A revelation dawned on Clockwork that day. There were very few feelings that could compare to taking a hot shower after nearly three hours of nonstop flight training. He couldn’t help but laugh while he washed himself off, for he was still too far gone in the high of his first flight. It took a long while before his senses returned in full, but he wasn’t too worried about how much water he was using, the facility recycled nearly all of it anyway.

Like shattering glass, Clockwork’s happiness turned to curiosity as Taffy’s words came surging back. Three personnel within R&D had been exposed as traitors after trying to sedate Clockwork so they could either remove his wing or send him to the Griffon Empire for Celestia-knows-what. Their level of clearance was far beyond his level, and to be set in such a position required them to have either infiltrated the branch long before the war's beginning, or they had snuck in fairly recently with the help of a friend.

But who could’ve let them in? From what Clockwork understood, he had three good friends that had earned his trust, two mares he was friends with, and one whom he was in a relationship with. Specifically, Haywire, Saltwater Taffy, and-

Clockwork noticed something out of the corner of his eye and spun around, bringing his prosthetic wing into full view to act as a shield. It felt like eternity before the steam cleared, and Clockwork practically yelped at who he saw.

“Wetwork? What the hay are you doing here?!”

The mare’s muzzle glowed red as she tried to stutter out a response. “Oh! I. . . uh, I was just- I, umm. . .”

CLACK!

Something fell from Wetwork’s grasp as she fumbled for a proper response. Before she could react, Clockwork darted towards the object and scooped it up in one hoof. Much to his shock and fury, it was none other than a LeMane revolver.

“What the-?! Wetwork, it’s you?!”

“Of course it’s me, and what the hay are you talking about? I was just trying to find you so I could show you the first model that rolled off the production line! Besides, I thought I left something in here and didn’t expect you to be pondering life’s greatest mysteries!”

“Why would you leave something in the stallion’s locker room?!”

Wetwork didn’t reply, instead collapsing to the floor in a sobbing heap. In seconds, Clockwork was dried off, clothed, and desperately trying to ease the crying unicorn. “Hey hey, I’m sorry. I’m just on edge is all and I wasn’t expecting anypony else to come in, especially you. I know how you aren’t good with shouting and stuff and I‘m really sorry, okay?”

After Clockwork wiped her eyes, Wetwork finally looked up. She planted a tiny kiss on the stallion’s forehead. “It’s okay, I was sudden and all.”

“Are you free right now?”

“What?”

Clockwork helped the mare to her hooves before rubbing his neck. “I just thought that um, well, if you were free for a while, we could head back to my room and look over what you brought. It’s kind of weird to discuss a weapon’s production status in front of the entrance to a bathroom.”

Wetwork giggled weakly. “Sounds fine to me.”

It wasn’t much longer before the two were off, and later situated in Clockwork’s quarters. The pegasus cursed under his breath as he went about trying to make the place look presentable, stuffing heaps of papers into already crowded bins and swiping clutter off of the thing he eventually realized was his long-missing coffee table. He struggled to pull a few chairs out from a storage space, but stopped at Wetwork’s urging.

“Um, I don’t think we need chairs since the rug is soft.”

With a sigh, Clockwork retrieved his LeMane, set it on the coffee table, and took his seat next to Wetwork. The unicorn gently levitated her pistol to rest alongside Clockwork’s original. With a deliberate slowness, Clockwork examined each one in fine detail, glad to be back in his natural element. “The factory model works just as well as mine, but it feels a little loose. How many of these did you say we're going to be produced?”

Wetwork shrugged. “I think there'll be about three hundred built for now, and maybe a few more later on. Not everypony out there is going to get one. I hear that the more elite pegasi are getting one as a sidearm, and most ship captains will get one too.”

“A shame, it’s a good first model though.” the stallion nodded as he went back to work. The hammers worked in a similar fashion, though the firing pin was much smaller on the mass-produced variant. It also seemed to have been painted with some kind of substance that dulled the metal’s brilliant shine. Overall, it appeared cheaper, but Clockwork believed it would perform its task without error. His attention was ripped from the weapons as he heard a sniffle, and looked to find Wetwork struggling to hold back tears.

“Wetwork, is something wrong?”

Wetwork practically collapsed into Clockwork’s lap and laid there, her tears finally beginning to fall. “. . . Are you okay?”

The pegasus brushed his marefriend's mane out of her eyes. “I’m fine, what’s the matter?”

“I'm worried about you.”

“Why? We’re both alive and out of harm’s way.”

“I’m not too sure about that. Everyone’s scared that there’s still somepony in Research and Development working for the enemy. Everypony’s been triple-checked by now, but I just can’t shake this weird feeling.”

Clockwork held the unicorn close, holding her head to his chest. She always liked the sound of a strong heartbeat. “Go on?”

“Just. . . promise that you won’t tell anypony what I’m about to say to you now, okay?”

“I promise.”

“Alright. I went to go get Haywire to have us both reevaluated, and I found her rummaging through some experimental medical equipment.”

“I don’t see anything wrong with-”

“Clockwork, she and I are both in weapons development. We’d need five more levels of clearance and a noble title to access that kind of stuff. I don’t know how she got in, but when I confronted her about it later, all she told me was that she was getting impatient waiting for somepony else to give her access to get the things she needed and decided she would get them herself. I just. . . I don’t want you to get hurt.”

Clockwork helped the mare right herself before kissing her just below the base of her horn, and later, her lips. “I appreciate your concern. I’ll keep an eye out, for the both of us, alright?”

“Okay.”

“Excuse me, Haywire?”

The earth pony looked over her shoulder, a wrench still in her mouth. Uoh, hai Clohcky. Shup?”

“Would you mind going for a walk with me?”

The mare spat out her implement like it was a piece of bad fruit. “Huh?”

Clockwork shrugged. “I need some fresh air, and I get the feeling R&D isn’t just going to let me roam freely after everything that’s happened.”

Haywire placed a forehoof to her chin for a moment. She mumbled something to herself about schedules for a moment before looking up. “I’ll have to shift one or two things around depending on how long we’re out, but I think I can manage. Anywhere in particular you wanted to go?”

“Just. . . around, really.”

The earth pony raised her eyebrow, shrugged, and then made her way out of the room only to stop at the doorway. “I can’t just go walking around Canterlot in my science coat. Meet you on the surface in ten?”

“Yeah, sounds great.”

“You feel hungry at all?”

Haywire shook her head, and the two ponies continued on their walk through the capital city of Equestria. Clockwork was amazed at how little the city seemed to have been affected by the attempted assassination. Aside from a greater than normal amount of guards at each cobblestone street corner, the metropolis still glowed with its characteristic marble white and bronze hues. Ponies of all shapes and sizes politely shifted past each other in the mid-day sunlight. Not too far in the distance, the pegasus could see the royal sister’s castle. It was a place of residence, a symbol of political and economic progression, and so long as one sister still had breath in their lungs, it would remain an impenetrable fortress.

“Hey, Clocky. You seem kinda out of it. You alright?”

Clockwork’s attention was brought back to the mare who he had asked to take a walk with. "Not entirely."

"What's on your mind? C'mon, we're friends, and friends help each other out, right?"

Clockwork sighed, gesturing for the mare to follow him as they made their way towards some cafe or another. With a scant few words, the two found a seat near the back of the restaurant, away from any curious ears. Neither pony consumed what they ordered.

"Clockwork," Haywire addressed her friend with a voice devoid of cheer, replaced entirely by concern. "please tell me what's going on."

The pegasus contemplated what he was about to do, eventually coming to the realization that it would be better to get it out here and now. "Wetwork brought my attention to something you did some time ago and made me promise not to talk to you about it. However, in the name of both her safety and mine, I'm breaking that promise."

The earth pony rolled her eyes. "This is about that thing with the medical equipment, ain't it?"

Clockwork felt a little taken aback by the mare's casual response, but he also felt a little safer. He relaxed his artificial wing, hidden below several layers of bandages to dissuade curious eyes, and nodded. "Yes. You broke-"

"I busted seventeen rules and regulations just by entering that storage room, another ten after I went rummaging through the drawers. I know."

Clockwork didn't respond. He didn't think Haywire even acknowledged that anything she could do was wrong.

"I knew the risks going in, and it just sucks to know that Wetwork saw me. I knew the risks."

"So why did you go in?"

"For the same reason I told your marefriend. I'm working on a project in my spare time that I don't feel inclined to tell you about."

"Haywire. I was just targeted by three traitors smack dab in the middle of Research and Development for the one thing that makes me special. I have full justification to be concerned. Please, tell me what it is you're working on."

The earth pony mare looked away for several seconds. "If that's what I gotta do to earn your trust then so be it. Look, I have a big sister, living overseas in Germaney. She's a toymaker, and I try to send her knick-knacks I make myself to help give her new ideas and stuff. The thing I was working on is relatively complicated and requires very minute components, ones that could only be useful in medical tools. It’s a little wind up robot pony, but I still haven't gotten everything right. I took what I thought I would need. So there you go, that's my big criminal secret. I just wanted to make a toy."

Clockwork raised his brow. "That's it?"

"Yep."

"Why keep something so trivial a secret?"

"Because I'm a mare working in weapons development. My job is to help design objects that destroy, not entertain! Do you know how much the other scientists would ridicule me if they found out?!"

Clockwork placed his real wing on the sniffling pony's shoulder and met her wet eyes' gaze with his own. "Hey, there's nothing wrong with that. I'm sorry that I made you spill a secret just to null my own paranoia. If you want, I can help you finish up your little project."

"Really?"

"Of course. Now drink your coffee before it gets cold."

Haywire gave him a calculating, measured look, one that reminded Clockwork of why she was good at her job. "Thank you."

The two engineers worked in silent unity. A hoof signal there, a slight application of force there, and the minute adjustment of springs and gears were all the components needed to complete Haywire's little project.

Thanks to the stallion's mechanical prowess, he was able to both slightly improve the motor as well as incorporate a simple music box into the top of its back. When wound up, it would move in time to an old show tune.

"EEHEEHEE!" Haywire couldn't keep herself from grinning like a newborn foal as she watched the little brass pony go. While its movements were a bit rickety, the music box played on without a hitch. As Clockwork readjusted his goggles, he figured that even if the little machine wasn't his best work, it would still help two mares, one of which was a friend. The paranoia was still there, a tiny feeling gnawing at the back of his psyche, but the pegasus determined that the feeling likely wasn't meant for Haywire. Then again-

Clockwork's thoughts were abruptly cut off as somepony came over the intercom. Both scientists knew almost exactly what was going to be said before the announcer spoke, but her words only confirmed their previous hopes. They licked their lips in unison.

Pizza night.

Clockwork groaned as he tried once more to take a bite of his dinner before its contents slipped off. Pizza was a relatively new cuisine in Equestria, as political and militaristic relations with Itaily had only improved a scant year or two ago. Still, Equestria had taken a liking to the food, and that included a majority of R&D personnel.

"Pass the ranch sauce please?"

At Taffy's request, the stallion passed her a few bright green packets. Much to his amazement, the mare practically doused her meal with the condiment and sent them down her gullet like they were nothing.

The pegasus suddenly froze solid as he felt a now familiar, though no less pleasant, pressure against his cheek. The kiss was followed by a soft nuzzle, and Wetwork took her seat at her coltfriend's right side as she wrapped his slightly stiff real wing around her for warmth. "It seems a bit colder now, doesn't it?"

"Tell me about it, as if the chill wasn't enough already!" Haywire remarked from the opposite end of the gable, keeping a hoof in the air as though she were pointing at something. "I keep meaning to go get my jacket but I keep forgetting!"

Clockwork shrugged, indifferent to the temperature change thanks to his downy appendages. "At least the food's warm."

"And delicious!" Saltwater Taffy added, propping her forelegs up on the table as she gestured over to Clockwork. "The chef really knows what he's doing, eh?”

"Anyway!" Clockwork sat up straight and looked to his three companions. "How's progress been on everypony's latest projects?"

Before anypony could respond, a shrill tone blared over the speaker system. Much to Clockwork's dismay, the announcer requested his immediate presence in a specific section of E(xperimental Technology) Wing. With a groan, the pegasus stood and flexed his wings and rolled his eyes.

"The day Research and Development stops testing this thing's limits won't come soon enough. Thanks for dinner, and I'll see you all at breakfast."

After a few departing words from two friends and a slightly tongue-laden kiss from the third, Clockwork was on his way. He knew he was safe here. Security had been stepped up, it was now mandatory for all scientists to undergo psyche reevaluation at the end of each week, and it seemed like an armed guard was present at every doorway. Yet, Clockwork still couldn't shake this unnerving feeling that he was being watched. This watching wasn't a friendly gaze or slightly friendlier ogling, the pegasus knew he was being watched by a single pair of eyes filled to the brim with something far worse than malice.

However, to whom did those eyes belong?

It had been a long, paranoid day. In addition to a psyche evaluation, a light interrogation, and even more tests to determine the limits of his artificial wing, the pegasus had almost lost the trust of the only friends he had in the facility. Of course, he had passed them all, and even demanded that he try and recover his lost work by rewriting it from what little memory he had. He had fallen asleep at his desk, and the rest he had acquired felt like no more than a few seconds before his eyes showed he had been brought back to the real world.

But it was why he had awoken that scared him.

His eyes shot open at the sound of his room's door being opened. The pegasus knew full well that nopony, not even the royal sisters, had a "master key" in Research and Development. While highly inconvenient in times of emergency, it guaranteed that the enemy would never have full access to the entire base.

Remembering his training, the stallion remained in the slumped over position he had fallen asleep in. There was no slam of the door, screaming, or the feeling of a gun being pressed to his head. Clockwork had to strain to hear the muffled sound of slightly forced entry. Whoever this was was a professional, and likely the traitor everypony was so scared of.
Clockwork’s eyes darted around his immediate area. He breathed the tiniest sigh of relief when he noticed his LeMane within reach. Even better, it was fully loaded.

"This really is a nice place you've got here. It's a bit cramped, but it's still nice. Hope you liked supper, because if you don't comply, it'll probably be your last," the intruder taunted, voice lined with ice.

Clockwork remained motionless, desperately trying to simulate the even breathing of deep sleep. To say he was terrified would’ve been a serious understatement. That voice. . .

Oh no.