond. Whatever, maybe she had better things to do with her time, like lying to me about a potential threesome.

“What’s so funny?” Violet said finally as I released her from my embrace. She laid her head against my side, sighing contently.

“Oh nothing… just thinking about how I worked myself up over all of this. I mean, I seriously considered the fact that the three of us had sex,” I said jokingly, quickly giving one of those ‘Please don’t hit me!’ smiles.

“Oh well that. That totally happened,” Violet said nonchalantly.

My eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. “What.” I said flatly.

Violet giggled profusely at this, clearly excited at the prospect of playing this off for all it was worth.

“Kidding!” she replied. I playfully growled and pushed her off the bed. “Hey!” I chuckled as she got up and tried to push me off, giving up after about a minute of pushing. “Ugh. You really are too heavy.”

“Are you calling me fat?” I said, playfully glaring at my friend.

She chuckled nervously. “No… no no. Never!” she replied, smiling.

A flush of a toilet alerted us to Patch’s presence as she exited the bathroom back into the room. She smiled when she saw us.

“Sorry about that, I really had to go. Man you girls really know how to party. We’ll have to do that again sometime!” she said excitedly as she trotted over and sat on the bed.

By this time I had managed to extricate my numb legs off of the bed slightly enough so that the pins and needles feeling began creeping into me as feeling returned to them.

“Yeah… about that. Sorry for imposing upon you, I really hope I wasn’t too much of bad house guest,” I said, lowering my head before the green earth pony, who merely laughed.

“Please, you guys are the first friends I’ve found around this place in a while. Don’t mention it!” she replied, giggling.

A loud growl escaped from my stomach as I grinned at the two mares.

“So… what’s for breakfast?”

A short while later, after a lovely little breakfast of two-hundred year old oats in a can (preserved for taste and goodness!), we strapped our gear on and met with Steeljack at the main stairwell. Patch hung back a bit, looking a little melancholy. I smiled and stepped up to the green mare, wrapping a wing around her.

“Something on your mind?” I said softly.

She immediately perked up and chuckled. “Oh… umm nothing. It’s just… you guys are leaving aren’t you?” she said, a twinge of sadness in her voice.

I sighed. I really liked Patch. She was a great host, and was really pleasant to me and Violet last night. No, not in that way. Pervert. Seriously, nothing happened! Weren’t you listening to Violet? She said so! Ugh, okay I’m not arguing with you right now! Anyways, I grabbed her in a small hug after that.

“Yeah, unfortunately we do have to go. Too many questions and not enough answers,” I replied.

A brisk cough from behind me broke me away from the earth pony mare. I turned to see Major Kirby standing there.

“Major,” I said. “Thank you again for your hospitality.”

The unicorn chuckled a bit. “You know when you came in here, I knew I recognized you. The Ministry Mare herself. Didn’t know you were with the Followers. Thought you was independent. Anyways, I got a little proposition for you, if you’re interested that is,” the old stallion said.

What now? I thought as I stared at the unicorn. My thoughts drifted back to Discord. I knew I could trust the NCR, but the prevailing thought in my mind was really could I? Was it possible in any way that they knew what was going on too and wanted a piece of the action?

“What kind of proposition?” I asked, getting right to the point of the matter. Best not beat around the bush this time.

“As I’m sure you’re aware, Fillydelphia is separated into various gangs made up of former slaves. Thankfully for us in the NCR, these gangs have always traditionally spent their time killing each other, which lets us deal with the survivors much easier,” Major Kirby replied, motioning for us to follow him. “Well, as of last week, we’ve been getting word that a new gang is rising up through the ranks. Seems like this gang is gaining lots of power really quickly, and it’s causing the other gangs to stop fighting between each other and take notice. This gang has now crossed the line by attacking a NCR convoy bound for Junction Town.”

“Long story short, you’d like for us to find out more about this gang and maybe stop them?” Violet asked.

“Based on what we can ascertain, the gang has headquarters near the crater. What are unnerving are the stories I’ve been getting in about the gang’s leader. Rumors have been flying everywhere, but one of them is always the same and that is the buck cannot be killed. Anypony who’s actually seen this mystery leader says that bullets just bounce off of him like he’s got some sort of shield all over his body,” Kirby continued to say.

My blood boiled at this. I glared at the Major, feeling like I might explode any minute. Violet placed a hoof on me, looking up at me with pleading eyes.

“Star? You alright?” she said softly.

I shook my head angrily. “It’s Greed,” I said flatly, staring hard at the Major.

Violet let out a small gasp.

“You know this guy?” Major Kirby asked.

I nodded, and proceeded to explain about our trip down to Fillydelphia and how Greed had kidnapped me and my friends. The Major let out a low whistle when I explained about the crazy stallion’s indestructible hide. Low gasps could be heard from my friends. I realized I had neglected to tell Violet and Steeljack this part before.

“We’ll do it,” I finally said. “I’ve got a score to settle with that monster.”

Kirby smiled and offered his hoof. I took it and shook with him.

“Excellent. I’ll make sure that we get you all the intelligence we have on the gang as well as any supplies you may need. You’ll be well compensated for your time. I’m sure your efforts will not go unnoticed here Ministry Mare,” Kirby replied.

“Umm… sir?” a meek voice chimed in below us. We looked down to see Patch, who was saluting the Major. “Permission to join their team for this mission.”

“I’m afraid I can’t let you do that soldier. You’re needed here,” Kirby said sternly.

“With all due respect sir, they need somepony to guide them through the city, and they won’t find a better guide than me,” the green mare brusquely replied.

I smiled. Way to stick up for yourself! I thought gleefully.

“She has a point there Major. We could definitely use her expertise here,” Violet said, nodding in agreement. I nodded as well. The Major sighed and nodded along too.

“Alright, you can go. But I expect you to come back alive you hear?” he replied, causing Patch to jump around shouting ‘Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes!’ Clearly she was excited at this prospect. “Soldier!” Patch stopped immediately at this and saluted again.

“Thank you sir, I won’t let you or the NCR down,” she said with a serious tone.

The Major nodded. “Alright. I have some business to attend to. I shall have my assistant provide you with everything you need. Should you need me personally I will be in my office,” he said as he turned and headed down the hallway.

I turned to my friends. “Alright. Violet, you go take care of the intelligence we need. Steeljack, you check out the armory and see what additional firepower you can rustle up. Patch, I’d like for you to work on drawing up a map of the area so that we can plan out a route through the city that will keep us clear of any of the other gangs,” I said.

They nodded and began to depart. Violet turned back before leaving.

“What are you going to be doing?” she asked.

I grinned heavily again and unlatched Stargazer from its harness.

“Practicing.”

A rattling noise filled my ears as I pulled the trigger. The training dummy was ripped to shreds by the hail of bullets. After we split up, I found myself asking one of the NCR officers if they had any place where I could train with a loaded weapon. The officer, a tawny earth pony stallion, smiled kindly and led me to the roof, where a training range had been set up for the officers to stay sharp with a gun. I thanked the buck and proceeded to unload hell down the range. His eyes went wide at seeing Stargazer. He was so interested that he hung around and watched me practice, giving me pointers here and there on firing technique and the use of S.A.T.S.

I snarled as I came out of E.S.A.T.S., dropping a spray of bullets into several targets at one time. Only one thought pervaded in my mind. Greed. I could still see his shit-eating grin and his blackened body as bullet after bullet struck and flew off of it. I promised myself I would introduce him to Stargazer at my earliest opportunity. If normal bullets couldn’t get through his ultimate shield, perhaps Stargazer’s special bullets could.

I looked to the NCR officer and asked him if they had any training bots that could shoot back. I really needed to practice with dodging and strafing. He grinned and walked over to a control panel behind a pane of glass.

“You might want to get ready!” he shouted from behind the glass.

I nodded, and he pressed a button on the control panel. A training robot popped up and began firing at me with a rifle attached to its back. I strafed to the right and left, dodging the gunfire as the robot began to follow my movements. I leaped into the air, triggering E.S.A.T.S. I set up a queue of shots to the legs of the training bot and let the spell run its course. Stargazer aimed and let loose the series of bullets at the robot, striking it in its legs with roughly half of the shots. My wings flared open as I dove towards the robot, throwing up my shield as the thing brought its rifle to bear on me. Gunfire struck off of my shield as I slammed into the robot, ripping the rifle from its back. I grinned as I tossed the rifle aside. I turned in midair and fired Stargazer, hitting the thing in the back and causing sparks to fly from it. I dropped to the roof and latched Stargazer to its harness. A soft clopping of hooves came from the NCR officer. I thanked him for his time and for helping me out, and headed back down into the hotel to see how my companions were faring in their task.

I found Violet shortly after I arrived on the ground floor. I chuckled and snuck up behind her as she walked along with several rolled up documents floating alongside her. I shook my rump a bit and let my horn glow, lifting my marefriend from the floor with telekinesis.

“Hey!” she shouted as I turned her around to face me.

I giggled profusely and gave her a peck on the cheek. She glared at me. I kindly put her down. Not getting on her bad side!

“So what did you find out?” I asked as we walked along to try and find Steeljack and Patch.

Violet unrolled a few of the documents. “It seems our mutual friend Greed has been rather busy. Prior to a few weeks ago, all the gang activity was dispersed throughout the city. Then Greed and his cronies came to town, and all of it is slowly converging on the area around the Fillydelphia Crater. It’s confusing. Almost like there’s something there that he wants,” the green unicorn said.

I nodded and stared at the various reports that Violet was showing me. What did that crazy stallion want? None of it made any sense, but there was only one pony that would be able to answer that question.

We arrived at the armory, where Steeljack was waiting outside for us. He had acquired several armaments for all of us to use should we need them. He had also had time to stop by the clinic and grab any medical supplies the NCR doctors could part with. Patch arrived shortly thereafter, having acquired a map and having plotted out our route through the city. An excited look crossed her face as we exited the hotel.

The journey through the city was a silent one. I didn’t really feel like talking to anypony. The only thing on my mind was Greed. I owed him pretty good for the last time we met. After what he did to my friends and me for that matter, he deserved every bit of what he had coming to him. I kept checking my E.F.S. every few minutes, making sure that there were no red blips around us. Thankfully, there was nothing. Of course, that struck me as odd. Usually this city was teeming with firefights and gang wars. Why all of a sudden was there no activity at all? Even the air around us was still as we followed Patch’s route through the city.

“I don’t like the feel of this,” Violet said quietly. “It feels like we’re being watched.”

“Yeah…” replied Steeljack.

I nodded in agreement. The still air wafted over us as we walked down the street. It felt like there was somepony watching us from afar, yet I couldn’t pick anything up on my E.F.S. Whatever it was, they were watching from outside of our E.F.S. range. The sun began to set as we walked, making way for night time. Rather than continue, we opted to find an abandoned building to hole up in for the night. We quickly located an old bank building that was bereft of any gang-related symbols and cautiously entered. Rubble and skeletons covered the ground floor of the building. The vaults had long since been broken open, their massive steel doors rusted off their hinges. Several terminals were strewn about the ground, their monitors broken and dark.

“Set up camp, Steeljack and I will look around to see if there’s anything salvageable,” I said.

Patch and Violet nodded and began clearing rubble aside, making room for our camp. Steeljack and I walked around the back of the bank teller stations and into the offices beyond. Blackened terminals lined the rows of cubicles as we walked through the ruined office. A row of lockers rested against the far wall. I gave a good tug on the doors. Locked. As always. I proceeded to begin ripping locks out of the locker doors, pulling the doors away and tossing them to the side. The lockers presented a halfway decent haul. There were some healing potions and some more spark batteries for Violet’s beam rifle, plus several bottles of Sparkle-Cola. I grinned as I yanked the bottles out and showed them to Steeljack, who grinned back.

“So… what happened to you last night?” my earth pony friend asked.

“What do you mean?” I responded as we began rummaging through the cubicles for anything useable.

“Well… you and Violet obviously didn’t show up last night at the room. I just sort of figured…” he started to say before I cut him off.

“No, nothing happened. I got… I got a little too drunk, and we stayed with Patch for the night since her room was closer,” I said quietly.

He chuckled. “One of those nights then?” he replied.

I glared at him again. Why couldn’t I have laser heat beams that shot from my eyes? That was fair, right? Right? Oh shut up brain. What do you know? I opted for childish behavior instead and stuck my tongue out at him. I grinned and laughed, before turning serious.

“Just keeping an eye out for you is all. Friends, remember? Something you already told me,” the earth pony buck said.

“Thank you. I appreciate your concern,” I replied, stepping up to my friend and giving him a hug. “We’d better get back to the others.”

He nodded and we made our way back to the bank lobby, where Patch and Violet had set up camp. They were getting our dinner ready. I placed our findings into the saddlebags, and sat down next to Violet as I yanked out the box of memory orbs. My marefriend gave me a glare as I opened them.

“What?” I said as she stared at me.

“Last time you dipped into one of those things, we ended up getting captured,” she said quietly. “I just don’t know if you should or not. Something could happen to you or to us, or worse!”

“Look, it’s going to be fine. You guys are all here. It’s not like Greed is going to just sneak up on us again,” I replied with a roll of my eyes. The glare didn’t lessen. Her eyes pleaded with me. I sighed. “Alright, alright. I’ll wait til we’re somewhere safe and not so close to psycho-raider territory. I promise I won’t look at one of these orbs.”

She smiled softly. Alright so I’m a sucker for a green mare with soft eyes. So sue me alright? We set up a system of shifts for watching, and I purposefully took the first shift. I knew in my heart that I would be going back on my promise, but after our experience in the Ministry of Awesome, I knew that these orbs had some sort of clues for me. I needed to know what was next. As I sat and watched my friends sleep, I pondered the existence of the orbs. The Twilight Society had some reason for putting them there, and they would provide for an excellent escape from my current inner rage towards a certain unicorn stallion.

Patch relieved me of my watch in what felt like no time. I smiled at the green mare and made my way over to Violet, who was fast asleep. I surreptitiously drew out one of the memory orbs out of its case, and stared at which one I had dragged out. Three apples emblazoned the side of the orb, an orange glow swirling inside of it. I looked to Violet, and then reached out with my magic on the orb, letting the world fall to black.

A warm feeling filled me as my eyes adjusted to the light. It was bright out. My host stared across the crowd of ponies before her with a somber smile. A vast graveyard spread out beyond visible sight, Canterlot Palace looming over the crowd. This must have been the Royal Cemetary! I thought as my host stepped up before the crowd onto a makeshift stage. A large white statue of a unicorn stallion in front of a black casket provided the backdrop for my host’s speech. In the crowd standing right up front I could see Twilight Sparkle, dressed in a black dress with a dark veil, being comforted by two unicorns who appeared to be her parents. Standing behind them were the other Ministry Mares as well as both Princesses. My host could see Rainbow Dash, her face buried into another’s neck, tears visible. Twilight’s tears flowed freely as I watched on and my host began to speak.

“We’re here today ta’ honor a fine stallion. One who perished for the greatest of all causes: protectin’ his loved ones. Shinin’ Armor was not just a General of tha’ Equestrian Army, he was one of mah closest friends. He died to give us all a future, a way through the darkest of times. He was a dedicated brother, a proud son, and a loving husband. And while he is no longer with us, his spirit lives on for Equestria. We aren’t here to just mourn his untimely death, but to celebrate his amazing life. His wife, Princess Cadance, would like to share a few words with us,” my host said, waving a hoof to the side of the makeshift stage where the most beautiful pink alicorn stood. Tears flowed freely from her eyes as she wiped them away and stepped up onto the stage. My host stepped down and sat next to Twilight, putting a leg around her friend and hugging her close. The lavender mare sobbed into my host’s shoulder.

“My husband was a kind stallion, loving to the core. When my husband first told me that he wanted to join the Equestrian Army, I argued with him. I pleaded with him not to go. We argued for several days. I didn’t see the point in it. Then Littlehorn happened. Fillies and colts, slaughtered for no reason. I saw the horror that the zebras had committed, and I finally relented. Shining Armor was my life and my love. He always gave his all in every situation, and was ready to protect his friends, comrades, and family with his very life. I loved my husband very much, and while I am sad I am also joyful. I am joyful that my husband gave his life so that others lived. Joyful that he spent his last moments of his life in the embrace of a loved one. Joyful that one day, I may see him again in the great beyond,” the pink alicorn said, her speech twinged with sadness and joy as she talked. She closed her eyes and began to sing, soft and slow.

Like the sun through the trees you came to love me

Like a leaf on a breeze you blew away

A gentle rain falls softly on my weary eyes

As if to hide a lonely tear

My life will be forever Autumn

Cause you’re not here

Cause you’re not here

Cause you’re not here…

Cadance’s voice trailed off to the sounds of crying and sobbing amidst the crowd. The Princess nodded at Twilight and my host, who was starting to tear up herself. Applejack helped the lavender mare stand up, and escorted her to the stage. My host sat by Twilight’s side as she began her part of the eulogy.

“My… my brother… excuse me sorry,” Twilight began as she wiped the tears from her eyes and sniffled. “My brother loved everypony with all of his heart and soul. He was my big brother, and he always watched out for me. Even at the very end, he was there for me. He gave his life so that I could live on, and find an end to this horrific war. I vow on his very grave that I will do just that. I will find a way through the darkness. Not just for everypony, but for my BBBFF. For Shining Armor, this I vow to you.”

The crowd was shushed as Twilight stepped down from the stage and sat down next to my host. The purple mare’s eyes were cold as steel as she watched the pallbearers lift up the casket and lower it into the ground. Twilight’s eyes softened once more as she reverted back to crying heavily. My host once again moved to comfort the unicorn, smiling softly at her. I felt my heart breaking for Twilight, just as it had when I had watched Shining Armor’s death in Rainbow Dash’s memory orb.

“Twi’?” my host asked, nudging the purple mare with a hoof. The sound of my host’s voice calmed the other mare for a second as she stared at my host. “Twi’ honey, we gotta go. It’s time for us to go now, okay?”

“But… I don’t… I don’t want to leave him,” Twilight replied weakly.

“Sugarcube, it’s all over. Everypony’s leaving now. We have to go,” my host responded with a shake of her head. She hugged Twilight close and pulled her up off of her hooves.

The purple mare’s mother and father comforted each other and walked by, hugging their daughter before continuing on amidst the throng of grieving ponies. My host tugged on the purple mare, pulling her back towards the palace, where the reception was being held.

“Applejack?” Twilight said quietly as they walked along behind the crowd.

My host turned to the unicorn. “Yea Twi’?” My host asked. The sky above began to erupt into rainfall and thunder roared.

“I miss him. I meant what I said. I’m not going to stop until I stop this horrific conflict,” Twilight said. She gazed at my host, her eyes unflinching as she did.

“I miss him too sugarcube. But he’s smilin’ down on us from above. He’s watchin’ us and he’ll be proud,” my host said. “We just gotta keep movin’, keep our chins up.”

Twilight smiled. The two mares continued walking behind the funeral crowd as the memory faded to black.

I woke up to the face of a very angry green unicorn. Violet was standing over me, her face red with furious rage. She began slugging me angrily. At the very least, we were still in the bank lobby and no raiders had killed or captured us in the night, right?

“You promised!” she yelled at me. Behind her, Steeljack and Patch stood off to the side, whistling quietly to themselves.

I looked up at my love pleadingly. “I’m sorry,” I managed to choke out.

Violet turned away for a second. “You told me you weren’t going to view one of those things, that you would wait. You couldn’t do it could you? You just had to do it. You’re lucky we noticed what you were doing,” she said, anger simmering in her voice as she looked back at me. “Why? Why would you… lie to me like that?”

I put my forehooves at her hooves and put myself in a groveling position.

“I know… I’m sorry. I lied; it was the wrong thing to do… please forgive me?” I said, begging my little green mare, who simply kept staring away from me.

“I… I don’t know,” she said, before sighing. “… Okay. Okay I’ll forgive you. Just… I don’t like it when I’m lied to alright? I thought you knew that. Made me feel like you didn’t value me as your marefriend. I just… it pissed me off.”

I nodded as I reached up and kissed her on the cheek.

“I’m sorry,” I said softly as I pulled her close into a hug. “I’m so sorry.”

She looked at me, teary eyed and hugged back. She helped me to my hooves as we got ready to get going. Steeljack and Patch had already gathered up most of our supplies, making our egress back into the city much easier. The journey back into the city was a silent one. I had the feeling that Violet still hadn’t totally forgiven me, but we didn’t really have enough time to worry about that. Our mission at hoof was much more important, and I personally felt that Violet knew this. Still, I knew she was mad at me. I deserved it too, for blatantly lying to her and breaking my promise to her.

As we walked through the city the feeling of being watched returned, along with the still air that had pervaded the day previous. I checked my E.F.S. again, but there was still nothing. What was going on? For a moment, I considered the fact that Discord hadn’t really left us alone, and was watching from somewhere we couldn’t detect him, if the E.F.S. could even detect the squirrely god of Chaos. The sun was high in the sky when the edge of the Fillydelphia Crater emerged before us. Across the massive crater we could see several makeshift huts made out of steel strewn about the edge. The huts were organized, and a large fence had been erected around the small camp. This was no gang hideout. This was a bona fide raider camp, as noted by the décor of practically every possible anatomically correct piece of a pony’s body that could be strung up on a pike. We could make out several ponies patrolling the fence perimeter, firearms ready for any sort of action.

I let out a low whistle. “Looks like somepony is preparing for a fight,” I said. Patch brought out her scope out of her saddlebags so we could get a closer look. Peering deeper into the camp, Patch began counting low. Her eyes widened after a moment. She brought the scope up to my eyes so I could see. Within the camp itself, not only ponies were guarding or standing around getting ready for combat. I could see several zebras, a few griffons, and even a buffalo. Gang marks adorned the barding worn by the various creatures in the camp. Patch spoke up.

“It’s all of them. All of the gangs. This guy managed to unite all of the gangs in Fillydelphia… in the span of a week? It doesn’t make any sense,” she said.

I lowered the scope back down to her and pointed.

“That’s not all they’ve managed to do. Look,” I said, indicating where I had been looking a second ago.

Just outside of the main camp there was a small cage pen, where contained within were dozens of ponies all wearing the familiar neck jewelry commonly associated with slavery. Bomb collars were typically used by slavers, especially those who had worked for the infamous Red Eye to keep their slaves in line. If a slave stepped out line then ‘BOOM’, no more slave. It was a surprisingly simple incentive to just do what you were told. Patch gasped in horror as she saw this.

“It’s like Red Eye all over again. But why?” she asked.

“Greed. He lives up to his name. He wants everything in the world to be his, and he won’t stop until he gets it, and that includes other ponies as well,” I replied angrily. “We need a plan of attack. We can’t just go in there guns blazing. Even with my shield I wouldn’t be able to protect all of you.”

“Speaking of the devil, did you see him at all?” Violet asked as she looked through the scope as well.

I shook my head. “No… and that’s what worries me. He’s not one for hiding in the shadows. He’s got something up his sleeves, I just wish I knew what,” I said, staring at the camp.

“I… may have an idea,” Patch piped up, with a grin on her face.

Sweet stage diving Celestia this mare is bonkers! I thought as I silently snuck across the Fillydelphia Crater. Patch had assured me her plan was sound, but I still had doubts about any plan that involved me getting potentially shot at multiple times. The green mare had holed herself up in an abandoned building nearby the camp with her sniper rifle, ready to provide cover at a moment’s notice. Our job was to silently lay the explosive charges we had acquired from the NCR armory about the fence perimeter of the camp, I on one end and Violet on the other. We waited until nightfall to minimize detection. When the raiders awoke in the morning, they were in for a nasty surprise. We hoped the initial explosions would take out enough of the raider camp in order for Violet, Steeljack, and I to enter and take the rest of them down, and hopefully find Greed.

I said a small silent prayer to Luna as I took out one of the charges, laying it at the base of the fence, careful not to touch the actual fence itself in case of an alarm before moving on to the next point. Despite the fact that these raiders were so vigilant during the day, they seemed to be lax in their patrols during the night. In fact, there seemed to be none at all around, all of the makeshift huts closed up for the evening. My E.F.S. showed dozens of unmoving red blips, indicating that the raider camp was completely asleep. Combined with the smell and the strung up body parts, the whole scene was quite eerie and not at all pleasant. I kept moving forward and planting charges, blissfully unaware until I slammed into something hard. A shimmer glowed in the air before me and a zebra dressed in raider’s armor suddenly appeared. A maniacal grin crept across his face as he stepped forward and lifted his rifle.

*fwhip*

Next thing I knew, I was showered in zebra brains. The zebra’s head exploded in a shower of gore in a near instant. I groaned as I looked about, trying to see if anypony else had heard the zebra’s untimely death. I once again sent up a prayer to Luna for crazy green mares with sniper rifles as I dragged the zebra’s body out into the darkness where it couldn’t be easily seen, propping it up behind a rock. I brushed off a piece of zebra out of my mane and shuddered. It was going to take a good long while to get the gore out of my mane and I knew it. I was about to continue forward and finish planting the charges when a scream pierced the air. A scream I knew all too well.

Violet, I thought as I took to the air, not caring at that moment in time if anypony saw me or if I was breaking away from the plan. The plan had already failed the moment that the scream had occurred. All I knew is that Violet was in trouble. I burst into speed, landing on the other side of the camp where I could see Violet struggling with what appeared to be a buffalo. A massive sledgehammer lay across the buffalo’s back, attached to a makeshift harness. I dropped down in front of the beast, eyes blazing with rage.

“Let. Her. Go,” I said flatly.

A deep chuckle erupted from the buffalo.

“You’re too easy,” the creature said. “Greed said you would come if one of your friends was in danger. He’s been expecting you.”

Shit! I thought as I realized what was going on. This was a setup. A trap. Greed knew I was here somehow, and he knew exactly how to lure me in. I snarled at the buffalo, who tossed the struggling Violet to the side, where a zebra shimmered into existence and caught her.

“So that’s how you want to do this?” he said, unlatching the sledgehammer. “Fine by me. I’ll ground you into paste.” The massive weapon’s handle turned about in the buffalo’s teeth, held firm and strong by the beast’s powerful jaws. He grunted and leaped, swinging the sledge right at me before I even realized what was happening.

Shit, he’s fast! I thought, dropping myself to the ground. The sledge swung over, striking a wing as I dodged. Searing pain roared all the way up to the base of the wing, and I felt a few feathers and blood trickle down my side. The buffalo readied himself for another strike, this time an overhead strike that if I wasn’t able to get out of the way of would definitively turn me into ground pate. A voice cut through the air, stopping the buffalo.

“Enough!” the voice barked. From behind the fence stepped the master of ceremonies himself. Greed grinned wickedly as he appeared; his wild hair and frightening eyes were ablaze with wild abandon. “We don’t want to hurt our guest now do we? She’s rather important, in case you forgot you buffoon.”

“Sorry, boss,” the buffalo said. I growled and ripped Stargazer from its harness, aiming at the unicorn. Greed merely yawned.

“Boring. You shoot, and I’ll make sure that she experiences the full pleasure of pain before she dies,” he said, waving a hoof at the zebra holding Violet, who had been knocked unconscious by the striped raider. “If she makes any sudden movements, you’re allowed to do whatever you want.”

The zebra grinned maniacally as I let Stargazer fall to the ground. Greed chuckled.

“That’s right. Now then, where are your others… Oh yes, there they are,” he said, pointing behind me.

I turned and saw Patch and Steeljack being forcefully led by a griffon wearing raider style armor. I turned back to the crazed unicorn stallion. I could see that Steeljack appeared to be limping.

“Let them go. It’s me you want. You don’t need them,” I said, prostrating myself before the psychotic buck.

Greed laughed wildly. “No. They’re insurance you see. I’m ensuring you cooperate with me,” he replied.

“What do you want this time? Some other random artifact? What, the last one not work for you or something?” I asked, gritting my teeth.

The mad stallion shook his head. “Nothing so simple or pedestrian. No… I figured out what that little trinket was for. It’s pretty amazing really. It doesn’t so much as give immortality as it takes mortality from another and gives the remaining years to the bearer of the artifact. Once I figured it out… all it took was a little aggression and dominance over the pathetic gangs in the city. I knew it would get your attention. No… you’re here now so that I can use this artifact… on you,” he said as he began to cackle again.

The artifact stole life from other ponies? I groaned. If I had known what I was letting the crazy fucker have in the first place, I think I would have tried to kill him in the museum. Greed motioned to his entourage, who funneled me and my companions into the raider camp. Our weapons were removed and we were forced into a cage in the center of the camp. At the very center of the camp lay a pedestal where the bluish figurine that I had helped Greed steal sat, waiting for me and my life force.

Greed stepped forward and addressed the crowd of raiders, who by now had come out from sleeping to see what the ruckus was about. “My friends, here before you lay a paragon of justice! A supposed bringer of light! The Ministry Mare! You’ve heard all about her on the radio! What do we have to say about this?!” he yelled. The crowd growled and booed in my direction, several of them throwing disgusting food and other items at the cage.

“Yes! The time has come for the oppressive shackles of good to come off! We remember a time when the Wasteland was as it should be: a fierce unrelenting place where everypony fought for themselves! It was ponies like this one here, like the Stable Dweller who brought that fine vision to an end! My friends, I seek to change that! I will become the most powerful being in existence, not because I want to help you or be your friend, but because I am avarice defined! I am he who takes all, he who seeks to gain all knowledge, all power, all the money, everything! I am Greed incarnate!” the stallion screamed at the crowd that was now drawing silent.

I moved to check on Violet while the buck was evangelizing to the raiders. She was still unconscious, but alive and breathing. Only a few bruises adorned her side, most likely from where she had been struck by Greed’s cronies. Patch stepped up beside me.

“What do we do now?” she said quietly.

I sighed, and extended my good wing over the green mare. “I… I don’t know Patch. I just don’t know,” I said, as I laid a hoof on Violet’s side, rubbing her and praying to whatever Goddess might be listening to keep her alive. The sound of Greed’s voice brought my attention back to the buck.

“Tomorrow night my dear friends. Tomorrow night I shall remove this pathetic excuse for a hero from the picture, and ascend to godhood!” The crazy stallion cackled madly, inciting a roar of approval and the stomping of hooves from the excited crowd. “Now I bid you all, go back to sleep. We have a very productive day tomorrow!”

The raiders roared in approval and began to disperse, heading back to their makeshift huts. The buffalo and the zebra from earlier stayed near our cage, acting as guards. Greed merely looked at me and grinned before heading into his own abode. I turned to Patch and whispered.

“Get some sleep. We’ll figure out something. Even if it means doing what he wants, I will get you out of here alive. I will make sure you all live,” I said quietly as I promised the world to the green mare.

She smiled and went over to Steeljack, who grunted as he lay down. He appeared to have been struck in the leg, dried blood caked on his front hoof. I moved over to him and looked at it gently.

“How does it feel?” I asked.

He grimaced. “Hurts like shit, but I reckon I’ll be alright,” he replied. “Bleeding’s done stopped. How’s Violet?”

“A little banged up and she’s out like a light bulb, but she’s alive and breathing,” I said. “Get some rest. I’m going to try and come up with a way out of this mess.”

The earth pony buck nodded as I stood up and laid myself down next to Violet. I extended my good wing over her to keep her warm, my eyes drifting off into obscurity and my brain zipping with activity as I fell asleep.

Well, this is just what I needed at this point in time. Another trip to crazy town! The same doors, the same unending hallway greeted my eyes as they fluttered open into my dream world. I drew a hoof along the various doors that had been locked: Loneliness, Obsession, Anger, and Guilt. Memories and emotions that belonged to a mare who was light years away from me, but yet felt so close at the same time. I stood and waited for the next door to open, pondering the existence of these beings. What would happen to them when my life force was sucked away? Would this all end for good then? I thought about annoying the shit out of Greed until he just went through with his threat of taking away my life force. No ceremony, no remembrance, nothing would be needed for him to just do it. So why hesitate? I thought as the familiar *fwoosh* noise followed by a door creaking indicated that the next part of my journey was ready.

I turned and stepped back into an old memory as I walked through the door. The Hoofton Hotel penthouse room where Twilight had stayed that night with Rarity met me as I entered through the old frame. Twilight herself sat on the couch as I entered, smiling warmly at me.

“Hello Star,” she said as she motioned to the other side of the couch. I sat down next to the lavender mare. “I’ve been expecting you for some time.”

“Who are you? Are you the real her?” I asked.

The purple unicorn shook her head. “No, I’m not. I wish I could be, but I’m just a fragment, another lost emotion in the sea of feelings. But… if you had to give me a name, well you can call me Love,” she replied, smiling.

“Finally, a positive emotion! You have no idea how hard it’s been dealing with all these crazy emotions!” I exclaimed.

“Nopony ever said that Love was a positive emotion Star. In fact… Love may be one of the strangest emotions one may ever experience,” Love said with a chuckle.

I cocked my head, confused at this. “How so?” I asked.

“Love hurts Star,” the lavender mare replied. “Love is a powerful and fleeting emotion. It resonates in all of us, causing both pain and joy at the same time. Let me put it this way… do you love your Violet?”

“I do… I do love her, but I messed up. I did something stupid,” I said.

“Would you put your life on the line for her? Would you die for her?” she responded.

I thought for a moment. Would I go so far to save Violet? Would I let my earthly body disappear for her? After a few minutes of soul searching, my answer was clear. I nodded my head. Love grinned.

“You see? You do understand. It pains you so much to feel that you would do anything for the sake of Love. Love is fickle and fast. The best thing you can do is to never let is escape your grasp,” she said.

I looked around the room and nodded before returning to her gaze.

“What do I do then? If I don’t do something… she and all my other friends… they’ll be killed for sure,” I said.

“Have you ever heard the story of Twilight’s great love for her brother?” the unicorn asked.

“I… I umm… gathered as much from watching the memory of his funeral,” I replied, turning my eyes to the floor.

The unicorn’s eyes softened at this.

“Yes… I remember that day with great detail. I was there, as I always was in Shining Armor’s presence, dead or alive. Anyways, Twilight loved her brother very much, so much so that she went off the deep end during his wedding to Princess Cadance. This event led Twilight to falter in her love, to believe that her big brother no longer loved her as much as she did. However, she did not lie down and die for this. No, she found out that her brother’s love was being devoured by a foul being who was pretending to be his bride, thanks to the real Princess Cadance. At the end of the day, love won out because that’s what love does. Love will always prevail. Sometimes it might hurt and sometimes it feels like everything is dark, but Love… it finds a way, and you will too,” the lavender unicorn said.

“You do know we’re stuck in the middle of a raider camp right?” I asked flatly, earning myself a giggle from the emotion.

“Of course I do silly,” she replied. “We can see things through your eyes of course. We’re as much a part of you now as we were of her. In fact you may even say, we’re yours moreso now than before.”

“About that…” I said nervously. “Why me? Why are you all here? Am I becoming Twilight? Or something different? I’m so confused, and I need answers.”

The unicorn giggled again at this.

“I don’t have all the answers unfortunately Star. I do know that we are with you, through and through. Even the negative emotions. We all need you, just as you need us,” she said.

I nearly cried out in exasperation. Nopony ever had any answers! It was time for the big guns.

“There’s… one other thing maybe you can help me understand then. I met Discord,” I said.

The lavender mare nodded. “We know. The beast of Chaos. He watches you even now,” she said. I guess that explained the whole ever-present watching feeling. “We also know what he said to you. Pay no mind to his machinations Star. He is trying to get inside your head, since that is how he will win. He will wait until your will has been broken, and then he will come for you.”

“What do I do then? What if I really am becoming another Goddess?” I asked. “What if he’s right?”

“What you will do is let go. Latch onto Love, not Fear. If you are to become a Goddess, become a caring and loving one, not a vengeful and hate-filled one,” the mare replied, smiling.

I laid my head down before her and began to cry. I was lost and confused, and here was the one emotion I had hoped would pull me out of my funk, and it felt like all she had done was made it hurt worse. The lavender unicorn rested her head next to mine, and gave me a sweet nuzzle.

“Love hurts. But it always finds a way. Find your way. Find your way… Find your way…” Love repeated softly in my ear.

The world around me faded to black once more as the purple unicorn continued to console me.

I awoke to the subtle prodding of a small green unicorn. My eyes fluttered open to stare upon Violet, who had a worried look on her face. Beyond her I could see Patch and Steeljack sitting in the center of the cage, watching the raiders with sullen eyes. My bad wing seared in pain, but felt like it would be okay.

“Star…?” she asked.

I smiled and pulled myself up and into a fierce hug with my love, startling her as she returned my embrace. Tears streamed out of my eyes as I hugged her close.

“I’m… I’m so sorry. None of this should have ever happened. It’s all my fault,” I said quietly, sobbing into her mane.

Violet rubbed my neck softly and smiled. “Silly. It’s not your fault. Everything is going to be okay,” she said, continuing to rub my neck as she hugged me.

I pulled back and started to dry my tears.

“You… you’re not mad at me? I thought maybe…” I said, seeing the look in her eyes that said she really wasn’t.

She smiled softly and shook her head.

“Never could be. You’re my best friend after all,” she replied. “Are you alright? You look a little… run down.”

“Weird dreams again. I keep seeing Twilight’s emotions. I think they’re starting to get to me…” I said, rubbing my eyes to dry the tears further. “I seriously thought that you were still mad at me about the memory orb thing. Guess I took it a little too far huh?”

Violet laughed quietly. “It happens. Mares… we’re complicated aren’t we? All these feelings inside,” she said, chuckling.

I laughed with her as we sat there, contemplating our impending doom.

“Star…?” Violet said after a few minutes of silence.

“Yeah?”

“I wanted to tell you… if we don’t make it…” she started to say before I cut her off.

“Now, don’t think like that. We’re going to be fine. I have a plan,” I said, smiling. Indeed a plan had been formulating in my head, and although it wasn’t a very good one, it was one with opportunity.

“Still… I wanted somepony to know, and you’ve asked before… how I got my cutie mark,” she said finally, smiling up at me.

“Really? I thought you said it wasn’t a happy memory,” I said softly. I looked back again at Steeljack and Patch, who were now sleeping.

“It isn’t… but you should know. Firstly… when you found me originally, the ponies in the caravan they weren’t my real parents. I was actually born and raised near Baltimare on a farm. Well, a rock farm at least. I was a typical filly, young and rambunctious, never putting much thought into my life. It was a normal day, and my mother and father had just finished bartering for trade with a travelling caravan. You see, occasionally we would find gemstones in our quarry and those sold for lots of caps. Caps we then used to trade for necessities with the caravans. Anyways… we were just about to head inside for the night when the ground began to shake. At first we thought it was an earthquake, but it… it wasn’t. The reason we used to find gemstones was because the quarry was right above a dragon’s cave, and he was angry. My mother and father were killed in front of my very eyes as the beast’s claws ripped them into pieces. I was in shock; I didn’t know what to do. I found myself facing down the eye of a highly pissed off dragon. I stared at the thing, a scared little filly with no way of ever escaping. Then suddenly it was gone. It left me alone. I don’t know why or how, but it left me alone. I fell asleep in the ruins of my house that night, crying and scared. When I woke up, I found this on my flank. I don’t know what it means. Maybe my special talent is warding off dragons or something, I don’t know. I got up, walked until I found the nearest caravan and never looked back,” the little green mare said, tears welling up in her eyes.

I hugged her close to me and smiled.

“Hey now, it’s alright. A lot of ponies don’t even deserve their own cutie marks. We’ll get out of this, and I promise you we’ll figure out what your cutie mark means,” I said, kissing my mare on the cheek.

She looked up at me, eyes pleading. “Do you really think we’re going to get out of this?” she asked.

“Like I said, I’ve got a plan. And I think it’s just about time to put it into play,” I said, standing up and walking over to Patch and Steeljack. I shook them awake, nearly startling them.

“I need for you both to be ready. You’ll know when the time is right, I just need you all to stick together,” I said to my three friends. I left them looking confused as I walked over to the gate to our little enclosure. My horn glowed, giving the guards a bit of a show as I teleported out of the enclosure and into the center of the raider camp. As guns turned towards me, I threw up my shield and shouted.

“WE DEMAND TO SEE GREED! WE HAVE A PROPOSITION FOR HIM,” I shouted, magically amplifying my voice at the buffalo Roa and the zebra that were guarding our enclosure. I grinned through the haze of my shield as my companions watched on with fear in their eyes. I’m betting they wondered if I had perhaps gone mad. Maybe I have. Maybe, just what I needed right now, was a little madness. Roa nodded, and the zebra retreated into the camp as the buffalo gave the signal to hold fire. I nodded back and dropped my shield. Moments later, the stallion of the hour appeared before me.

“I was told you wished to see me?” Greed said with laughter and mirth in his eyes.

“Yes. We wish to propose an offer to you. We are challenging you Greed. You and me, and nopony else. No weapons, no magic. We are challenging you to a duel… to the death.”

Author's Notes:

Whee. This was a fun chapter to write, if only because the beginning made me chuckle after every read through. Plus the return of the infamous Greed! He just won’t leave our protagonists alone will he? The song I used in the funeral scene (yes more emotional trauma for Twilight!!) was the song “Forever Autumn” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forever_Autumn_%28song%29

I’ve been having tons of fun writing this, and really have enjoyed all of the feedback I’ve received on it. You guys are awesome!

Once again, I’m so grateful to Kkat for this fantastic world we’ve been given to play in, and I’m happy just being a part of it all.

If you’ve really dug this, please don’t forget to comment or toss me an upvote if you haven’t already. Every little bit helps!