So long story short, I'm dead, and for all the good I did... ehh, actually let's just go with the not evil I was, that sounds correct, I'm now dead and in Tartarus.

"I knew I sould not have taken that cooky, but I was hungry, and mom said that I could have one the day before, but this is a bit too much."

"Silence"

"I also would have given more to charity, but money has been so tight I just could not do more then spar a few bits"

"stop wining fool"

"and I know I tended to stare at mare flacks a bit too long sometimes, but that's natural, I'm a stallion, and I like mare, it can't be that terrible of a crime!"

The black dragon roared with a ferocity the knocked me off my hooves, rendering me speechless again. The grate dragon, slumped back over the cage, it seemed to be made of the black fog the seeped from withing the cage. The two golden eyes floated about from inside the cage, taking time to glare at me. "Fist off, you are not dead, merely asleep. Second, you will not be able to wake up until that memory you were having is over. And last, if you do not calm down, I'll see to it that you do die, so stop your wining." the dragon flicked it's tail at me, but it simply passed through, filling me with a cold chill.

I raised a hoof to ask a question, the eyes closed for a few seconds before glaring at me again.

"speak"

"Phobetor, it might help me stay calm if you take a pony form, all of this is ah, a bit too much." I didn't know what was making me more nervous, the dragon, or the black fog with eyes.

Inside the cage, the black fog shrank and took form, in but a few seconds the black mare Phobetor stood before me, her golden eyes still glaring. The dragon was still there, it's form seeming part of the cage itself. "Now are you calm?" the voice was now much softer.

"calmer" I was still freaked out.

"Good, I cannot have you suddenly die until they get that pipbuck safely off of you, and it would be so irritating for myself to be the one who killed you before then." Now I was feeling a bit confused, so I raised my hoof again, but she started talking, ignoring me. "It has been said that one cannot die in a dream, but that is a lie. Without my timely intervention, that memory you are force to have, the one that now prevents you from waking, it would have torn your sad little mind asunder."

"wait, how is that possible?"

Phobetor gave me a coy smile. "ah, the deal was a secret for a secret, but I can let this one go for free, think of it as a peace of charity. The pipbuck on your leg, no not just that pipbuck, but all the pipbucks that are made, They have a little magic trick to them. How they get it all their little programs to work on a pony, the E.F.S. and the S.A.T.S. it all go right through a ponies brain. An interesting shortcut, ingenuous realy, but it also leaves the mind vulnerable, opens a door you can say."

"and how can that kill me?"

She giggled, holding a hoof up to her mouth when she did. "a pony can live with a hole in their skull, but if they shake their head around, the brain might just come out." Phobetor then pointed a hoof to her head, with a grin on her face. "and you Slowtrot, thanks to your pipbuck you have one big magical hole in your head, and the memory's of this Thorn Roseland, it was going to shake that brain right out."

I raised my hoof up again, and Phobetor gave me a nod. "and you sead I cant wake up until the memory is over, right, so I'm fucked?"

"Fist, learn a better vocabulary. Second, that depends on me." she sat down, and crossed her back hooves. "I can give you the protection you need to survive, for a fair price that is."

At this point, my feeling freaked out had subsided enough for my bullshit meeter to go off. Right now, I was being given a deal from a monster mare, who also happens to be locked away in Tartarus, there is no way this is not going to bit me in the flank if I agree. "and what do you want, my soul?"

Phobetor rolled her eyes. "I only want one of two things. When you have returned to the waking world, you will finds me hidden knowledge, a secret. Your reward by agreeing to this, will be that I shale provide the protection needed to survive the rest of the memory."

Ok, so no live sacrifices, I hope, that's a good start. "and what is the second thing you want?"

Phobetor giggled again. "that's another secret I will soon have, no worry about that." her gaze and smile felt far more wicked then before.

It didn't take much time thinking about it, I didn't know if she was lying to me, but if I put two and two together, this mare would kill me if I said no, or simply leave me to die. My only options were life or death. "Fine, I'll agree to it."

A black and gold helm rolled to my hooves, it looked like the kind that the royal guards would have worn "that's for the soft spot on your head." looking back up at Phobetor, she was now eating popcorn. "put it on." the popcorn part irritated me, making me feel a little hungry.

Lifting the helm, it realy didn't look much different from any other guard helm, except being black and gold. "so what's stopping me from telling anypony about you?"

Again with a giggle. "because you won't remember any of this at all, you will be my loyal sleeper agent, forever ignorant."

with that I put the helmet on, and everything slipped away into darkness.

I was back inside Thorn's memory, the mare body still feeling odd, and her straight intimating. Both the lieutenants were with her now, my guess was that the stallion had teleported with her back to the ship. Thorn was once again looking at the Leviathan, though she was not making the same motions as before.

"Begin the operation, I'll be in my room having a little fun." Thorn spoke, the two lieutenants saluting before they both left, going separate directions down the deck. Thorn herself turned on her last stealthbuck, trotted inside the ship unseen.

As she moved silently down the halls, it all felt different from before, the sneaking was the same, but just how it all felt to me, how it felt like I was sneaking next to her. I could feel each step, each breath she made, but none of it felt like I was doing it, but like I was mimicking her, she was her, and I was me, but I was also right there. My mind didn't feel as distracted, with every noise, and every movement failing to bark my train of thought, and my focus. It all filled me with a strange foreboding calm, I didn't know what would happen next, but from what I've already learned about Thorn, it may involve more death, and I was calm about it.

Thorn made it all the way to her room, the short few seconds she spent looking at the sign, next to the door, was all I needed to see her name etched in the brass. The inside inside of her room looked bare, other then the molded of the Levitation, everything was a monochrome of gray, with a few reads and blues doting the room. In the center of the room were three large traveling cases, feeling out of place as they were lined up.

Trotting up to the first case on the left, Torn unzipped the case and pushed it over, and out fell an unicorn mare in a navy uniform. She had a yellow coat, and purple mane, an overall pretty mare. I could only feel sorry for her. "Wake up petty officer Evening Light." Thorn kicked her in the side, rewarding her with a gasp as the mare began to move. "tonight you get to be a hero."

"Captain, what's going on" Evening Light gasped out panicked, "why am I in your room?"

"why indeed, other then you being one of Pinkies little agents."

"what! how!" with panicked motions, Evening Light struggled to get up, but only managed to push herself backwards.

"Oh Pinky is good at what she dose, but is also terrible at picking spies." Thorn pulled out the Zebra sword she took from Life Jacket's room, slowly undoing the cloth she had wrapped it in. "Actually, that's not all that true, you would have made a good spy, too bad I have the memory's of all my officers be checked." she stroked the pipbuck on her left leg, as she calmly looked at the now terrified Evening Light. I could sympathize with her. "Memory magic is a fantastic thing, keeps every pony in order, never loosing sight on why they fight." the sword now was being drawn from it scabbard, it's handle seemed to be made for being puled out and held by hoof. "so how many moths are you along now, it must be a good three, which would mean there are six more to go."

Evening Light had scooted back all the way to Thorn's bed, and was not using it to hold herself up. "what are you talking about?"

"Oh, you must have forgot, your pregnant" with one thrust, the sword plunged deep into Evening Light's chest as Thorn leaned in closer "though I still don't know which ones the father, not that it matters now." twisting the blade with her other hoof, the blood flowed out of the mares wound, splattering on the floor as she groaned in pain. Thorn let the sword slip from her hoof, and watched Evening Light fall to the floor, choking up blood.

Thorn took a few steps back, and return her attention to the two other cases, the room retuning to silences after Evening Light gave one last gasp of air. Their was no denying it for me, Thorn is a monster. Unzipping the case in the middle, she tipped it over as well, this time a zebra stallion fell out. This one also didn't move until Thorn gave him a kick, I could only guess that some magic was involved to keep them asleep inside the case.

The zebra spoke, and though I could not understand what he was saying, I did understand that he sounded very scared. Thorn didn't give the zebra any time to back away as she trotted onto him, and struck him in the face with the pipbuck. Blood splattered on the floor from the strike, the zebra whimpering from the pain. She brought down a few more strikes until the zebra stooped moving, and then lifting on both her back hooves, she brought both her front hooves down on the zebra, caving his head in. The gore spread out everywhere, bits and peaces of brain and bone decorating the room. The blood from the zebra quickly meeting that of Evening Light, making a large pool on the floor.

Once more, Thorn opened the last case, this time a zebra mare fell out, rolling onto the blood. Unlike the last two, she woke up from the fall, and immediately righted herself. Thorn watched her as he quickly scanning the room, when the zebra locked eyes with Thorn, I could feel intense hate in her stare. "What have you done, you pony scum!" she almost looked exactly like the posters back home, though covered in blood.

Thorn just smiled, "Is words all you got, and here I was told you were a fighter, shame." slowly she walked to the zebra, calm, smiling, and even I could feel her intent on killing again.

In a flash, the zebra had in one swift motion, throwing blood in Thorns face, jumped to the side, and pulled the sword from Evening Light chest. Wiping the blood from her face, Thorn jumped back, just missing a slash from the sword to her neck. A vertical slash them cam down at Thorn, but then she jumped into the attack, ramming the zebra with upper part of the pipbuck. Stumbling back, the zebra quickly put some distance between her and Thorn, saving her leg from a hoof strike. The zebra then went in for a lung, the sword pointed strait for Thorns chest, only standing on her two back hooves as she did. Thorn managed to deflect the strike by knocking it to the side with the pipbuck, counting the mare with a right hoof strike to the mares chest. The zebra fell back again, but this time Thorn threw blood in her opponents face, the zebra loosing her balance, and falling to the floor. The sword slid across the room, leaving a broken line of blood on the floor from the hilt and the blade.

"Now that was disappointing, you didn't even get a cut on me." Thorn's voice sounded boastful.

"What is it you want pony, why bring me here? If your going to kill me, then kill me." the zebra got back onto all for hooves, but now struggled to stay upright.

Thorn gave a little laugh, and turned her back to the zebra walking to the sword. "it's quit simple realy, I just needed you to run around a little, and get the blood to spread around with your hoof prints."

I could hear hooves hitting metal from behind, Thorn's ears twitched at the sound, and she leaned forward, raised her flank, and then releasing a force full buck. I could feel the back of her hooves connect with the zebra, and not slow down until they had fully extended out. A loud thump hit the wall behind Thorn, and when she turned to look, the zebra mare was flat on the floor, blood coming out of her mouth.

Thorn slowly walked up to the zebra, the mare wheezing each breath. "Why" the zebra let out before Thorn brought down a hoof onto her skull, the loud sould of a crack under her hoof.

Walking to the door of her room, Thorn stopped at an intercom, pressing one of the buttons. "WHITE WATER, YOU BETTER RESPOND TO ME IN THE NEXT FIVE SECONDS!" Her voice was loud, and stressed.

withing three seconds the intercom turned on, the voice was that of a nervous stallion, "Captain Roseland! what's the matter?"

Thorn's face twisted into a wide grin. "I need you to contact Admiral Life Jacket at once! I was just attacked by two zebra assassins, if it was not for petty officer Evening Light, I'd be dead."

There was a short four second pause before the intercom turned back on "yes Captain! Right away Captain!"

Stepping away from the intercom, Thorn walked to the three cases, and kicked them to the side of the room, splattering more blood all around. She then went up to Evening Light body, all light in her eyes had long vanished. "see, now you get to be a hero. Without your death, I would not have been able to save the fleet." taking a mostly clean sheet from the bed, she used it to wipe some of the blood away, as well as the bit's and peaces of gray matter, and bone.

The seen didn't feel real to me, how calm she was, how easily she killed them all, and how I was no longer trying to scream to get out. I did feel horrified, this was a truly horrifying, but Thorns calm demeanor seem to also keep me calm.

A banging from the door, drawing Thorns attention. "Captain! are you alright." throwing the sheet over Evening Light, she walked to the door, the blood under her hooves making a sticky wet noise at each step. Opening the door, two navy ponies stood on the other side. "Captain, we were told...." the to ponies froze, though it was hard to tell if it was because of Thorn, or because of what Thorn had done.

She pushed passed them, "I'm going to the bridge, no time for a shower." she began walking down the hall, the sound of the door to her room closing, and the two navy ponies mumbling to themselves before following her, were the only noise i could hear before the ship burst into activity. The call for all hooves on desk rang out, and soon the ship filled with the sound of hooves on metal, which became like thunder.

It didn't take long to get to command, with all traffic yielding to Thorn as she passed. The command room was silent, all staring at Thorn as soon as she arrived. taking her seat, she looked over the room. "Report!"

"it's bad Captain, real bad." the stallion spoke with the nervous voice of White Water, his light blue coat, and a white main and tale, matched the name well. "The Admiral, he's..."

"Spit it out!" Thorn snapped at White Water.

"Dead mam, Admiral Life Jacket is dead." he almost cowered back as he spoke the words.

Thorn's hoof slammed down on the metal arm of her chair, sending a shock of pain up her leg. "Contact the Baltimare, Vice Admiral Driftwood is in next in in the chain of command." she looked around the deck, the rest of the ponies were all quiet. "GET BACK TO POSITION, those zebras didn't just appear out of thin air, they must have a ship on the waters, now find it! We will have revenge for this." Thorn growled the last sentence. All the ponies saluted, and jumped right to their posts.

"EQNC Fillydelphia, this is the EQNC Manehattan, come in Fillydelphia."

The other ships that Thorn could see from her seat were now completely lighting up, beaming searchlights on the water. I could not help but think they might actually find something, probably more of Thorns victims.

"Vice Admiral Driftwood, is dead." White Water spoke dejected, as he shook his head.

"then contact the next in the chain in command" Thorn growled

"so are Rear Admiral Bottled Message, and Commodore Long Voyage."

the crew started whispering to themselves, but a quick glare from Thorn got them back to work. "This is a nightmare" she said to herself.

"CAPTAIN, A ZEBRA FLEET SPOTTED TO THE SOUTH!" the voice of a mare yelled out.

"Contact Commodore Icebreaker, hes next in the chain of command." Thorn spoke firmly, and pulled a nearby microphone to her. "This is Captain Thorn Roseland, all hands prepare for combat, I repeat prepare for combat."

"Reports in, Icebreakers dead, the next in the chain is... is you mam, you are now the acting Admiral."

Thorn gave a long sigh, before she looked up at her crew. "contact the rest of the fleet, the Manehattan will take the command position in the fleet formation, the Leviathan will be our escort. Also, relay this message, we will take no prisoners."

An icon came up in the upper right of my vision, stating that quest completed: Burial at Sea, and then everything faded into darkness.

Now back in the darkness, and free from the memory, I starched my not quite real body out. "pleas tell me that's all. I realy don't want to see any more death."

The darkness receded once more, reveling the dragon, the cage, and Phobetor. "Shame, I was hoping for something more then just a coup. There was no deal with ancient monsters, no magical artifacts, and no necromantic ritual." Phobetor sighed. "Yes simpleton, the memory is over, you may return to the waking world."

"One question before I go?" Phobetor gave me a board look, but nothing else. "I know I'm not going to remember the answer, or the question, or well any of this. But what was different, what did you do to me to make the memory feel... make me feel calmer through it."

For a second Phobetor eyes widened. "not bad, maybe your not all just simple. I lent you a peace of myself for the memory, allowing you to adsorb it, but still be a viewer. Where before it was forcing your mind and the memory to be one of the same, like a puzzle peace that dose not fit, but through me it simply became a new part of you."

"your saying that a part of that monster is in me?" I snapped at her.

She gave me a smile, tilting her head ever so slightly "Yes, though it be simpler to say that the memory of Thorns actions are now a part of you, each moment, heartbeat, and breath. All that she did, it was imprinted on that pipbuck, and now onto you... so sweet dreams Slowtrot."

I was once more consumed by darkness, but this time, a warmth as well.

"Everyone, Slowtrot is waking up!" Emerald Field's voice sounded relieved.

my vision was hazy, my body a bit stiff. "Ok, what happened this time."

Emerald Field help me back onto my hooves, "it seams that there was a faulty program still activated, and when we went to take it out, the thing went ballistic. You got knocked you out, but luckily that was all it did. So we just had to isolate it before trying to get rid of the program entirely."

ya, I still didn't understand what she said all that well, but I was alive, and still in the lab. "so how long was I out?"

June this time spoke up. "Just a few hours, practically through the hole program modification. We had Lifebeat look you over to be careful, but he said you were fine, so we decided to finish all the modification. Which means, we just need to finish making the key for that thing, and your home free." Emerald had began unplugging the pipbucks as June was talking. "but you did agree to help us out a little before we send you home, so we can take our time on that."

I felt a weight lifted off my right hoof, the pipbuck 3200 floated away in the green glow of Emeralds magic. "We sould all get something to eat first, everyone has been working hard, and I want something other then another meal chip." Emerald spoke with an upbeat tone.

"I don't know, I'd like to take an extra look at the pipbuck's new code." Cloud Bank spoke with a bit of a yawn. "But good food sounds like a good plan, I for one can use some cider."

"Well then, let's eat drink and get some rest, then we can get back to work." June was already trotting out of the door, the rest of the techs quickly followed her.

Cloud Bank paused for a few second before rushing out the door. "I AM NOT GOING TO LET YOU GUYS GRAB ALL THE MUFFINS THIS TIME!"

Emerald walked to the door. "Let's get going, or there will be nothing but green burgers left to eat." she gave a little smile at her comment.

ok, I now realy didn't want to know what's in the green burgers, which meant I didn't want to eat any more of them. So I quickly trotted after the others, it was not a race, but muffins did sound good.

Footnote:

Level up: Level 1

Tagged skills:

Hoof to Hoof

Sneak

Speech

Trait Changed: Good Natured is now Sympathetic Nightmares- Slowtrot never had treatable Nightmares before, now he has of crimes he didn't commit. Sleep now has a -%25 to rest, and -5 to all skill for a short time after sleeping, but gains a extra 5% critical chance.