Ruins.

Skyscraper buildings may have remained intact, but the same can’t be said for the rest of New Hampshore. Many buildings were destroyed, most of the abandoned stores were the result of lootings. The air was also smoggy and hard to breathe. It was like breathing through all kinds of shit that’ll make you heave so much, you’ll be skipping meals to save your wailing stomach. I’ll admit though, the air isn’t too bad if you’re used to polluted environments. With that said, it's become a hollow shell. Who knows if anypony are still alive in a former, bustling city?

Up ahead, a large statue depicting Sapphire Shores still stood tall despite the fadings and cracks. Sadly, it was left vandalized with various spray tags, some which ‘modified’ her face in a derogatory manner. Whoever did such a heinous act deserved to have their third asshole ripped a new one.

As we traversed throughout the streets in search for items, I instructed Carbon to scout around in the air, “Carbon, check and see if you find any artifacts inside from the windows of each building.”

“Aye aye, Captain Zero!”

Again with his optimistic behavior, but nonetheless watched Carbon sprout his wings and flew up in the air towards the first window. So far, all he could find inside were rubble and debris. I looked up while Solar adjusted her medical bag around her waist so it won’t slip off.

“Find anything yet?”

He shook his head, looking down to me, “Not yet, Zero! I’m gonna check the second one!”

I carefully trotted towards Carbon’s direction. Street pavements were quite uneven to navigate around, some which have small fissures that could stop me in my tracks. Solar followed me, also treading carefully as I looked to him, “Slow down a little! The pavement’s a little impassable for us to get through.”

Following my orders, he did stopped just as he was going to arrive at the second building. He watched us carefully navigating through uneven terrain, while I was unfortunate enough to scrape my right hind leg against the jagged edges of the concrete.

I winced in pain from feeling my coat and skin cut open from it, “Gah! Goddess damnit…”

We were almost to the sidewalk anyway, even though it was strewn with cracks and rubble (at least they were even and safe to walk). She turned to see my hindleg drawing blood trickling down, her concerned expression looking on.

“Geez. Talk out bad luck, eh?”

Tell me about it. Life can be a total bitch if you’re already starting a mission with an open wound to go for.

I arrived at the sidewalk, as my PipBuck got a notification. Right now, I laid down onto the ground, presenting my wounded hind-leg for her in order to treat a minor cut I just got. Still hurts like hell, though.

Solar levitated her yellow medical bag and opened the case. Inside, she bad bandages, dressings and a single bottle of Heal Potion to treat wounds. Sadly, they’re limited and the other ponies from the Supplier team had already went in a different direction to retrieve any medicine still available and its highly unlikely that they’ll be meeting us to treat our own wounds during our progress. And even with help won’t be enough; their own objective was to deliver medical equipment to Lab-00. But, I digress.

As my wounded hind-leg was easily tended, Solar told me, “For a smart pony, navigation doesn’t seem to be your forté.”

My painful wound was easily treated. I have to admit, I’m not used to navigating through terrain like the street pavement before.

“You know what the old saying goes, Solar. Every journey begins with a single step, and it includes getting your leg cut by a damn pavement.”

Me and Solar exchanged a friendly laugh as Carbon looked on with a bored sigh. He gazed his sights at the shattered window from the third floor, his eyes suddenly glistened at the sight of a shiny object inside. After my wound was treated with a bandage wrapped, it was highlighted bright red but nothing too major. We looked up and saw Carbon gone.

She turns on her PipWalker from her wrist to speak, “Carbon, where are you? Over.”

There was brief silence.

Small static noise erupted in her PipWalker. We wondered if it was Carbon trying to channel through his own PipWalker. Then, his voice.

“Hello? Is this thing working? It feels like I’m trying to flip a channel through a television monitor! Anyway, I found a shiny, metal piece. I’d show it to you two, but I’m dealing with giant, nasty-ass roaches scurrying inside. They probably guarding it like as if it was treasure. But don’t worry about me, I can handle ‘em!”

We let out a relieved sigh from hearing him who is still there and alive, thankfully. Go and kick some roach ass, Carbon!

Inside a roach-infested room, Carbon stamped onto them before hy had any chance of take a bite out of him.

SQUISH! SQUASH! SQUELCH!

All ten RadRoaches were left in bloody, sticky yet foul mess. He looked like a complete mess with his lab coat stained, but still approached to a metallic and futuristic-lie artifact. He grabbed it with his teeth before letting out a muffled, “Woo-hoo!”

Down below, we waited for his return. We looked up to see Carbon fly down with a metallic artifact held onto his mouth. Initially, we cheered for his exceptional efforts in finding our first artifact that could be useful for our facility. Upon landing however, his stench was so goddess-damned awful! What the hell was he bathing when we first left?!

I quickly covered my muzzle with a hoof, as Solar did the same. Carbon puts down the artifact he found onto the ground before taking a look at himself, smiling innocently at us.
“What? I least I found the artifact for Starshooter! Besides, its not like he’d expect me to face off a monstrous Cragadile, right?”

I for one would beg to differ. No artifact would be worth it if all he could’ve done was to retrieve it without having to deal with numerous RadRoaches! Egad, the smell!

Solar replied with a muffled, angry tone, “Damnit, Carbon! You smell like rotten apples! And look what you’ve done to your suit!”

I looked at her, “We’ll have to take him somewhere to have him cleaned up, as well as his suit. The last thing he’s going to get when we return to Lab-00 is a hard banishment to the Sun.”

Solar didn’t comment, but nodded in response. They don’t call him Carbon Monoxide for nothing, only it looks like he’s had an affair with the Diamond Dogs!, my mind responded regarding Carbon’s questionable hygiene.

We arrived at the Sapphire Fountains that is surrounded by the dilapidated city, taking careful inspection to check the radiation levels. I told Carbon to keep his distance due to his foul odor from hoof stomping RadRoaches. Solar had kept the first artifact inside her medical bag for safekeeping. Soft clicking noises are heard from the PipBuck, showing only +1 Radiation. Not really lethal, so long as Carbon doesn’t stay too long in the murky waters. Solar took off his stained coat with magic before Carbon took a dive on the fountain, cleaning himself from the filth of RadRoaches. I take back on cheering for Carbon’s ‘pest control’.

“Come on in, you guys! The water’s fine!”

We’ll pass.

I looked back at my bandaged hind-leg, the wound already healed easily. I look at Solar, who is washing Carbon’s stained lab coat as she let out a disgruntled sigh. I can’t blame her for her reaction after his unwanted combat against the RadRoaches. As big as they were, they’re also disgusting to look at.

She shot up a glare at him, “Next time you’re stepping on RadRoaches, you’d be wishing you’d get gangbanged by them too!”

Even though Carbon gave no fucks about it and swam along the slightly irradiated fountain, I let out a small chuckle at her comments. Quite amusing.

“Solar, once he’s finished bathing himself, we’ll need to continue on for more artifacts.”

She nodded at me, “Yeah. Once Carbon cleans himself, we’ll proceed. For now, we’ll have to wait until he and his lab coat are cleaned up.” Carbon was of course, relaxing onto the water without ever noticing its irradiated contents. I pray that he doesn’t get a fifth leg. Or a third eye.

Once he and his lab coat were cleared of RadRoach fluids, he got out of the fountain and shook himself dry. We were a little wet, but at least Carbon got his shower. Solar floated the lab coat to him, “Wear it, and goddess dammit stay out of combat for once!”

He wore his coat, rolling his eyes at her resentments.

“Fiiine, fiiine.”

Displaying a bit of leadership, I looked at the two.

“Let’s move on, team. His shower’s more than enough, so we need to find more before it gets dark. We’ll also need to find any refreshments available along the way.”

We continued to traverse within the ruined buildings, scanning around as we saw several places of interests either looted or destroyed. Along the way, barely functioning neon lights were lit. It read as ‘SAP RE SA O’. I would assume ‘Sapphire Salon’. Up ahead is a deserted café (it didn’t had a name. Or it had a name, but the letters are gone due to an uneventful destruction); benches and tables were broken off. And…

...Skeletal ponies. We cringed at the sight. Carbon, however, “Whoa. What the hell happened to them?”

I shuddered a bit at the sight, with Solar watching in shock.

“They’re ponies, Carbon. Or what’s left of them anyway…”

I shook my head to forget about the horrible sight and cleared my throat before ordering them, “Let’s locate any remaining artifacts in this area, or find any available food and water to find. Use your PipWalkers to keep in touch.”

We split up; Carbon flew in a small café while Solar trotted inside an abandoned salon. We were a bit farther away, but I ordered them to stay up to date. I entered in a cramped alleyway in a search for any artifacts available. As foul-stenched it was, my PipBuck had detected no signs of radiation. Rats scurried into small cracks and under dumpsters upon noticing my presence. No luck so far.

Meanwhile with Carbon inside the rundown café, he took a glance at rotted chairs and stools on the tables. Seeing more skeletal ponies inside, he was wise enough to not make jokes around dead ponies he’d find. Looking over at a fridge, he’d wonder what’s inside. Hoping not moldy apples, or sentient sandwiches upon opening the fridge door. A hoof-ful of Sparkle-Cola bottles and three fresh applies to go for, “Jackpot!”

Inside the Sapphire Salon, Solar took a glance at the ruined interior while searching for any artifacts available within the area. A small static erupted from her PipWalker as she lifted her hoof at it to speak, “Hello?”

Carbon’s voice is heard inside the speaker, “Come in, guys! I just found food and beverages to keep our hunt going!”

Me and Solar cheered Carbon for his successful efforts. She replied, “We’ll regroup there. Stay where you are.”

I replied also, “Roger that. Carbon, collect any foodstuffs you find that are safe to eat.”

Looking around deep inside the alley, I sure have gotten myself lost from finding anything valuable. Not to mention the claustrophobic feeling to sum it up. I turned around to the same direction I’m facing and trotted off to regroup with the two. My PipBuck didn’t detect any living ponies or being so far. It feels like I’m being cramped in some common closet. Egad, the smell! (Not as bad as Carbon’s actions against these miscreant bugs, at least.)

As dark and gloomy the atmosphere is, I heed no mind to it. Regrouping the two is my top priority.

Me and Solar Eclipse regrouped inside the café where he’s already collected enough fresh Sparkle-Cola bottles left in the fridge, as well as some carrots and pears. For once, Carbon did a good job scavenging for items should we continue to trek along the ruined city for more artifacts to collect. He may be a jokester and a slacker, but sometimes gets the job right.

Solar had stored the collected items inside her medical bag before closing it up. She looked at us, “Shall we go, then?”

We both nodded and left the unnamed café and continued on.

My PipBuck gave me a warning; a red blip is shown inside the radar, “Whoa, hold up guys! We got a hostile!”

Carbon immediately armed his rifle and flew up in mid-air, scanning around for any nearby threat.

Carefully lifting up my PipBuck, I looked around from left to right. Nothing so far. Maybe under a manhole?

I looked at Solar and asked her, “I assume its in the sewers?”

“No. And even so, we can’t risk getting ourselves dirty. And we don’t know if its down there, so its probably your PipBuck glitching.”

She’s probably right. And even if its not glitched, we don’t know what’s down there due to low visibility. Furthermore, only he is armed and ammunition is rudimentary at best.

I instructed my team, “Alright, let’s move on. We need to find more artifacts before sundown.”

We moved on for the search of artifacts and if possible, more food and drinks. As we searched around, my PipBuck gave me the same warning of a hostile nearby but quickly dismissed it. If its a glitch, then I’ll have it fixed when we’re done. A shadowy figure slowly emerges from the manhole, the same manhole we spotted but Solar dismissed it due to uncertain conditions below. His only appearance, was his concealed goggles that hid his identity as he looked on.

.

“Let’s set up camp under the bridge. Should be safe.”

No luck in finding anymore artifacts so far. At least we’ll have a decent meal and a few hours of relaxing, as Solar floated out some fruits and a carrot. She kept the carrot to herself, but gave us apples and pears for us to eat. Warm, but tasty. The skies were slowly ascending into darkness, but we still have the time to search and retrieve. If not, we’ll rest up somewhere and safely return to our facility the next day. We talked and joked while having a meal. It was a normal conversation, even if Solar is still peeved at Carbon’s antics.

All three of us had finished our meal, with cold and refreshing Sparkle-Cola floated to us before opening up the bottle caps.

Holding the bottle with my hoof, I spoke out, “A toast to our first, successful mission we have done so far for Lab-00.”

We clinked our Sparkle-Cola bottles as we spoke in unison, “Together!”

All three of us drank the bottles. A warning blip from my PipBuck came up, indicating a very small increase of Radiation. They were still safe to drink, refreshing too!

I kept a bottle cap inside, glancing to it as if it represents good luck. We disposed our fully-eaten fruits and empty bottles, our rest sufficient enough for us to continue.

“Alright team. Let’s continue.”

The three of us left the the bridge underneath and resumed our search for rare artifacts to collect and experiment. The wind let out a gentle breeze, with debris in front of us blowing aside. Posters of Sapphire Shores were barely holding together against the walls, one which has half of her head torn apart. Traversing along cracked sidewalks weren’t as bad compared to walking on broken, uneven street pavements. A small piece of paper hit my hoof as I looked down at it, picking it up out of curiosity.

“Hm?”

It read:

Turn around and leave.

Okay? The writing was horrid anyway as I threw the paper away for the breeze to take it before the two would notice what I was reading. I’ll ‘leave’ when me and my team has collected enough for our return. What’s to prevent our mission anyway?

Aside from a completely, collapsed building blocking our path. Carbon looked at us with a groan, “Well godess dammit. Where do we go now?”

I looked at Solar who is finding an alternative route for us. Wonderful thinking, Solar! I looked at him and motioned my head, instructing him to follow her. I followed them both.

She found an open door of a partially collapsed building inside. A derelict shopping centre. I gave her a smile.

“Nice find, Solar!” I commended her before we carefully trotted inside. Most of the districts were buried, some infested with rodents and moths chewing away clothes. Up ahead, a giant statue resembling Sapphire Shores herself remained intact as we reached the center of the derelict shopping mall. Of course, the statue leaned against the stairs and did enough damage to block any form of exit or entrance.

Then, more red blips appeared in my radar. Five of them. I quickly looked at the two, “Quick, hide!”

We hid and even if Carbon wanted to engage in combat, we saw at least five ‘normal’ ponies (or at least they are indeed ponies, but my PipBuck told me otherwise) wandering around next to an electronics store. We heard comments, each swearing at each other. We heard sounds of physical beatings as we winced.

The tattered, dark brown and maroon-maned unicorn stallion yelled at the dark green and bright yellow-maned earth stallion after having beaten him up, “You little shit! If you’re snitching us at siding with the Western Raiders, you’d best hope I don’t toss you into the snake pit so our pet cobras will feast on you like yesterday’s buffet! Got it?!”

“Y-Yes, Mr. Venom, sir…” The beaten stallion spoke out. He received smarmy responses by other ponies with insulting laughters before Venom hushed them.

He spoke out, “Cobras! Let’s keep on finding stuff to steal for ourselves, but if any of you pinheads ever do something stupid by siding with the Raiders,” He floated out a menacing looking pistol as he pointed at the beaten and unnamed earth pony.

A gunshot rang out as it echoed (a pistol I presume), much to our surprise and shock. I looked at my PipBuck; there were four now which means he shot his own kind.

Venom glared at the other three, having shot the same pony he had beaten up. Regardless of what he said, the pony’s unfortunate fate has been sealed. He resumes telling them, “This is what you’ll end up like. Understood?!”

I turned to Carbon and motioned him to keep himself hidden and not engage any combat. Even with his rifle, I was afraid that neither he nor us would be able to last against them. He had no choice but to reluctantly hide, which is understandable as it seemed. Solar looked on in shock, as I let out a shuddering sigh as to forget what we have witnessed. I could go for another drink right about now, and not counting Sparkle-Colas. We watched them trot off, leaving their dead pony to fester.

“Alright team… let’s move.” I told the three after the unexpected events and my PipBuck clear of red blips, but Solar still stood there in shock. I went to her and wrapped a hoof around her neck to trot with her. I can’t blame her after witnessing a horrifying sight, but we’ll have to keep moving if we’re going to collect and return to our facility ASAP. And maybe have a drink with her and Carbon afterward to forget everything we saw.

He winced at the sight of a dead, beaten and now shot pony. Even if he committed those crimes, he didn’t deserve to die in a grisly manner. I looked at him and shook my head, “Best to leave him be. No artifact is worth getting if he has it with him. Go check inside the store and search for anything that’s valuable. I’ll go and comfort Solar.”

Without a word, Carbon slowly trotted inside the electronics store as I gently guided Solar to a bench where the large statue is. I sat down with her, and gave her a soft hug.

“Its alright, Solar. After this, we’re heading back to Lab-00 and convince Starshooter that we’re better of working inside. Okay?”

I saw Solar on the verge of crying, but nodded as she returned the hug to me. I gently stroked her back with my foreleg to console her. I know our mission was gonna go smoothly, but we weren’t expecting something like this just right now. Meanwhile, Carbon found at least three more metal parts for experimental use before grabbing it with his teeth. Trying to not gaze his sights at the dead pony, he returned to us while I was calming her down.

I turned to Carbon Monoxide with a small smile, “Good. Store it in her case and let’s get out of here.”

As he did so, sounds of deep groanings are heard in the distance. Oh fucking hell. As if watching a member (or leader?) killing their own wasn’t enough, a loud and booming thud of a giant statue gave way.

“Run!”

We ran and took a dive as the giant statue figure landed on the floor with a thundering boom, kicking up clouds of dust and rubble. We were nearly crushed by it but thankfully, all three of us were spared. I looked at the two, “Are you guys all right?!”

Both Solar Eclipse and Carbon Monoxide nodded, each saying that they’re fine.

“Good. So much for our exit. We’ll have to continue forward now.” I told the two. As we moved on, I took one final look at the dead pony. Killed, execution style. He had a grenade with him, and I took it with my hoof as a means of putting it to use before stuffing it in my coat pocket.

Our exit should’ve been our ticket out of here, but now we’re forced to continue on to find another escape route. Hopefully we don’t stumble upon those ponies again. Cobra, I presume? I don’t even want to fucking know anymore. Solar was still in shock, but I’m thankful that she’s slowly recovering. This was our first, and last time we have seen a dead pony before. Even took a grenade from him should we find them again, possibly in larger numbers.

What started as a simple mission seems we’re getting more than we’ve bargained for. I looked at the map from my PipBuck, and its leading us nowhere to the exit. It feels like we’re in a maze, and the exit signs only leads us to either more rubble, or worse. We can’t take any chances, though. We have to keep moving. Sometimes, you have to expect the unexpected.

Who are the Cobra anyway? Better yet, who are the Raiders I heard from Venom anyway? I’m guessing a group of factions, though seeing a pony of his own member killed seems that they’re a disorganized group. So far as we witnessed it, he’ll kill anyone including his own members. As leader as he looked, he is far from it. Even if you’d join up his group, the last thing you’ll be getting is a bullet to the back of your head. I felt really sorry for Solar’s traumatic moments. She was all better, but that took a good chunk of her mental state. Carbon wasn’t any better; he went from joking around to being concerned for our safety. I myself am just trying to clear the clouds of uncertainty in my mind.

We refocused our search for any more exits after finding nothing but rubble or strewn objects obstructing our way out. We found only one, and are blocked by the two same ponies we saw laughing heartlessly at their own dead stallion. I ordered the two to stay behind me as I slowly pulled a grenade inside my coat pocket, but I was held back by her.

“Don’t do it, please. It’s not worth it…” Solar pleaded me. As wrong as it is to kill somepony, its our only way out or we’ll never make it back to Lab-00. Its either exit, or be stuck forever. I felt that the ‘Cobra’ ponies aren’t leaving for the time being, so our time is running out.

I saw Carbon placing a hoof to her shoulder, assuring her with, “Its for the best. Let Zero handle this one, Solar. It’s our only way out of here.”

She looked at him, as if trying to object before realizing that he’s right. We can’t stay here forever, and these murderous ponies would’ve eventually found out our presence. I was given her look with a hint of shame, but nevertheless told me, “Do it. Do it for the dead pony we found, Zero.”

I didn’t have a choice either, and killing other ponies are wrong. However, I came up with an idea upon spotting an intact glass window display. A safer method would be a distraction. All it takes was a good throw and they would find out what’s going on while we make our escape. I looked at the two, “I have a better idea. Get ready to make our swift, yet quiet escape.”

I instructed them before chucking the grenade onto the glass window with enough force, shattering them into millions of pieces. Even though I was a lousy thrower, it was enough for them to take notice and wondered what’s going on as they head towards the sounds of glass shattering. Once they were inside an abandoned clothing store, we quickly made our way to the doors before they had any chance of spotting us.

Meanwhile, the two Cobra members had spotted shards of glass inside and spotted a grenade. They shouted out, “AAHH!! GRENADE!!”

Venom heard screams of the pair before letting out a disgruntled sigh after spraying graffiti on the wall with a black spray paint can, “What the fuck are these two screaming on about?”

As he arrived, he saw both of them cowering over an unexploded grenade. He frowned at the sight, “Are you two pussying out over a grenade that can’t even explode?! Just look at the pin! Does it look like its been pulled?!”

They looked at the grenade and sees the pin still in place. The two looked at Venom with confused expressions, “U-Uhh… sorry, boss?”

“You’d better be sorry, or I’ll have your dicks stuck in a grinder! If this is some prank by those pansy-ass Raiders again, let’s see how funny it’ll be when I piss on their corpses! And you two better grow some balls for once, unless you want to have them shoved down your throats! Do I make myself clear?!”

They nodded frantically amid having to listen to his threats, “Yes, sir!”

He took a glance at his grenade before levitating it up and storing it in his pocket, “Fucking newbie didn’t deserved to live anyway. Just grab whatever you fucks can find and let’s go. And grab Poison along the way! I don’t want him trying to fantasize over a goddamn mannequin.”

Nighttime. It was too dangerous for us to continue and we had to head on over to a run-down apartment building to set up camp. This is one mission that’ll surely be our last. We weren’t expecting dangers that would hinder our objective, much less going as far as to watch a beaten pony executed from our distance. I was still shaken from just witnessing this. We’re just glad we made out of here alive.

Even with street lights, it wasn’t enough for us to continue on. The screen of my PipBuck was barely lit; the map was too difficult to see. Besides, who knows what’ll happen if we ended up falling down due to extreme darkness?

I splayed on the gritty mattress, feeling nothing like a mattress that was in Lab-00. The two looked at us as I turned my head to see them before sitting up and explained to them, “I deeply apologize for this as the events were unexpecting, but at least we made it alive. As much as I want my team returned safely to Lab-00, we’ll have to stop here and rest up for now. Not only are we getting sleepy, but its also too dangerous for us to move on and we don’t know what’s up ahead. Furthermore, my PipBuck’s screen isn’t well-lit enough to tell us where we are.”

I finished explaining, with the two nodding understandably at me..

“So, how about a drink to wash away everything and rest up normally?” I asked.

Carbon merely shook his head in response, “Sorry, Zero. There aren’t any drinks when I first opened, and Solar can’t handle alcohol. She gets easily tipsy if she were to drink it.”

Solar also told me, “Yeah… its best that we rest up normally. I’ll just be with Carbon. He’ll be on a lookout for us.”

There goes that option. No drinks and Solar doesn’t take kindly to alcoholic drinks. I shook my head a little, trying to clear those awful clouds invading my head before laying back on the mattress. No coat hangers to go for, too. Time to sleep with my lab coat, I suppose.

The two went to a bedroom with the window broken off, allowing Carbon to scout the darkness with his rifle. As Solar fell asleep on the old bed, he eventually fell asleep as well. His rifle falling off of his hoof as it dropped down into the trash bin, creating a bit of a noise though we’re all too exhausted and tired to notice this.

A shadowy figure looked on, as a surgical mask and goggles are seen from the flickering lights. He made his way without us noticing.

Morning arose, and I was the first to wake up. I slumped out of the stain-ridden mattress before stretching my hooves, popping a couple of joins and all. I looked back and saw my coat now stained from the bed I’ve been resting on before letting out a sigh. What a day this has been.

I went to the abandoned bathroom and turned on the faucet to clean up my face to wash away the last few remaining thoughts that me and my team saw yesterday. Despite my PipBuck warning me about small amounts of radiation, I payed no mind. I shook my head to clean my face before looking at a broken mirror, adjusting my yellow-red and drizzled mane with my hoof, “There we go. Now to go and check on Solar and Carbon.”

I went to the bedroom the two slept in, only except they left. On such short notice? Hmm… they couldn’t have just gone without asking my permission, would they?

“Come in, Solar and Carbon. Do you copy? Over.”

There was no response from my PipBuck. Malfunction in their PipWalkers? I tried again, “Come in, Solar and Carbon. Do you copy? Over.”

Still no response. Looking to the left is Solar’s medical bag. The same medical bag she had with her as I trotted to her bag and opening it up. Nothing!

There was nothing inside! Not even the artifacts we had just collected! I shook my head vigorously. Calm down, Zero. They may have found Lab-00 and had called in a search and rescue team. But at the same time, they could’ve told me via their PipWalkers.

“Okay, calm down. They have to be around here somewhere…” I muttered to myself in an attempt to settle myself down from the sudden panic as I trotted down the stairs and searched them from the kitchen to the living room.

Still nothing.

I went back up the stairs and back inside the living room where Solar’s medical bag is. I lifted up my PipBuck and spoke one last time with worry growing inside of me, “Solar and Carbon. Do you copy? Over…”

No response. I heard no static, no voice. Nothing at all.

To make matters worse, all of our items and the artifacts we collected were stolen. Surely it wouldn’t be this Venom pony we saw inside the shopping center. There was no way he would’ve seen us and kidnapped them both after we watched him kill the pony. As far as I’m aware, he’d thrive on killing anypony (even to his own members) and would’ve done the same to me and my team too. Many of our important artifacts were stolen. Where has it gone? But the most important part was Solar Eclipse and Carbon and Monoxide. Where did they go?

Footnote: Level Up.
New perk: First in Class -- +5 [Medicine, Science] per rank. Mastery: 5 extra points in each of these Skills.

Author's Notes:

Fixed Chapter Two.