Fallout Equestria: Insanity’s Flight
By Storm128

Prologue: Captured

“Everything I was afraid of when I was growing up, I’ve become. I’ve taken on my nightmares, like the devil and the end of the world, and I’ve become those things.”

Six Months Before The Destruction of The Cloud Layer

“Can we hurry this up,” Downpour asked nervously, the helmet speakers coloring his voice in a subtle static. “Hauling this thing around is giving me the creeps.”

The power-armor clad pegasus stood at his post beside a large steel tube, roughly the size of a coffin. Several rows of rivets ran the lengths of heavy metal plate. Two curved doors across the front were bolted shut, and the subtle hum of a spark battery came from inside.

Another guard stood on the adjacent side, and two more uniformed serviceponies were busy heaving the object onto a flatbed cart. Overseeing the work was a light purple, stern-eyed mare, sporting her own black steel armor, but without the insect-like helmet. Her slightly darker mane was shaved nearly to her scalp.

“Stow it, Private,” Lieutenant Lavender Star snapped, “This is precious cargo we’re dealing with, and the General will not be happy if anything happens before it even gets on board.” She marched closer to the jittery buck, shoving her face against his helmet’s round goggles. “Or, would you like to be the one to explain why it was damaged during routine transport?”

“M-ma’am, no ma’am,” he stuttered, snapping an uncoordinated salute.

“Good, then as you were.”

“Ma’am, yes ma’am.”

The soldiers finished loading the cart, and followed the dozens of other pegasi beginning their ascent up the Eclipse’s cargo ramp. The raucous whir of the Thunderhead-class cloudship’s engines filled the air as the remaining personnel and supplies were brought on board. The two armored recruits took up their positions on either side of the package, with Lavender following them close behind.

The massive black warship illuminated the drab Marejave night. It dominated the local view, towering over the sparse mesas and sand dunes. The enormous artillery batteries that comprised its arsenal promised total eradication for anything on the receiving end. Some curious locals had come snooping around, but it was nothing a few of the cannons’ warning shots couldn’t clear up.

Can’t have any dirty surfacers interfering with a mission this important, Lavender thought sarcastically.

Officially, General Derecho had graciously volunteered to lead a scavenging and training expedition down to the surface. Most of the personnel on hoof for this operation were fresh recruits being introduced to life groundside for the first time. It was tedious work, and almost unheard of for somepony so highly ranked to lower themselves to such a task.

Unofficially, you didn’t need a warship to scavenge scrap metal and gun down raiders.

As they mounted the top of the ramp, Lavender snarled, “Get that loaded into bay 8A and then report to takeoff positions.” A small chorus of yes ma’ams sounded from the ponies before she split from the group to oversee the rest of the boarding process. She barked reprimands at recruits lazing about the giant cargo hold, directed where various pieces of supply and salvage were to be stored, and made sure every soldier was at the correct post.

It wasn’t often for an officer to take on such responsibilities, but the Lieutenant took pride in how meticulous she was in her command. She always made it a point to read over every written mission-briefing, personnel file, shipment manifest, and stock report affiliated with an operation. Coupled with her on-hoof method of dealing with troops in her charge and by-the-book execution of her duties, Lavender always made quite the show of her dedication to military life.

Just as she was assured that everything was prepared for takeoff, the sound of a group of soldiers conversing echoed from one of the darker corners of the cargo hold. “-believe that cunt of a Lieutenant even has to be around when we’re loading up,” she heard one buck say.

“Seriously,” a mare chimed in, “that fucking bitch can’t even let us do something this simple? Shouldn’t we have a sergeant in charge right now, anyway?”

“And what’s with these retarded rules she’s got us following,” the buck continued, “we can’t even fucking sw-”

Lavender stepped around a corner, bringing herself face to face with the insubordinate troops, and silencing the red, uniformed stallion mid-sentence. The forest green mare fell equally quiet, and a look of horror plastered itself on her face.

“L-lieutenant Lavender,” the buck stuttered, “w-we were just… uh… what I mean to say-”

“Looking for something to do?” Lavender asked quietly.

“Exactly,” the mare quickly responded, relief coloring her voice. “We finished up our orders and were just looking for a way to make ourselves usef-”

“Perfect,” Lavender interrupted, “I was just looking for a couple recruits to be on latrine duty. How does the next-” she put a hoof under her chin, “three months sound?”

Both ponies’ expressions fell into resigned acceptance. “Of course, ma’am,” they stated in unison.

“Thank you, recruits,” the Lieutenant responded, “and please, don’t forget my policy. As long as you’re under my command, no swearing.” They both snapped salutes before departing. As they disappeared from view, Lavender gave a small smile before continuing her inspection of the hold.

When all was in order, a raucous hiss emanated from the ramp’s hydraulics as an alarm sounded. The large, metal slab was lifted off the sandy ground and into its closed position with a thunk. The Eclipse’s engines reached a deafening roar, and the gentle feeling of ascension marked the cloudship’s departure.

The small communicator in Lavender’s ear chirped before Downpour’s voice broke through, “Uh… we’ve got a bit of a situation ma’am.”

The Lieutenant put a hoof to her ear, “Private, if you got lost again I swear…”

“N-no ma’am,” he interrupted, “we’re at bay 8A now, but so is the EIW, and they’re demanding the package be released to them.”

That got Lavender’s attention. The Enclave Intelligence Wing had originally been created by the High Council, and had been primarily used as a covert intelligence gathering unit, generally spying on questionable citizens of the Enclave itself. However, over the years, their responsibilities had warped until the agency was considered by many as the finest group of flyers since the Shadowbolts, and by others as the most dangerous, unpredictable fighting force in the Enclave arsenal. The Lieutenant often found herself in the latter group, but personal reasons made her feelings toward them fairly complex.

They weren’t part of the military. Effectively, they only answered to the whims of the High Council, and were only called upon when they wanted something kept away from the prying eyes of regular serviceponies or civilians. They were the boogiemen of the Enclave, carrying out unknown orders from the higher-ups with lethal prejudice.

“Hold them there, Private, I’m on my way,” Lavender barked into the communicator.

She wove through the various multicolored metal shipping containers, easily navigating the maze they created. The Lieutenant knew this boat, and her crew, better than anypony else. No one denied the fact that the ponies who were officially in command wouldn’t even flush a toilet on the Eclipse without running it by Lavender first.

That was what had her so on edge about the EIW’s involvement. She’d been aware of their presence since before they left Thunderhead, not much got by her radar. However, their contracts had them signed onto the operation as “training specialists.” Lavender could see those ponies doing a lot of things, but training greenhorns wasn't one of them. As far as she was aware, the only recorded action taken by them this entire deployment had been a single scouting mission last night. There were very few things that could get under Lavender’s skin, but being kept in the dark about anything pertaining to the execution of her duties was right at the top of the list.

As she rounded the final corner, she spied the four recruits stuttering nervously to a group of five ponies. All of them were clad in gold-striped, black power-armor.

"W-we're not under your command sir," Downpour sputtered, "our Lieutenant gave us our orders and-"

"Fuck your orders!" came the enraged, staticky response from the closest buck. "This is coming straight from the Goddess-damned General, and you will hoof over that package this fucking second!"

"Excuse me, sir," Lavender stated calmly, as she trotted past the recruits and up to the stallion. His helmet hid most of his features, but the missing goggles revealed vibrant yellow eyes. "What, exactly, is it that you're demanding of my recruits?"

"Nothing that concerns you, Lieutenant. The General has ordered that this package be brought to interrogation immediately."

"Why wasn’t I consulted first," Lavender responded, her voice clear of any emotion.

The buck sneered, "Because you don't need to be. Now, if you would be so kind as to fuck off, we can be on our way." He moved forward, harshly knocking his front shoulder into the Lieutenant.

She held her ground, causing the stallion to halt and stare down at the smaller pony. His pupils dilated in surprise as she leveled the same calm, reticent expression. “With all due respect, sir, this is my cargo hold, on my boat. The General and I both know that this won’t fly and, if he wants this package so badly, then I’ll be coming along with it.”

“Who the fuck do you think you are, you little bit-” he was cut off as Lavender rolled into the continued shove against her, spun around, and delivered a vicious, armored buck to his plated ear. The resounding gong echoed out, and the stallion fell to the floor, his hooves clutched over the dented armor.

“I will ask you to observe the same courtesy as everypony else in my hold, sir,” the purple mare spat, “no swearing.”

The stunned buck glared up at Lavender, a smoldering rage in his tear-filled eyes. He whipped around toward the other EIW pegasi, “What the fuck do you all think you’re doing, get this little bit-”

Another loud clang rang out as the Lieutenant shot a kick at the stallion’s helmet, landing directly on his temple. His sentence hung in the air as he fell to his side, the crash of his armor bowling over every other sound in the cargo hold.

Lavender glared back at the assembled pegasi, all of them shocked into silence. “None of you are members of my military. I don’t take my orders from you, and will not allow anything in my charge to be tampered with without proper procedure. If the General would like to circumvent the rules, then I will be coming along with you.”

They all gave silent nods, before stepping forward and hauling the unconscious buck onto another pony’s back. Lavender turned toward her recruits as two other EIW pegasi moved to take the cart. “Get to your takeoff stations, and wait for further orders.”

“W-what's going on ma’am,” Downpour stuttered. “Why are the spooks so interested in this thing?”

“Something’s going on here, Private, and I intend to find out what it is. Now, I gave you an order.”

“Ma’am yes ma’am,” he stated, snapping a salute.

Lavender returned the gesture, before about-facing and following the other pegasi. Huge metal doors shifted apart with a hiss as the group exited the cargo hold. The lights throughout the steel halls were dimmed in preparation for takeoff. Dozens of pegasi, and a few unicorns, were busily scurrying about the ship, stowing loose material, tying down supplies, and buckling themselves into seats.

Old habits kept the stoic mare scanning the halls, making sure nopony was slacking off and nothing was out of place. Any recruit that met her gaze refocussed intensely on whatever they’d been tasked with, found something important-looking to do, or snapped a salute. Although, they all seemed to share the same pleading look, praying that she wouldn’t stop to chew them out.

The Lieutenant gave a small smile, that’s exactly how she wanted them to feel. She wasn’t there to make friends, she was there to make soldiers. If that meant making herself out to be some hard-assed nightmare to new recruits, then so be it. When they had the experience and discipline to survive out in the wasteland, they’d be thanking her.

Looking to her left, Lavender spied one of the EIW mares staring at her. They were about the same height, but the armor hid all of the other pegasus’ features. She was also the only member of her group equipped with a battle-saddle, and the gold striping on her armor was far more ornate than the others. Both signified her as the wing commander of this particular squad.

“Can I help you,” Lavender stated flatly.

“Oh…” she gasped, averting her gaze, “no, it’s just… I… nevermind.”

The Lieutenant gazed curiously at her. Although her voice seemed to have some sort of modulation, there was something very familiar about it.

“What’s on your mind?”

“Well, ma’am, I just hope that you aren’t judging everypony in the EIW based on,” she gestured toward the unconscious buck, “him.”

Lavender smiled reassuringly, “No ma’am, I’ve always made it a point to only judge somepony based on their own merit, not the actions or reputations of where they give their loyalty.”

“I hope that’s true,” she sighed. “Seriously, most of us think he’s a total and complete ass. It’s ponies like him that give the EIW such a bad name.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that,” Lavender responded, realization coloring her voice. “I think I might know one or two that are alright.”

“O-oh?” the other mare stuttered nervously.

“Sure, in fact, I’ve got family in the EIW. But I’m sure you already know that, right Violet?”

The armored pegasus stopped in her tracks and, while her face was hidden, her body language detailed the shock she was feeling quite well.

“I-I… um…”

“You really think I wouldn’t recognize my own little sister?” Lavender stated calmly, “Although I have to say, giving a fake name on your deployment contract and the voice changer were nice touches. But, why didn’t you want me knowing you were here?”

Violet sighed, “Not my choice, just orders.”

“Orders to hide yourself away from your own sister?” Lavender continued, a touch of hurt entering her voice.

“Oh come off it, Lav,” the EIW pegasus suddenly spat, “It’s not like you’ve made a whole lot of fucking effort trying to keep in touch.”

The Lieutenant was taken aback at her sudden outburst, “What are you talking about? We both have our duties, and those have to come fir-”

“Goddess-dammit I know, duty always comes first. But it’s not like we had to completely cut ourselves off from each other. Do you even remember the last time we spoke, the last time you tried to contact me in any way?”

“Sure, it was… um…” now Lavender was the one at a loss for words. How long had it been since she’d spoken to her sister, or any of her family for that matter?

“Almost two years, Lav,” Violet growled.

“That long?” Lavender asked, a pit forming in her stomach.

“Yeah,” she responded, turning away from her sister and staring down the long hallway before them.

“Violet, I don’t know what to say.”

“Then don’t, it’s not like it’s some big secret why you stopped talking to me.”

“What are you talking about,” the Lieutenant asked, a hint of confusion entering her speech.

“Simple, you hate what I’m doing with my life,” Violet stated. “You hate the EIW.”

“You can’t possibly think that,” Lavender barked, but she knew there was at least some truth to her sister's words.

“Of course I do,” Violet said, throwing her head back in exasperation. “Everypony knows how you feel about us. That we don’t have enough oversight, not enough regulation, not enough discipline for little miss by-the-book. You hate that I didn’t want any part of your little world, and wanted to actually make a Goddess-damned difference.”

“Do you think you could stop swearing for a minute,” Lavender snapped, immediately regretting her derailment of the conversation.

Violet let out a sarcastic laugh, “That is just so fucking like you, Lav. Ignoring the real issues for one of your petty little pet-peeves. What, you still believe dad’s bullshit policy that a few fucking swears hurts troop camaraderie? His whole reasoning was a complete load of garbage, it never made any sense. Guess what, big sis, adults fucking swear, we swear a whole Goddess-damn lot, especially in the military. We swear to compliment or insult our friends, and it’s even a real nice way of letting somepony know just how badly they’re pissing you off, and you're both complete morons for thinking otherwise.”

“Don’t talk about dad like-“

“Shit, piss, fuck, twat, cocksucker, motherfucker, tits, fart, turd…” Violet interrupted, leveling her gaze back at the Lieutenant, “Cunt.”

They walked in silence for a while, the subtle clangs of armored hooves marching across steel floors the only noise present in the hallway. The other three EIW agents all seemed to be trying their hardest to look like they hadn’t just heard the entire exchange, and instead focussed on trying to wake up their unconscious comrade.

After a few more minutes, they arrived at the Eclipse’s brig. The hallway diverged into three separate paths, each lined with a dozen cell doors on either side. The space between each hall housed another sliding metal door, leading to the two interrogation rooms. Standing in front of the closest room stood General Derecho, and his entourage.

The short, homely, light-blue pegasus had his white mane styled up in an ornate pompadour. He was younger than Lavender; an infuriating fact to be sure. His deep purple dress uniform was crisply ironed, and completely free of any lint or debris. His chest gleamed from meticulously shined medals, and a rainbow of service ribbons stretched across the entirety of his left breast. A golden aiguillette was draped across the medals.

Pretty impressive for somepony who’d only been serving for the last five years.

Latched onto either hip were the green and golden forms of Captains Mint Leaf and Golden Sunrise, both currently preoccupied with whispering and giggling into the General’s ears.

Lavender glared at the pair in disgust. Both had been a part of her own unit during basic, members of her squad during their first few deployments, and some of the very few ponies she’d once called friends.

They weren’t bad soldiers, at least not back then. They were just two victims of an entirely corrupt hierarchy with precious few methods of promotion outside of personal favors. Their current positions were only a result of playing ball with Derecho.

Although, playing with Derecho’s balls might be the more appropriate way to put it. Goddesses know that he wasn’t reeling in the mares with his good looks or sparkling personality.

Prying his attention away from the lustful mares at his side, Derecho addressed the Lieutenant. “Ah, Lavender, what a… pleasant surprise,” the sneer he gave set the purple mare’s blood boiling.

“Sir,” she stated formally, snapping a salute.

“Oh come now,” he said lazily, “Is there any need for such formalities amongst friends?”

“Sir, I’d prefer to keep it that way, sir,” she responded evenly, not giving him the satisfaction of showing any emotion.

He shrugged, “Suit yourself. Although, I must ask what, exactly, do you think you’re doing here? I’m afraid I don’t recall summoning you.”

“Sir, this package has an elevated priority status. Normally, a full set of requisition forms need to be processed if it is to be evaluated before being sent through military customs. In the event that such a policy must be circumvented, then the resident pony-at-arms must be present for any and all analysis of said cargo.” Lavender subtly lowered her gaze, allowing her to peer down at the smaller pony, “Since you decided that the responsibilities of the pony-at-arms could be piled onto those I already possess, I'm the closest thing we have at the moment. I’m just following proper procedure, sir.”

A look of annoyance swiftly colored the General’s face, before the same smug confidence returned. “Of course, Lieutenant, and I certainly commend you on your adherence to policy. However, I should let you know that the EIW and I have the situation well enough in hoof.” Derecho stepped closer to Lavender, meeting her gaze, “Now, why don’t you run along and make sure the grunts have their gig lines straight, or whatever it is you normally do.”

“Sir, I’m afraid that would be breaking protocol, and I will need to include it in my post-mission report, sir.”

His demeanor broke again, a flash of rage crossing him, before it simmered down to a look of annoyed contempt. “So be it, Lieutenant, head to the observation room with the Captains.”

“Sir, yes sir,” Lavender stated, before she turned and marched away. She stopped while passing Violet, giving the armored mare a morose look.

“I’m sorry, Vi.”

Violet looked taken aback, “What did you say?”

“I’m sorry and… I love you. I know I don’t say it enough, but I do.” She stepped closer, placing her front hoof on her sister’s shoulder. “I haven’t been there for you nearly as much as I should have, but you’re my sister and I want to fix that. Do you think, once we get back to Thunderhead, we can go get dinner or something and just talk?”

Violet’s body language made her look torn. She stared at the ground, moving her head side to side as she contemplated her sister’s words.

“My treat?” Lavender continued.

The armored mare sighed, “Fine, dinner, but don’t think this means I’m any less pissed at you.”

“It’s ok,” the Lieutenant responded, “I just want to spend some time together.” She moved forward and threw both front legs around her younger sister, completely breaking any protocols about public displays of affection, and pulled Violet into a tight hug.

The other mare stiffened for a second, but relaxed and eventually returned the gesture.

“Um…” came the grating voice of Mint Leaf, “If you’re quite done groping that mare, do you think we can get going? The General gave us an order.”

Lavender shot her an annoyed look, but released her sister and moved alongside the other two pegasi. As they began the short walk to the observation room, the Lieutenant gave a final look back, waving a silent farewell.

“So,” the light green mare started, “how’ve you been Lavender? It’s been a while.”

“Forgive my abruptness, ma’am,” Lavender responded, “but I’m part of your crew, we see each other on every deployment.”

“Oh, you know what I mean, it’s been forever since we’ve actually had a chance to really talk. And stop it with that ma’am crap, the Generals not around.”

“But I’m sure you wish he was,” the Lieutenant snapped, immediately chiding herself for breaking her stoic, professional demeanor.

“Excuse you, Lieutenant? What, exactly, is that supposed to mean?”

Fuck it, Lavender swore to herself. “You know Goddess-damned well what it means, and if either of you had enough self-respect to take the dick out of your mouths for a minute, you’d see just what a piece of shit the buck you’re servicing actually is.”

“That’s enough, Lieutenant,” Golden snapped, “You’re way out of line.”

“Then court-martial me, Captain. But you won’t, for the same reason he keeps me around, because you all know this boat would fall the fuck apart without me. So, if it pleases you, wipe your mouths and let’s try to make this as quick and painless as possible. I haven’t the time, or the patience for catching up.”

Both Captains wore expressions of utter shock, each looking like they wanted to bring down some sort of punishment, but also knowing the Lieutenant was absolutely right.

“I wasn’t kidding,” Lavender finished, “you’ve got a little white something on your lips there.” She was lying, but took a small bit of satisfaction from both officers immediately wiping a hoof across their mouths. She also had to hoof it to Violet, both Captains were now well aware of just how pissed Lavender was at their behavior.

A few seconds later, the trio arrived at the entrance to the observation room. The clunk of gears spinning sounded as the metal door slid apart, and revealed a window into the interrogation cell. Inside was a completely bare and sterile room, the only items being a single metal table with a chair on either side, and a mirror spanning the entire length of the rear wall. From the opposing side of the two-way mirror, the three mares could clearly see Derecho, Violet and two other EIW agents swarming around the metal casket.

The General was acting like a foal on Hearths Warming Eve, bounding about, as the black armored pegasi removed each of the restraints holding the pod closed. Upon opening the final lock, Violet leveled her battle-saddle at the doors, the high-pitched whine of her plasma rifles warming clearly heard through the intercom.

The two remaining EIW pegasi each grasped onto an edge of the tube, and pulled it open with a hiss. A subtle fog spilled out and pooled along the cell floor.

As the mist dispersed, Lavender could see a pony was contained within, strapped onto a dolly, restrained with a straitjacket, and with a metal mask muzzling him. It was a steel-gray buck, although huge portions of his coat were wrinkled and showing the darker shade of healed burns. The wounds extended to his flanks, where a bit of discoloration marked his ruined cutie mark. His mane was filthy and hung in long, light and dark blue clumps. His face was a mess of old scars, and even more scorched flesh. What once was a unicorn horn was now a jagged, malformed shard of bone jutting out of his forehead. An empty cavity was all that remained of his right eye, while the left was the same midnight blue as his mane.

The most striking feature of all was immediately beneath the empty socket. In bold, machined letters stood a horrifying brand, the word STAB in block capitals. It ran from just beneath the eye, down and meeting the edge of his mouth.

The two Captains let out horrified gasps, but Lavender just peered at the buck curiously. Despite his situation, there was an obvious calm about him. The subtle spark of intelligence gleamed in his remaining eye, and the Lieutenant could almost swear that he was staring right at her.

“That’s not who I think it is, is it?” Lavender asked as the dolly was wheeled out from within the pod, and stood at the one edge of the table.

“Y-yes,” Captain Sunrise stuttered, an obvious fear pervading her voice, “that’s him, Stab.”

Over the past year, the name Stab had garnered Olden Pony-like status amongst the Enclave. No less than twelve different attacks on their forces had been laid directly at his hooves, the fruit of his work being apparent in every one. Each confrontation had left the soldier’s armor and weapons stripped, giving rise to theories that it was just a string of simple robberies.

Their bodies, on the other hoof, told a different story.

They were the stuff of nightmares: disembowelments, some interesting knife play, and even live burials had been amongst the more tame causes of death. Some of the corpses showed signs of severe long term trauma, hinting that their suffering had been drawn out to some truly horrifying lengths.

However, those he kept alive were far worse to deal with. Sure, there were the odd ones who’d simply been out on patrol or otherwise preoccupied, only returning to discover their slaughtered comrades. Most, however, had been captured and forced to watch. They ranged over a variety of mental states, some reduced to babbling, incoherent wrecks. Others spoke about the experience with an almost holy reverence, seeing this pony as some new incarnation of a vengeful God who’d shown them mercy. Still more had simply found ways of killing themselves within hours of retelling their experience, unable to cope with what they’d been forced to witness. Commitments to military psyche-wards had almost doubled in the last year, every one of them a survivor of that maniac’s hoofiwork.

“That’s what this was all about,” Lavender snapped, “capturing him?!”

They nodded in unison. “The General received a personal message several days ago,” Golden Sunrise began, “It detailed precise times and locations of future ambushes planned for our patrols. The General knew that Neighvarro would never let us launch an investigation in their territory without their involvement, so he made up an excuse.”

Lavender nodded in understanding, it wasn’t uncommon for officers to circumvent dealing with other Enclave installations by detailing a mission as a training exercise. She was a bit annoyed, however, that she hadn’t caught on earlier. “And he just took that on faith?” Lavender responded. “How in the hell would he know it wasn’t an ambush set up for us?”

“That’s why we have the EIW,” Mint Leaf piped in. “The council felt this was far too important to be left up to a regular patrol, so they were authorized to accompany us. They were deployed last night, and were told to lie in wait for Stab to show up at the ambush site.”

A worried feeling began to tingle at the base of the Lieutenant’s neck, “What about the patrol he was meant to ambush?”

The two Captains looked at each other awkwardly, neither of them seeming like they wanted to answer the question. “W-well,” Sunrise began, “the EIW were ordered to only interfere once they felt most assured they would be successful in capturing him, and that just so happened to be-”

“While he was distracted,” Lavender finished, her demeanor becoming stoic, but a burning rage rampaged through her heart. That piece of shit Derecho had willfully sacrificed the lives of Enclave soldiers just to make sure Stab didn’t escape, even when they were fully equipped to stop him.

“Correct,” Mint Leaf stated, her own disposition reaching a calm state. “And please try and patch that bleeding heart of yours Lavender. Stab’s capture is infinitely more important than the lives of a few grunts.”

The Lieutenant wanted nothing more than to beat some appreciation for their comrade’s sacrifice into the two mares before her, but the pegasi in the other room finished setting up the psychopath opposite Derecho.

“Well, well, well,” the General began, “the infamous Stab, in the flesh. Or, at least, what’s left of it I suppose,” he flashed that infuriating grin again. “I don’t reckon there’s something else that I can call you? You must admit, Stab is a rather stupid name.” The buck opposite him remained silent.

“My name is General Derecho,” he continued, “and I’ve heard quite a lot about you. No fewer than twelve confirmed attacks on our troops, and not a single report detailing any signs of more than one assailant. Very impressive.”

Stab’s pupil rolled toward the bottom of his eye, scanning back and forth as if he were looking for something, but stayed silent.

“Our troops are considered by many as the finest left in Equestria, and yet, here you are, standing on the eviscerated corpses of more than fifty of them. Such a feat must require a tremendous amount of skill, a shame that it couldn’t be put to use in a more productive way. I could, personally, use somepony with such abilities. But alas, it’s just too ba-“

The General cut himself off as he stared at the mutilated buck, who had begun quietly muttering to himself.

“I’m sorry,” Derecho continued, “am I boring y-“

“WILL YOU PLEASE SHUT THE FUCK UP!” Stab suddenly shouted, causing everypony in the room to jump back in surprise. Even through the muffling caused by the muzzle, Lavender could hear that his voice portrayed him to be younger than his appearance allowed, probably somewhere in his mid-twenties. It also had a bit of a gravelly undertone.

“Excuse you, what did you just say to me?” Derecho asked, his expression changing to pure rage.

Stab looked around the room, almost as if he was confused that everypony had just heard him. “Oh, my apologies General,” he began calmly, “I wasn’t speaking to you, I was just trying to hush up my… associate. Please, do go on.”

“Your… associate?” the small pegasus inquired, his eyes narrowing.

Stab didn’t respond at first, but resumed muttering. Now, however, it was at least audible enough for everypony to hear.

“Yes… yes… I know I… if you’d just let me fini-… yes… yes… because it’s not appropriate right n-… fine… ok… yes… fine… fine… I SAID FUCKING FINE!” he finished, shouting the final line. Both rooms were completely silent, and curious expressions formed on everypony’s faces.

Finally, Stab looked up at the blue pegasus, “General, my associate and I would like to formally request that you begin fondling my nuts.”

“W-wha… WHAT?!” Derecho shouted, his earlier rage completely overridden by shock.

Stab kept his voice calm and professional, “I would like you to place my testicles in your mouth, and begin servicing them. You know, as long as you’re going to be down there sucking my dick like that.”

The two Captains were shocked into silence, but Lavender couldn’t help but burst out laughing. The stallion may have rightfully been one of the Enclave’s most wanted, but it was still nice to see somepony with the balls, she giggled again, to put the General in his place.

Derecho looked at a complete loss for words, shocked that somepony would even dare speak to him like that. “P-perhaps I should just… skip to the point,” he finally stuttered.

“Oh,” Stab continued, his eye growing wide, “you want to do this here? Well, alright, but do you think you could tell your cronies there to leave the room? I’ve got a little bit of performance anxiety, but I think you’ll find my cock plenty worth it in the long ru-“

Derecho suddenly stood and backhoofed the restrained buck, placing himself right in front of Stab’s face, and forcing their gazes to meet.

“What I’m trying to say, you disrespectful little shit,” the General growled, “is that when we get back to Thunderhead, you’ll be very valuable in helping me-“

A wide grin abruptly formed on Stab’s face, before he lunged his head toward Derecho, snapping his teeth and letting out a terrifying roar. Although the restraints around him only allowed the stunt to cover a few inches, it was enough to send the General backpedalling, tripping over his chair, and falling right on his ass.

The small pegasus had a terrified look on his face, and an expression of embarrassment soon followed as everypony turned to stare.

A chilling laugh filled the room, and Stab’s shoulders shook as it increased to a fevered, maniacal pitch. After he quieted a bit, he began to speak.

“Look at the little king in his mighty castle,” the tone he adopted was almost like a parent chiding their child. “Don’t try and patronize me, little king. You think you know me? You don’t have the first fucking clue. However, you can rest assured that I know everything worth knowing about you.”

“W-what do you mean,” the General stuttered, failing as he tried to mask the fear overrunning his tone.

The bound buck’s grin only widened, “Brigadier General Derecho, twenty four years old, and one of the youngest officers in the Enclave's history to ever attain such a rank. Even with less than stellar academy grades, and only being sent on nine deployments, only three of which included any actual engagements, you have had a meteoric rise in the Enclave military. Your mother is High Councilmare Drizzling Skies who, obviously, had more than a little influence in your appointment. The two of you meet for dinner twice a week at her fabulous home in Thunderhead, from which you promptly depart to fuck two of the mares behind that mirror.”

Mint Leaf and Golden Sunrise both adopted expressions of horror as the psychopath in the other room glared directly at them, before returning his gaze to the General.

“They don’t actually like you, by the way, but kudos on roping them into this little menage a trois. I mean it, that is some slick underhoofedness if I’ve ever seen it. And… oh,” a look of surprise crossed his face, “the third mare back there at least has some backbone. She didn’t take you up on the offer, did she? That must be very frustrating for somepony who’s used to getting whatever they want. So you punish, abuse, and demean her, even though she is far more capable than-” he cut himself off, looking as if he was pondering something, before continuing, “anypony else on this boat.”

Lavender was taken aback. He was right, and she’d long been aware that Derecho’s attitude toward her had been a punishment for refusing to dive into bed with him. Her skin still crawled from the memory of that day, him calling her into his office with all the authority his rank allowed, and the feeling of his hooves caressing her coat as he whispered the offer into her ear still made her feel ill. It'd been her first real awakening to just how corruptible and depraved members of her military could be. The conversation had ended with a violent rejection from her, but also with Mint and Golden ready and willing to lick his wounds. That day, she'd not only had her faith in the righteousness of military duty shaken, but lost her two best friends as well.

But how in Celestia’s name could he possibly know all that?

“Sorry to go off on that tangent, I do have a horrible habit of digressing,” Stab continued. “It’s no secret that you and mummy-dearest have been plotting for some time to get you on the High Council, and you saw the chance of capturing me as the perfect act to propel you into the hearts and minds of the entire Enclave as the hero who brought down Stab. Now we’re on our way back to Thunderhead, where you will present me to the Enclave High Council, explain to Neighvarro that it was one big coincidence that your ‘training operation’ just so happened to be right where I had just attacked some of their troops, and everypony will be singing your praises. You’ll be rocketed out of military life and, in the next few years, fast-tracked toward the cushy Councilbuck job you’ve always dreamed of.”

You could cut the tension with a knife. The subtle, staticky breathing of the EIW pegasi was the only noise permeating the space.

“So,” Stab asked after a few awkward seconds, “how’d I do?”

"I... I... I... um..." Derecho sputtered. He had a look of shock plastered on his face. Everyone in the room was woefully aware of just how far the General had stepped out of his depths in taking on this pony, and he wasn't even in a position to do them any harm. With words alone, he'd torn down the smug air of self-confidence the General walled himself behind and revealed the inexperienced, spoiled little brat he actually was.

"Oh no," the gray buck continued, "don't tell me I scared you speechless. Believe it or not, I like the sound of your voice.” He leaned forward against his restraints, "Please, let me hear your voice again, little king. I'm really going to miss it after I've ripped out your throat," he then threw his head back and released a demonic cackle that set the nerves of every pegasi in the room ablaze.

Derecho was breathing very quickly, panicked gasps clearly being heard even with the lunatic’s laughter. “T-t-take Mr. Stab to his c-cell,” he finally sputtered, before shouting, “NOW!” when the agents failed to react instantaneously.

Violet moved first, taking up a position that kept both her plasma rifles levelled at Stab’s chest. The two other armored pegasi moved behind him, tipped back the dolly, and wheeled the giggling psychopath out into the hall.

Just before he disappeared from sight, he shot his gaze back at Derecho. “See you soon, little king,” he called before continuing to revel in his merriment.

Everypony stood in silence, letting what just occurred hang in the air like a thick fog. Derecho sat in the interrogation room, the expression on his face a mask of conflicting emotions. Rage, confusion, fear, and even a subtle hint of awe all stood out prominently. Finally, he spoke up, “C-captains, both of you are to report to my quarters immediately. Lieutenant, return to your post, we’re done here.”

Mint Leaf stepped forward and pressed a button on the console before them. “Of course, General,” she said into the intercom before about-facing and marching out into the hall with Golden in tow. Lavender remained, carefully watching Derecho as he moped about the cell for a few more seconds. He must have thought them all gone as she saw a few shining trails of tears sprout from his eyes.

She then stepped forward and pressed the button herself. “Sir,” she stated, Derecho jumping at her sudden intrusion, “I hope you know what you’ve gotten yourself into, sir.” Lavender released the controls and began to make her own way out.

For all of our sakes, she thought to herself.

This certainly wasn’t my first time wearing a straitjacket. When you conduct yourself the way I do, it’s a pretty rock solid eventuality. It’s been inconvenient, to say the least, but it meant I had some practice in dealing with them. All it would take is waiting for the right moment to make my move.

He was a prick, said an annoying, laid-back male voice in my head.

Bit of an understatement, I thought back to the voice.

Gotta give him credit, though, the voice continued, he's got you pegged. I mean, are you seriously gonna stick with this whole Stab thing? It really is a dumb fucking name.

It's easy to remember, I responded, thinking about the brand standing out prominently on my cheek.

Don't lie, you think it sounds edgy and cool. Dumbest shit I've heard from you in a while. He was quiet for a second, until he found something else to focus on. He’s also got impeccable taste in mares. You should’ve seen those two he’s got wrapped around his dick. Hey, here’s a thought, how’s about we actually try and get you laid after this? Those two might be awful grateful for what you’re about to do to that little shit, and it’s not like you’ve really gotten any since-

Drop it, now, I thought angrily.

I mean, sure, those little Dash-heads you rut senseless every once in a while are nice and all, but nopony has had quite the... vigor that-

“SHUT THE FUCK UP KOE!” I shouted aloud to the voice. The three pegasi all jumped into position, the whine of their plasma rifles piercing the resulting silence. “Oh,” I continued sheepishly, “sorry about that. Voices in my head telling me to murder, rape, and pillage, you know how it is.”

They looked skeptically at each other before shrugging and moving back into formation, continuing our journey down the dim, steel hallway.

Pillage, Koe said, really? I mean, murder and rape, definitely, but pillage? What are you, a fucking viking?

And what would you call stripping the dead of everything they'd ever owned and selling it off to the highest bidder, I asked accusingly.

Cashing out our plunder, dipshit, he responded, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

So, we’re pirates then?

Fuck yeah, pirates are way cooler.

Just making sure we’re on the same page, I thought sarcastically.

Yar, matey, Koe responded, taking on a pirate accent. So, what be the plan to send that spineless, pitiful cur down to Neighvy Jones’ Locker?

Simple, I began, I break through these restraints, kill the guards, take their keys, track that tiny pricked prick down and rip his Goddess-damned throat out.

Wow, Koe said with sarcastic approval, that’s a fuck-ton more thought out than most of your other plans.

Right? I asked excitedly.

If a disembodied voice could roll their eyes, I feel that's what he was doing. You're not that stupid, right? I didn’t raise you to be this stupid

Yeah, you were a regular dad of the year, Koe, I thought back. Have some patience, we just have to wait for the right moment.

Suddenly, a chirping sounded from the power-armor clad mare aiming her rifles at me. She placed a hoof to her ear before speaking. "Report, what's the status on-"

A muffled voice spoke in her ear. "Good," she responded after a few seconds, "he's awake and-"
her communicator interrupted her again, and the voice on the other end began to sound desperate.

"Wh... I.... slow down no-" she sputtered, the other two pegasi flanking me brought us to a halt as she spoke more fervently.

"He wants to do what to the Lieutenant?!" she finally snapped. "Oh that immature little... ok, just keep him there, I'm on my way."

She lowered her hoof and faced the two other pegasi. "Thunder Claps awake and, apparently, not too happy with my sister right now. Get Mr. Stab to his cell, and then report to the barracks. We'll draw straws to see who has to keep first watch on him tonight."

"Fucking really?" a mare to my left sighed. "Look, Violet, he might be a little psycho, but he's not goin' anywhere. I thought we were gonna be celebratin' tonight."

"Can't be too sure with this one, Bits," Violet said. "We all saw what he was doing to those soldiers when we showed up."

The buck to my right shivered, and the mare looked down at the ground awkwardly. I felt that was a very opportune time to butt in, "Oh, that was a lot of fun. It's always such a joy trying to find new and interesting ways of busting those little tin cans of yours open. Although, I have to say, cooking your buddies over that bonfire took a lot longer than I would've thought. Hell, with all that smoke and screaming, I'm shocked you lot didn’t find me any sooner. Glad you didn’t, because there’s really nothing like roast pegasus. I’m real partial to the wings myself."

The two pegasi flanking me moved forward, anger pervading each step. That's it, I thought to myself, get emotional, start fucking up, you can do it.

The one with the battle saddle stepped forward as well, but placed a front hoof on both of her comrade's shoulders. "Don't let him get to you," she stated comfortingly, “this bastard is gonna pay for what he’s done.”

“Unless I stage some grand escape,” I stated with a flourish of my mane. “Oh, it’ll be right out of some two-bit adventure story. The daring hero topples the evil king, escapes his knights, dives out of the tower window, and blows a kiss to the beautiful princess as he lands, unharmed, in a bale of hay below.” I finished my little tale with a small smooch directed at the mare in front of me.

Damn, that little pony could give a mean right hook. My ear rang, and a field of beautiful stars danced in my vision as the edges began to darken.

I think you made her mad, Koe chimed in.

Ya ssthink? I mentally slurred.

“That should shut him up long enough for you two to get him in his cell,” the mare said, though everything seemed slightly muffled.

“Ohhh,” I sighed drunkenly, “I like you, you’ve got spirit, a real go-to attitude. Now that is just so hard to find these days. It’s a shame, really, but don’t worry,” I lowered my voice to a low growl and let a sickening grin spread across my face, “I’ll try and kill you last.”

She kept her gaze level, although the helmet hid if she reacted to my threat in any way. “Bits, Gray, please escort our guest to his cell,” she stated evenly. Then she marched around me and continued back the way we’d came.

The dolly creaked as we set back in motion, moving toward my lavish accommodations no doubt. I peered to either side, trying to assess the pegasi beside me. Despite their helmets, I could see the mare was a bit surly, but otherwise unbothered by the situation. Not good enough, I thought, need something that’ll get under their skin. Glancing at the buck, I could see him affectionately rubbing an armored wing against his shoulder, right where the pissy mare had touched him. Perfect.

I whistled, “Damn, that sweet thing can throw a punch.” The two pegasi remained silent, continuing to lead me down the hall. “Either of you gettin’ a piece of that? I’ll tell ya, if I were ya’ll, I’d be trying to get between those fine flanks whenever I had the chance.” I smacked my lips, “Nothing like a strong, confident mare in bed. Somepony who can really toss you down, and take charge. But you want to know my favorite part?”

I turned toward the buck. Barely repressed anger shook his every step, and his gaze was locked straight ahead as he tried to ignore me. Time to light the fuse, “When she admits she wants me to take control. Begging me to show her things that nopony would ever dare try. Pressing her face into the floor while I-”

Gray suddenly turned, roared, “Shut your fucking mouth!” and delivered a vicious applebuck to my side. The dolly and me were sent toppling into Bits, the armored mare shrieking as the pile of metal and maniac pinned her to the floor.

My side exploded in agony as the power-armored kick plowed into me, while the sound of shattering ribs bombarded my ears. I grit my teeth, tucked my head toward my chest, and breathed deeply. I visualized the pain as a creeping fire traveling across my skin, a sensation I wasn’t entirely unfamiliar with. I imagined the skin fueling the flames burnt and fell away, killing the blaze before it spread further. The wound began to numb, and its presence fell toward the back of my consciousness.

The armored buck gasped, “Holy shit, Bits!” He grabbed the dolly, and heaved me across the hall. The resulting crash required several more sessions of watching my skin burn away… and maybe a small round of vomiting blood, but it was worth it as the distinctive sound of breaking metal followed the locks at my side springing open. I rolled onto the floor, finally relaxing the muscles in my chest and front legs, and giving myself a bit of slack in the straitjacket.

I could hear the two pegasi righting themselves, it was time get going. The muscles in my throat expanded and contracted as I wretched, and a long, small object pushed itself upward. I grasped it in my teeth, turned my head toward the floor, and let the slick, crimson sheath fall off my pen knife.

As the black metal shone in the dim light, a sickening hum assaulted my hearing, and a chilling jolt lanced its way through me. Ignoring the sensations, I lifted my head over my legs, allowing the knife to drop through the bars in my muzzle, and into the gap the slack had created. With it firmly grasped, I lowered my head and easily sliced through the thick straps around my face. When the muzzle clattered to the floor, I grabbed the knife in my teeth, and cut through my jacket. Even against the stiff canvas, the humming blade sliced through the straps around me like a hot knife through butter.

I only had one leg undone when the two pegasi turned back toward me, saw my limb free, and readied their holstered rifles. They shouted words of warning as the first green blast turned the muzzle beside my head into a small pile of dust. I pushed myself off the floor, and behind the dolly. The steel shielding me began to melt away as both soldiers began unloading their plasma rifles. Within seconds, it was almost completely reduced to molten slag. “Don’t you assholes have some sort of rule about firing guns in-flight?!” I called toward my attackers.

Pretty sure this is a bit of an extenuating circumstance, Koe commented.

The knife slashed across my final restraint, allowing me to pull free of the jacket, and begin rushing toward the guards. My coat sizzled and burnt as the green beams of light danced around me, the searing pain they left falling away. A mad grin sprouted across my face, and my eye grew wide and manic. The effect was exactly as I had intended, the two hesitated, causing a slight pause in their fire. The distance closed almost instantly, allowing me to barrel right into the mare and slash the knife across her respirator. A raucous hiss followed a jet of white mist spraying from the split hose, and Bits fell to her stomach scrabbling at the helmet’s restraints.

I didn’t give her the chance as I grasped onto her shoulders, flipped myself onto her back, and dragged the blade across her throat. The sound of wrenching metal filled the air as the tiny blade parted the power armor like wet tissue paper. A spray of crimson erupted from the deep slash in Bits' neck, followed by a static-filled gurgle blasting from her helmet's speakers as she tried to press her hooves over the gaping wound.

"Bits!" The buck cried again, before leveling his rifle. I threw my forelegs underneath the dying mare's, and heaved with all my might. The pony weighed a ton in her armor, but, with a creak, I pulled her torso in front of me just as the first few shots reached us. She jerked and grunted a few times before becoming still, and her black steel armor began to warm and warp. With a wail of anguish, Gray stopped firing. “You motherfucker!”

“Hold on now,” I shouted over his plaintive cries, “I’ve done a ton of fucked up things in my life, but that is just going way too-” he kicked me again. This time, the armored hoof appeared over my shield’s lifeless helmet, giving me just enough time to duck my head before it was made into modern art on the wall. Instead, it plowed into my left shoulder, bulldozing me off the dead mare, and into the hard steel behind us. The back of my head felt like it’d been split open, my ears rang, and the world started going a little Dash-trip on me. My jaw fell open, and I heard the humming blade fall away and clatter to the floor. My vision blurred, but I could just make out a large, black shape charging closer.

As my head and ribs fought for the crippling pain supremacy award, I managed to roll myself to the floor just before another vicious buck dented in the wall. Landing on my right side had the academy voting unanimously in favor of my ribs and they took the stage with thunderous applause, or maybe that was just the screech of pain I let loose, who knows?

“You,” the pegasi gasped as he stalked toward my prostrate form, “are going to fucking pay.”

“Oh, I’m quite sure of that,” I wheezed, trying to bring back my visualization, but there wasn’t time.

“Not in Thunderhead,” he growled, “right fucking now. You’re going to suffer for what you did to her.”

“Ok, first off,” I chided quietly, “you really don’t want to talk to me about suffering, it’ll give you nightmares. Second, let’s not forget, you had a hoof in little miss Bits' untimely demise too. In fact, I’m pretty sure you’re the one that actually put her in the gr-”

He brought his forelegs up in an eerily familiar… crushing way. Huh, deja vu. The armored hooves slammed into the floor as I rolled to the left. “Stay still!” the enraged buck cried.

“See now,” I called, rolling to avoid another flattening strike, “that doesn’t seem to be entirely conducive to my health.”

“SHUT! UP! AND! DIE!”

Another blow clipped my unwounded shoulder, compressing the bone, and filling the air with a sharp crack. My vision exploded into a blinding white, and my throat felt as if it were about to rupture from my screams. The world came back into focus just in time to see the killing blow rise above me. “Oh come on,” I whined, “what’re you so upset about anyway?”

The pegasus froze, his body language giving off an air of utter confusion, but remained poised above me. “Are… are you fucking serious?” he asked, rage and bewilderment coloring his speech. “You killed my best friend!”

“Did I?” I gasped, as my mind raced for a plan with the precious seconds I was buying myself. “You see, as I recall, I was just making polite conversation when somepony got a little emotional. Now, in case you didn’t get the memo-” I suddenly grasped onto the sides of the buck’s helmet, and heaved myself up toward his face. “I’m a little bit out of my Goddess-damned mind, and perhaps you should have been acting with a bit more decorum when dealing with somepony as dangerous as me.” I widened my eye at Gray, who merely stared back in awe. For fuck’s sake this guy was thick. “I’m just a mad dog, and you let me off my leash.” He continued to stare at me, but I could see a subtle shaking in his shoulders. I could just imagine the abject horror plastered on his face as my words registered. “You killed Bits, Gray,” I whispered.

“No, I-,” he sputtered, a gentle sob cracking his voice, “I didn’t mean- but you- I just- I…” Suddenly, he cried out, threw his head to the side, and brought his hooves up a bit further before ramming them down toward me. Luckily, he was distracted just long enough for me to slide out from beneath the stallion, and dive back toward where I’d hit the wall. A piercing gong resounded throughout the hall as the floor was dented in where I’d lain just moments before. I scanned the floor, and spied the glint of dark metal shining. I dove for the knife, just as a green beam planted itself in the floor between us. I backpedaled from the smoking spot and threw a look back at Gray, who’d apparently just remembered that he was carrying a gun.

“Oh no you don’t,” he called before opening up with the plasma rifle again. The superheated blasts rained around me with the frequency and impreciseness that spawns from fighting emotionally. If I could just keep him shooting, he’d run dry eventually.

“Aw, what’s wrong Gray,” I mocked as I attempted to limp in a zig-zag, narrowly avoiding the bursts of plasma. “It’s not like we killed the mare of your dreams or anything. Unless… oh-” I called, placing a hoof over my mouth, “did you want both of them? Seems a little greedy to me, but eh-” I tried to shrug my shoulders, but they both exploded in agony, almost toppling me to the floor. Swiftly, I regained my composure. “Maybe the good Generals rubbing off on you,” I finished through gritted teeth.

“Fuck you,” Gray shrieked, continuing to pump the hall full of green death, before the unmistakable fizzle and click of a dead spark-battery sounded from the rifle. My ears perked at the sound, and I smiled mischievously. I’d managed to limp to the other end of the hall, giving me all the time I could ever need. Even the most skilled marksman would need at least eight seconds to reload that model of rifle without unicorn assistance.

Ok, Koe, I thought at the voice in my head, I'm gonna need your help on this one.

You sure? Koe asked, You kind of passed out like a bitch last time.

Fuck you, I thought, if it fails we’re dead either way, now just do it.

Alright, tough guy, one super mental morphine coming up. I clenched my eye shut, brought up my burning visualization, and prepared for the worst. It began as a small spark on my flattened shoulder, but spread quickly to a raging inferno. The other shoulder followed suit, as well as my side. With Koe's assistance, it felt as if every aching part of myself suddenly burst into blinding flames, the sensation searing across my consciousness, and drawing forth a piercing screech from my lips. The image was so vivid, it was almost as if the blaze was truly erupting from within, and roasting me from the inside out. The pain was indescribable in its intensity and voracity, and yet, in a strange way, familiar and comforting. Like an old friend that I wasn’t particularly fond of meeting again, and yet still glad to do so. I mean, how many friends can one hold onto in the wasteland anyway? You've gotta take what you can get.

Then, as it always did, the wounds began to char and flake apart, killing the flame’s fuel source, and numbing the mind-crippling trauma to a minor ache. Peeling open my eyes again, I could see Gray fumbling for the new battery. As if all my limbs were whole, I began to gallop down the hall, my manic smile spreading wide across my face again. The buck looked up just in time to see me, and froze completely. I suppose it was quite the sight, a pony who’d only moments before been desperately limping away, outclassed and sporting wounds that would knock anyone else right out of the fight, was barreling toward him without a care in the world. As the distance closed, I compressed my rear legs before bounding over the shocked buck, landing on his back, and leaping once more toward my fallen blade.

With the humming knife in my teeth, I faced Gray. He seemed to finally be overcoming his surprise, and finished loading his rifle. The beams of plasma flew all around me, several managing to leave smoking holes in my flesh, but the pain faded away beside the might of Koe’s inferno. I closed the distance between us before diving under the buck’s legs again, but this time shoving the side of my head upward and plunging the long, thin blade into the armored belly of my assailant. Another screech of wrenching metal filled the air before a cascade of sparks, blood, and guts poured from the stallion’s stomach, soaking me in his gore.

A gurgled cry of anguish escaped the buck’s helmet before he collapsed to his side. He desperately tried to shove the thin bits of entrails back inside himself, but only managed to slice them off on the jagged edges of his armor. Gray bits of Gray began to litter the brig’s floor.

I stood over the prostrate buck, as he had me just minutes before. His cries of agony were drowned out in the chorus of all those constantly swimming through my mind. His were nothing special, and that’s how he was going to die, unremarkable and forgotten.

With two more quick slashes, the metal around his neck shrieked, before his helmet toppled off his head and clattered to the steel floor. Beneath was a black buck with a gray mane shaved almost to his scalp. His eyes were sealed shut and his teeth clenched in agony, only anguished gasps escaping him. Two fresh, deep cuts were on either side of his neck. Oops, cut a little too deep.

With his helmet ruined and his stomach open to the world, he wouldn’t be contacting anypony for help, so there wasn’t any reason to make it quick. Was it cruel? Yeah. Would it be more logical to just finish him off now? Probably, but you don’t get a reputation like mine acting logically, and preserving it has gotten me farther than I would have ever thought possible. Fear is an excellent bargaining tool. Besides, everypony could do with a little lesson in suffering.

Glancing around the hallway, I could see the fruit of my work wasn’t exactly subtle. The walls and ceiling surrounding Bits had all been coated in a fine mist of blood, and the whimpering form of the disemboweled Gray continued to leak a large crimson pool. It wouldn’t be long before this was discovered, I had to get moving. Turning from the slaughtered pegasi, I began to make my way toward the rest of the ship.

The sodden clearing of Gray’s throat made me pause, “Why… are you… doing this? What… do you want?” he asked pitifully.

I thought about telling him, as I did with everypony that asked that question. Maybe he’d understand, and his mind would be more at ease if he knew the true meaning behind my slaughter; that a final, selfish goal lie at the end of this bloody path. A small pang of remorse touched my heart, but it paled in comparison to all the regret I was forced to carry with me. Perhaps, one day, I might find the right one to talk to, but not today.

“You know,” I began, “they say that, in death, all of life’s questions are answered.”

He stared back at me, pain and confusion in his gaze.

“So why should I waste my breath?” I finished.

“You’ll never… get it,” he gasped, “If you think… you can beat us… on our… own turf… you must be insane.”

“No,” I responded quietly, “I’m a pirate.”

Yo ho ho, Koe sang merrily.

The warship gently swayed in her ascent, and the walls and floors hummed with the powerful engines rocketing us toward the cloud layer. I moved through the labyrinth of dimly lit halls, my hooves passing over the steel floors with a metallic whisper. Staying quiet has long been a skill of mine, one I’ve honed through necessity. It’s impossible to survive long if you’re not either in a group, or know just how to avoid them. A loner doesn’t make it very far charging ahead into danger, it’s far more beneficial to distance oneself from their opponents, and only strike when absolutely necessary. That being said...

I really don’t want to have to say it, Koe stated, frustration pervading his words.

Say what? I thought back.

Ok, listen up. Number one, you do know that that little trick of ours doesn’t heal you, right? Those broken bones are still very real, and they’re gonna keep doing damage the longer you’re on them. Second, if the homicidal voice in your head needs to tell you, ‘Hey, maybe rushing into battle against an entire warship full of trained soldiers with half your limbs crushed is a bad fucking idea,’ then you have some issues that even I don’t want to have to deal with.

Valid points, I thought back.

That’s it, are you fucking with me? Koe asked in disbelief. What, exactly, do you think’s gonna happen when someone discovers that little butcher shop you just opened up back there? How can you possibly be so thick about this? This whole boats about to be on your ass, it’s just a matter of time.

That’s exactly the point, I snapped. Time, we don’t fucking have it. Derecho needs to be dead and we need to be off this boat before it reaches the cloud layer. Otherwise, we’re gonna have one of those lightning rods blowing us out of the sky.

Oh yeah, the grand escape, I am so looking forward to that part of the plan.

It should work, I thought with as much confidence as I could.

Should. Yep, can’t wait.

I rolled my eyes and asked, Just keep a look out, ok? before turning my concentration back to the task at hoof. At the end of the hall before me, I could make out the sliding doors of a lift. If I remembered the layout correctly, the brig was set right alongside cargo, engineering and munitions on the lowest deck, with servicepony quarters on the second and third, officer’s on the fourth, various operations on the fifth through eighth, and the bridge set above the flight deck up top.

I crept down the hall, keeping my ears perked. A crossroad of two paths formed just before the lift, giving me pause and directing my attention toward Koe. Anything?

The voice paused before answering, I got nothing.

I sighed, Let’s hope it stays that way.

I crept closer to the sliding doors, pressing my hoof against the button labelled with an up arrow immediately next to it. With a thunk and a whir, I heard the elevator set in motion, the car beginning its descent down to me.

Hold up, boss, Koe said, I’ve got two headed this way, left hallway.

Shit, I thought back. How long?

Maybe thirty seconds, Koe responded.

Keep tracking them. I scanned my eyes around the hall, desperately looking for a place I could hide. The right hall seemed to have several doors nestled in small alcoves. I worked the handles on several, finding them locked tight, and me without a single bobby-pin. Each entrance was slightly recessed, so I stood on my hind legs, and pressed my back against the cool steel door behind me, trying to lie as flush with the surface as possible.

Muffled voices soon became audible from the adjacent hallway. Soon enough, the mare Violet and another armored EIW pegasus rounded the corner and stalked toward me.

“... believe he actually wanted to get the whole ship together just to watch him and my sister duke it out. I swear, I’m thinking real hard about kicking that egotistical shit right the hell out of active duty before he gets somepony killed,” Violet said to her fellow soldier.

“You know his background, ma’am,” the other mare stated. “Never had to work a single damn day his whole life, and now he wants to play soldier. Gets some training, a couple deployments, a decent kill count going, and you’ve got one hell of a shit-head stew brewing. He’s like the General, but with something to prove.”

“That sounds like a powder-keg just waiting to get set off,” Violet responded.

The pair reached the crossroads, and I begged that they would turn toward detention. Sure, they’d discover the mess I made, but there was still some time before they’d arrive. If I was correct, I’d be done and gone before they even got the word out.

They paused at the divergent path, looking both ways, and staying silent. I held my breath; even though I should've been just out of range of their Eyes Forward Sparkle threat radars, it didn’t make me any less tense. After a few nerve-wracking seconds, Violet spoke. “Well, I better go check in with Bits and Gray. That psycho made them pretty upset.” She shook her head a bit, “It’s like he knew exactly what to say to rile them up, same with the General.” She paused again, looking like she was trying to find the right words, “What do you think we’re up against here, Clover? Are we prepared to take this guy on?”

Clover let out a small laugh, “Prepared? Forgive my candor, but listen to yourself, ma’am. We’re on one of the most highly advanced and defensible constructs in the Enclave arsenal. Also, let’s not forget that we’ve got the most badass group of fliers in Equestria onboard. If that piece of shit even thinks about making a move against us, he’ll have a whole army shoved down his throat.”

“You’re probably right,” Violet admitted, her voice sounding slightly more relieved. “Well, get back to the barracks, you drew the long straw.”

“Happy to win again, ma’am,” the other mare teased, before turning and marching back the way they’d come.

Violet stared after Clover for a second, before facing the hallway leading toward the brig. I gave a silent whoop of joy as I quietly removed myself from the hiding spot, and crept back toward the lift. My luck must have been getting better as the doors quietly slid open just as I moved into the light.

Ding, going up, Koe stated joyfully.

DING! “GOING UP!” A computerized voice loudly echoed.

The heavy weight of dread settled in my stomach as I spun around, and saw Violet glaring directly at me from the other end of the hallway. “Oh, you have got to be kidding me,” I shouted.

“Code eight-two-four, I repeat, code eight-two-four,” the mare cried as she galloped back toward me. “We have an escaped prisoner on the detention level, this is not a drill!”

I turned back toward the open lift and dove through the entrance, frantically slamming my hoof against the close door button. “Come on, come on, come on you piece of shit, CLOSE!” I shouted, continuing to pound the button into submission. The armored mare dove forward, extended her wings, and began gliding rapidly toward me. The thin metal doors slowly began to close as she drew nearer. Finally, with a hiss, the doors sealed shut, only to be dented in by the resounding slam of the metal pegasus crashing into it.

I smashed my hoof against the button labelled five, and felt the lift gently begin its ascent. Several large breaths escaped me as I tried to calm the thundering in my chest. Ok, I thought to myself, this might have just gotten a bit more complicated.

Oh, you think so? Koe answered. I’m sure everypony on board is gonna be totally understanding, once you explain that we’re just here to kill the good General. Who could possibly take that the wrong way?

Could really do without the attitude, I snapped back.

What attitude? he asked innocently. Everythings been going so fucking swimmingly so far.

I was about to respond, when the elevator ground to a halt with a screech of metal. The lights within flickered before going dark, and the subtle glow of red emergencies sprang to life, casting the entire interior in a crimson shroud. A slam erupted from the roof, before the emergency hatch flew away, showing Violet standing atop the car.

“End of the line,” the armored mare barked, levelling her twin plasma rifles at me.

“Um… parley?” I asked lamely.

“What?” she responded.

“Parley, it’s sort of a pira… naval thing,” I said. “I’d like to meet with your-”

“I fucking know what parley means,” she spat. “The part that confuses me is why you’re saying it. You had your chance to talk to the General, and now I’m marching you right back to detention.”

“You might wanna bring a mop,” I stated flatly, “things got a bit… messy with your buddies.”

Suddenly, she leapt down into the car, charged forward, and slammed me against the wall. One of her front legs pressed against my throat, and lifted me off the ground. “What. Did. You. Do?” she asked, punctuating every word with a compression of my neck.

“You’re... surprised?” I choked. “Well… first I… made the… *cough*,” my vision started to cloud, and my eyes rolled toward the back of my head. Wet choking sounds escaped me as a black void crept closer. Staring back at Violet, it was becoming painfully obvious that she wasn’t actually expecting me to finish telling her what happened. My vision began to darken as unconsciousness fought to take hold. I cried out as loud as my compressed throat would allow, shaking off the sensation as well as I could, before levelling my gaze at Violet. “Wow… Gray said… you liked… it rough… but I had… no idea.”

She gave a slight twitch in anger, before grasping me with both hooves, and heaving me across the elevator car. I slammed into the opposing wall, exacerbating every wound I’d already received. But hey, at least I could breathe, and now she was near enough for me to get up close and personal.

I pulled the pen knife out of the tangles of my mane and let the sheath fall to the floor. I quickly dropped myself as twin beams of green light sizzled overhead, leaving dark scorches in the wall of the lift. We didn’t have a lot of room, but there was enough for her to maneuver the saddle any which way she wanted. Coupled with her power-armor enhanced strength, things weren’t looking too rosy for me.

From my prone position, I desperately searched the car for an advantage. The red of the emergencies cast deep shadows, hiding much of the interior from view. However, Violet hadn’t moved far since joining me, she was almost right underneath the open hatch.

With a shout, I leapt toward the armored pegasus, slashing my knife across her faceplate. It caught the respirator, just like Bits’ from earlier, and caused a jet of mist to expel from her helmet. The smoke swiftly filled the car, causing us to vanish from each other’s view. With her position in mind, I leapt once more, felt myself land on her back, and scrambled up toward the hatch.

My front legs felt sluggish and unresponsive as I fought to escape the car, until I was finally able to flip onto the roof and land on my back. “What the hell is-” I began as I stared at my legs, before I heard Koe clear his 'throat.' “Oh, right,” I lamented as I glanced at my broken shoulders.

The elevator shaft was almost completely dark, save for a beam of dim red light pouring from the open hatch. I looked around, and spied how Violet had managed to stop the car. An emergency crow bar had been shoved into the gears connecting the elevator to the guide rails. Turning my head around, I saw the counterweight in a smaller shaft adjacent to ours, still attached to the thick steel cable connecting it to the lift.

An idea started to form in my head, but my crushed shoulders were going to make it difficult. Even so, I moved as quickly as I could toward the wedged crow bar, and began slamming my rear hooves against it. The steel creaked and groaned with each buck, but remained intact.

Before I could make any progress, a dark shape darted out of the elevator. Looking up, I could see Violet hovering just above me. Her helmet was gone, revealing a deep purple mare. Her mane was slightly lighter, and was tied back into a long braid running along the length of her back.

My breath caught in my throat as I stared, not from fear, but from a sense of voracious loss. In the dimness of the shaft, she looked almost identical to… I shook the memory from my mind, before the heart-wrenching agony of the thought overtook me.

“You’re dead,” she stated simply, malice dripping from every word.

Then she dived toward me, hooves extended, and attempted to crush me against the wall. I smiled, before diving off the right side of the roof, and grasping desperately to the edge of the car. The sound of screeching metal filled the air as Violet slammed into lift, and a shower of sparks followed the crow bar and gear assembly toppling off the edge, and disappearing into the darkness below. With a crash, the elevator pulled free from the guide rails.

I whooped in success; the dumb mare had played her part perfectly. The car swung freely, and a groan sounded from the steel cable as it became the only thing holding us aloft. My joy was swiftly extinguished as Violet reappeared at the edge of the car. She placed a hoof on mine, and began to slowly compress it.

“Bye bye,” she whispered as my hoof fell from the car, leaving only one unresponsive leg holding me up. I took a deep breath as I looked down, and then let go.

The weightless feeling of freefall took me, right before I slammed into the hard concrete of the counterweight. My breath expelled from my lungs in one big gasp as a tingling sensation marked feeling returning to my broken limbs. I forced myself to my hooves and glared back at the lift.

A low snarl escaped Violet as our eyes met. “That all you got, bitch?” I taunted, “Can’t imagine why Gray never had the guts to make a move on you.” I put a hoof under my chin in thought, “Actually, I guess it does make sense. Once I was done with him, he didn’t have much left in the whole guts department.”

“YOU MOTHERFUCKER!” she shouted as she leapt from the car, extended her wings, and lowered herself until she was level with me.

“Oh come on,” I whined, “I never even knew my mother. Why does everypony think that I-” she shot me. The block beneath me may have been heavy, but it wasn’t very large, giving me precious little space to maneuver, and only empty air lay on either side. I watched the green bolt lance through my broken shoulder, leaving a smoking hole, and immediately assaulting my mind with pain.

TAKE CARE OF THIS! I cried at Koe.

I’ll do what I can, he responded, genuine worry touching his voice, but try not to get hit like that again. There’s two of us in here, you know, and I do enjoy not being attached to a puddle of jelly.

The intense burn of our numbing trick began to lap at the wound, but there wasn’t time to let it run its course. Violet was lining up for another shot, and both rifles were warming in anticipation.

I threw my legs up in surrender. “Ok, you got me. I give up.”

She backed up a few feet, a look of shock replacing her earlier rage. “What?!” she shouted.

“What do you mean, what?” I asked. “I give up, surrender, wave the white flag, lay down my arms.” The look I adopted was one of subjection, and I hoped it was convincing. “You win.”

“And you think I’m just gonna accept that?! After what you did?!” she shouted.

“Do I not also deserve due-process?” I asked, keeping my hooves up, but not yet dropping the knife. “I thought the Enclave was supposed to be the final shining example of civilization, the last bastion of law and order.” I moved closer to the edge of the platform, keeping myself looking as helpless as possible. “But, if that’s no longer the case, then shoot me. Shoot me and prove you’re just a group of well-armed gangers, no different from the scum murdering, raping, and-”

Don’t you dare say pillaging, Koe snapped.

“-stealing, down on the surface.”

My words hit home. She was obviously a soldier through and through, an idealist if I've ever met one. She had something I would never truly understand, faith in her duty, and that whatever was ordered of her was always for the greater good. But I had also just royally fucked with her life. It doesn't matter how disciplined or well-trained you are, when someone hurts the ponies you care about most, rationality goes right out the window. That was something I could definitely understand.

There was that sense of duty pulling from one side, and her chance at revenge from the other. It was definitely up in the air, was she going to make the smart, long term choice, or the pleasure-inducing, short term one? The question was soon answered as she moved cautiously toward me, pulling a pair of hoofcuffs from… somewhere.

“You’re gonna burn in Thunderhead,” she whispered menacingly, moving exactly where I wanted her.

“Oh, I’m sure,” I stated, keeping my voice level. Then, I let a huge grin spread across my face, “but not before you.”

She stopped, her expression changing to confusion, before she looked up and saw she was right underneath the swinging elevator car.

“Psyche, bitch,” I shouted before turning, and slashing my knife across the cable connected to the counterweight. With no guide rails to support it, the car shrieked before the cable whipped past me, trailing up the shaft, and the huge steel box came crashing down on the unsuspecting pegasus. A cry of surprise left her, but was swiftly silenced from the deafening roar of the lift freefalling down the shaft. The entire space shook violently as it slammed into the bottom level.

“That’s right!” I shouted, elation flooding my voice. “You wanna grab this bull by the horns? You better be ready for a ri-” another shriek of metal echoed throughout the space. I stared at the sides of the counterweight, and saw it’s own rusted guide rails straining to keep us aloft. Without the cable, it wasn’t going to be holding for long.

“Uh oh,” I whispered as the first side tore free of its rail.

Didn’t quite think this through, did ya? Koe asked annoyingly.

Shut the fuck up Ko- the opposite side broke, and the platform began its own descent toward the bottom of the shaft. The air whipped my mane around, blinding me from the rapidly approaching floor, as I grasped onto the concrete with the remaining reserves of strength I had.

With a slam, we landed. The concrete beneath me shattered, my chest felt like it exploded, and I was thrown free from the broken counterweight. I felt myself bounce off the wall, then the top of the ruined elevator, and finally came to rest in a warm, sticky pool.

Everything was black, either from my injuries or lack of light. Either way, the pain slowly encroaching on me was evidence enough that I wasn’t dead, surprisingly. “Hoo boy,” I called, relieved to hear my voice still worked. I mean, what kind of a world would this be if I just stopped talking? A much darker one, I assure you.

Still alive, then? Koe asked.

You tell me, I snapped before looking around. Objects in the darkness moved, so at least I wasn’t completely blind. I picked myself up off the floor, woo not crippled either, and felt the warm liquid trail off my back. I recognized the scent before my eyes adjusted, I’d know that metallic-smelling vile anywhere. As objects became more detailed, I saw a still form, half-pinned under the lift, was the source of the blood.

Violet’s lower half was flattened beneath the elevator, but sodden gasps made it clear she, too, wasn’t quite dead yet. The thin, black steel of her Enclave power armor had flattened like a tin can beneath the car.

“That was some trip, huh?” I asked joyfully.

She craned her neck toward me, agony and rage burning in her gaze.

“And look at you,” I continued. “Don’t get me wrong, you fought well, and maybe you could’ve taken me on, if you were half the mare you used to be.” I flashed a grin.

She spat up a mouthful of blood in response.

“Oh come on, that was funny,” I complained. “Haven’t you ever heard of the healing power of laughter?” In demonstration, I gave my cackle a whirl, and was thrilled when it rang out loud and true.

“Go… to… hell,” she gasped quietly.

“Already there, sweetheart,” I stated seriously, before turning from the dying mare. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I believe I have a parley with the good General.”

As I stared around the shaft, I had a thought. “How the fuck am I gonna get back up there?” I asked to no one in particular.

Ahem, Koe said, and I felt my sight directed toward one of the walls. Right beside an old “Maintenance Only” sign was a ladder trailing all the way up to the top of the shaft.

My heart sank, You’ve gotta be fucking with me.

He wasn’t.

We’d been forced to stop several times on our way up the shaft, clinging to the rungs as we tried to numb the ever-worrying amount of wounds I was collecting. However, each round of it yielded fewer and fewer results. I was running out of time.

It was slow going, but with the ship being alerted to my escape, we’d slowed our ascent somewhat. I couldn’t hear any alarms or the sound of mobilizing troops, so word must only have spread to those who already knew I was here.

Despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, I’m not an idiot. Derecho didn’t want anypony but him and those special, gold-striped pegasi knowing I was onboard. Luckily, that just played to my advantage.

After what seemed an eternity of neverending ladder, agonized screams, and mocking remarks from Koe, we reached the level marked with a large red five beside the lift doors.

Wait a minute, Koe piped in, I thought the officer’s quarters were on the fourth floor?

They are, I thought back, but do you really think that little shit is just gonna let me stroll on through to his room unhindered? He’s probably got an entire battalion strolling through these halls. We’ve gotta find a place where we can get the drop on him.

Literally, in this case, Koe replied, amusement in his voice.

I rolled my eye, before scanning it along the outside of the door. Then I spied exactly what I was looking for, a ventilation shaft set right below the fifth floor. I pulled the knife back out of my mane and placed the tip inside one of the screws holding the panel closed, before working my tongue to turn the blade. The screw squeaked as it slowly loosened.

Um, Koe interrupted again, what the fuck are you doing?

Duh, I responded, Using my knife to loosen the screws so I can… Oh. I flushed in embarrassment, seeing what Koe was getting at. Then, I slashed the humming black blade across each screw, severing them, and toppling the hatch into the darkness below.

It’s called common sense, dipshit.

Fuck you.

I crawled into the open shaft and began the slow journey through its maze-like corridors. Each room had a roof-mounted grate, allowing me to peer down at the inhabitants of each. Most were empty, the officers were probably off assuaging the concerns of the recruits. I’d heard enough small-talk from my short time here to know what kind of soldiers I was actually up against. Nothing to be concerned about on their own, but if you armed enough monkeys with plasma rifles and pointed them in the same direction, they’d hit something eventually.

Derecho wasn’t far. At least, if the pairs of gold-striped pegasi only patrolling this particular area of the ship was any indication. You’d think that pegasi would be the one race of ponies that would know to also look up for potential threats, but maybe my luck was finally turning around.

I worriedly looked all around me for a hail of gunfire, or a laser grid that would come sailing through to slice me to pieces, or a jet of dragon fire filling the entire ventilation system, but all was quiet. It’s not paranoia if that’s the sort of shit that you have to put up with.

I was about to admit how lost I actually was when I found him. Or, rather, I was pretty sure I found his quarters. Whilst every other room was equipped with the standard sliding metal doors found throughout Equestria, this was probably the first time I’d ever seen big, wooden, double doors in their place. The wood was ornately decorated with swirling imagery and flowers, the knobs glimmered with a golden sheen, and there were even a pair of knockers molded into the shape of griffin heads. A pair of those special pegasi were stationed outside.

He’s not serious, Koe stated, disbelief he usually reserved for my own stupidity coloring his voice.

Well, I guess if you’re going to act like a pompous douche, you may as well go all the way, I answered.

I could make out a beam of light coming from the room’s vent just in front of me. As I crept closer, the sound of a mare speaking resonated from below.

“Don’t worry sir, I’m sure the EIW are doing everything in their power to try and recapture-”

“I don’t give a flying fuck what they’re trying to do, you cunts!” Derecho shrieked. “I want some Goddess-damned results! I want that crazy motherfucker’s head on my desk this fucking second!”

Gee, Koe commented, everypony seems to think you’ve got a thing for-

I know, I interrupted.

I peered down through the vent, and found an incredibly lavish room. The metal floor was covered in expensive, ornate rugs. The furniture was all dark, heavy wood, and was comprised of two different wardrobes, a large desk cluttered with paper, and a dresser topped with an enormous mirror. Hanging from the walls were portraits of several proud, uniformed pegasi, the largest of which depicted Derecho himself. A green mare and a gold one both lay on an enormous, four-poster bed. It was adorned with luxurious looking purple blankets, piles of plush pillows, and a burgundy drape dangling around it. The two pegasi were both stripped of their uniforms, laying on their sides with a hoof on their flanks, and were beckoning to the General.

The little pegasus was nervously pacing back and forth, his mane was frazzled, and large wet stains were plastered under his front legs. His eyes were wide in panic, and his breathing came in short gasps.

Holy shit, Koe piped in, barely concealed laughter in his tone, he’s about to piss his pants.

"Sir, if I may," the golden one piped in, "perhaps if we allowed some of the patrols on this level to join the search, they'd be able to locate Stab more easily."

"Oh, and leave myself defenseless?!" he screamed in response. "What are you thinking, you dumb fucking cow?!"

“Please, sir,” the green mare continued, “this isn’t good for you. Come over here and let us help you relax.”

He raised a hoof, as if he were going to snap at the mares, but quickly adopted a resigned expression and lowered it back to the ground. “Fine,” he said curtly, “but I’m getting cleaned up first.” He turned from the pair, and approached another ornate door on the opposite side of the room. “Take care of each other if you want, I’m not in the mood for foreplay,” he finished before opening the door and slamming it shut behind him.

What a romantic, Koe said sarcastically.

The two mares quickly lost their seductive expressions, and replaced them with resigned frustration. “I can’t believe him,” the golden mare sighed.

“He’s stressed,” the green one responded, “and can you blame him?”

“Yeah, cause it’s only when he’s stressed that he treats us like garbage,” the other mare said sarcastically. “Do you think Lavender was right?”

“You mean Lieutenant Lavender,” the other pegasus answered. “Keep in mind, Golden, he’s the only reason we’re captains. If putting up with his tantrums and letting him stick that little prick in us is the price, then I’ll gladly keep paying it.”

“Are you even listening to yourself, Mint?” Golden asked. “What the fuck happened to the proud, no-nonsense, going to shake the military to its core soldier I joined up with?”

“She wised the fuck up and learned how to work the system,” Mint spat, turning from the other mare. “If we ever want to change anything, we can’t do it without rank. Once we get promoted far enough, then we'll be able to make a difference, make sure nopony has to go through the same shit we've had to. Can Lavender say the same?”

“The only thing that we've changed is how often we open our legs, Mint,” the golden Captain responded huffily.

“Fuck you.”

Golly, Koe said, that sounds like a happy relationship.

I ignored him as I assessed the situation, and tried to formulate my strategy. I needed to keep this quiet with those guards outside the door, and the mares below me were definitely going to complicate things. Sure, they might not be Derecho’s biggest fans, but I still highly doubted they’d work with me willingly.

It seemed like the bed was positioned right below me. If I did this right, they wouldn’t have time to warn anypony and, maybe, they might prove useful.

I ran through some quick scenarios in my head, before I removed the black knife from my mane, and slowly slid it across the bolts holding the vent closed. The metal parted with a whisper, before the first corner fell free. A small creak sounded, but nothing more.

The two Captains were both looking away from each other, toward opposite ends of the room. I needed to move quickly before one of them decided to look up. I crawled toward the next bolt and repeated the motion, then once more on the third. With both my front hooves latched onto the vent, my shoulders cried out against the strain. It was times like these that I felt an incredible sense of loss as I looked up at the shard of jagged horn jutting out of my head. Shaking off the feeling, I lined the metal panel up with the green mare, before cutting the final bolt and allowing the cover to topple down. It tumbled once in the air before an edge smacked right into the unaware pegasus’ head, knocking her out cold. My luck held out as the panel fell to the side, and landed between the two with a soft plop.

Noticing the motion, the golden mare began to turn, right before I leapt from my perch and landed right over her prostrate form. A look of terror erupted on her face as she opened her mouth to scream, but my backhoof landed first, cutting off her cry. Then, I lowered the blade to her neck, making sure it was in plain view when she regained her composure. She fell deathly silent as her eyes nervously switched back and forth between my face and the knife.

“Hi there,” I hissed.

“H-h-h,” she whispered, unable to form a coherent response.

“Don’t talk,” I continued, “and don’t scream. Your friend there can still wake up, but I’ll make sure that neither of you ever do if you make a single fucking sound, understand?”

She jerked her head in affirmation, “W-w-what do you want?” she gasped quietly.

“Do exactly as I say, and you’ll both walk out of here.”

Golden pondered that for a second, looking nervously between me and her friend, "How do I know I can trust you?"

"You don't," I stated simply, "but it may be in your best interests to consider your other options." She looked uncertain, but cautiously gave another shaky nod.

“Good,” I said. “Go over to the door, and tell the guards that the General wants a little more privacy.”

She said nothing this time, but removed herself from the bed once I lifted the knife. She trotted slowly to the door, and I held my breath. I hoped that I’d picked the right one, if there was a right choice, and that this pegasus genuinely did care more about her friend than her duty. As a precaution, I rested the blade against Mint’s throat when Golden turned back toward us.

She took a deep breath before opening the door a crack. “Excuse me,” she said calmly, “the General is feeling a little stressed, and he really likes to… let loose when he gets like this. Do you think you two could give us a bit more privacy? Things are about to get a little noisy in here.”

“Of course, ma’am,” a buck's voice stated from outside, before the sound of heavy metal hooves rang out as the pair left to join the others patrolling the hallway.

Golden sighed. “Was that all?” she asked, a small bit of confidence returning to her voice.

“That was perfect,” I whispered, before I leapt toward the mare, turned around, and delivered an applebuck to the side of her head. Her eyes rolled toward the top of her skull as she toppled over, but the subtle rise of her chest was enough to show she was just unconscious.

Finally, Koe cried, these are the two I was telling you about earlier. He paused for a second before continuing, Say, I bet the General likes long showers. We’ve probably got some time if you want to-

Not happening, I snapped.

Oh come on, he whined, we never do what I want to do.

Gee, I fucking wonder why, I responded sarcastically, It’s not happening, and you know it.

You’re getting soft in your old age, he said.

I’ve done a lot of fucked up things, most of it at your behest you son of a bitch, but you know that's a line I won’t cross.

Oh boo hoo hoo, he continued, you get a dick shoved up your ass for a few years and suddenly you’re mister sensitive to everpony's feelings? News flash, hypocrite, I'm certain that trail of corpses you left on the way here weren't too enthused about getting fucked with steel. What, exactly, is the difference here? Or are you honestly going to try and justify vicious murder over a little harmless unconscious loving? He paused for a breath, If you’re not gonna fuck them, then can we at least just kill them? They’re gonna be a liability, and it has been a whole ten minutes since the last one. I'm sure you're itching to get that blade wet again.

I was prepared to rip Koe a new one, but the sound of water turning off followed a cloud of steam pouring from beneath the bathroom door. In a panic, I tossed the golden captain on the bed, leapt onto it myself, and yanked the burgundy curtain closed around us.

I finished in the knick of time as the door to the bathroom opened, and I watched the silhouette of Derecho pass by.

“You know what, ladies,” he called, sounding calmer than before. “I feel much better now, so I’ve changed my mind. Fire up that vacuum mouth of yours, Mint Leaf, I feel in the mood for one of your famous blow-” he pulled the curtain aside, spied the unconscious mares, and me grinning like a mad-buck between them.

“Hello, little king,” I hissed, before I leapt forward, shoved him onto his back, and towered above him. His eyes grew wide with easily twice the terror Golden had shown, and his breathing came rapid fire from his lips.

“H-H-HEL-” he tried to cry, before I socked him across the face.

“Don’t bother,” I said calmly, “your guards felt that we should have a bit of privacy. Good thing too, because this’ll be a night that you won't soon forget, I can promise you that.”

“W-w-what do you want from me?” he gasped. “Money? I can make you richer than you’ve ever imagined. Mares? Take whoever you want. You want those two? They’re yours.”

“Shut up,” I snapped.

“Power?!” he cried, ignoring my command. “When we get back to Thunderhead, I’ll have more sway than anypony you’ll ever meet. I can get you whatever you want.” His words came faster and faster in his panic, before devolving into mindless babbling. “Please,” he began to sob, tears streaming down his cheeks, “I’ll give you anything, just don’t kill me.”

“I already told you what I want,” I whispered calmly as I let the knife clatter to the floor, “I want to rip out your throat.” I let my eye grow wide and manic, and continued to let my grin burn itself into his memory. The last thing he’d ever see.

His whole body was shaking now, and his breath caught in his throat. A sour smell reached my nostrils, and a warm liquid began surrounding my hooves. Looking down, I found that Koe’s earlier prediction was spot on as the little General pissed himself in terror.

Looking back at him, my smile only widened, “Well, that’s embarrassing. I know I’d never want to meet my creator after having just pissed myself. Aw well, on that note-” I lowered my head toward him, parted my mouth, and laid my teeth across his trembling throat, “we depart.”

“M-M-MOMMY!” Derecho shrieked as his sobs reached a crescendo. The cries vibrated against my teeth, and I could feel his pulse jumping to higher and higher speeds.

Bon appetite, Koe commented joyfully.

With that, I slowly bit down. The soft flesh of his throat provided a slight resistance, before a gush of hot, metallic blood burst forth, coating my mouth and tongue in his gore. His plaintive cries for his mother were drowned in a wet gurgling as my teeth came together, and the wriggling organ fell into my mouth.

Rising back up, the final strands of flesh tore themselves free, and I watched Derecho die. His eyes were wide, and the pupils had shrunk down to pinpricks. The open gash across his throat continued to spurt crimson jets into the air, some landing across his deathmask. The gurgles continued for several seconds, before his pupils rolled upward, and a final, sodden breath escaped his lips.

I spat the remains of his throat on the floor and wiped a hoof across my tongue, trying to remove as much of the vile taste from my mouth as possible. “I hate doing that,” I whined.

Oh quit being such a baby, Koe said, it's not like you haven't done it before, and besides, it makes for one hell of a horror story. The Enclave’ll be talking about this one for years.

Only if we escape, I commented. With that in mind, I began ripping up the expensive carpets, desperately trying to find my way out. After tossing the final rug onto the bed, a small hatch appeared. I twisted the wheel-lock and yanked the round cover open. Several feet down was a small, round platform, and up and down arrows were on a control panel nearby. I dived into the hatch, pulled it closed over me, and smashed my hoof against the downward arrow. The small emergency lift rapidly descended.

Wouldn’t using this thing have made this a fuck-ton easier? Koe asked.

I shook my head, If the info our contact gave us was accurate, this lift is only used in emergencies, and can’t be called from anywhere aside from the General’s private quarters.

That's stupid, he responded, so, you really think this is gonna work?

Honestly, I don’t have a clue, I lamented. I’ve never heard of anypony using one of these Tartarus jumper things, and I highly doubt it’s a system that they test regularly.

Well, either way, it’ll be one hell of show.

I sighed, Shut the fuck up, Koe.

Finally, the round platform descended into a large room. From the schematics I’d been shown, this was right at the bottom of the Eclipse’s lower siege platform. Either side was lined with teardrop shaped metal pods, each sporting a small door, but without any windows. I approached one, and began looking it over for a way inside.

Tartarus jumpers, or TJ's for short, had primarily been used by non-pegasi during the war. They were designed for rapid deployment of troops and, in emergencies, escape from the larger classes of cloudship. Effectively, it was a casing of twenty-five centimeter thick armor plating, equipped with slowed descension talismans, and designed to withstand drops from over five-thousand meters. However, even in their prime, the survival rate for ponies inside was only about seventy-five percent.

I found a covered control panel near the door, and slid it open. A screen immediately sprang to life, and it displayed the message, “Input Authorization Code.”

I stared blankly at the screen. “Shit,” I whispered.

What, exactly, do you mean by shit? Koe asked. Didn’t that fuck of a contact give you one of those?

He failed to mention it.

Well, that’s just super, Koe spat, Looks like little Venture gets fucked over again. Probably wanted to cover his tracks, and killing off the hitpony sounds like a pretty important loose end to tie up.

Shut up.

What? I know it’s exactly what I would’ve done, he was smart. A lot fucking smarter than-

“SHUT THE FUCK UP KOE!” I shouted before slamming my hooves against the sealed pod. “NO, NO, NO, N-”, a door slid open behind me.

The priming of a plasma rifle cut the silence, and I felt its barrel press into my back. “Turn around,” a mare’s voice spoke softly.

Slowly, I turned, and was met with a ghost. I nearly leapt from my skin as Violet stood behind me, completely whole, and keeping a steady grip on her rifle. Then, as I peered closer, I began to make out a few differences. Her mane was shaved near her scalp, and her colorings were the inverse of Violet’s, with a lighter purple coat, and dark purple stubble along her head. Her armor was also missing the ornate gold-striping of those other pegasi, she was just a normal soldier.

We stood like that for a while, each second seemed to take hours to pass, but I kept my face neutral and my breathing calm. The armored mare scanned me up and down, taking in every detail of my bloody visage. Finally, after a torturous eternity, she spoke.

“Is he dead?” she asked simply.

I was about to ask who, but figured it was a stupid question. Who else could she possibly be talking about? I nodded.

“And the Captains?” she continued.

“Unconscious, but alive,” I stated simply.

She nodded, looking contemplative. If that decision got me out of this alive, I’d be rubbing it in Koe’s face from here till judgement day, the prick deserved it.

As she stood there, he decided to pipe in, Hey, that’s the other one I was telling you about.

The one with the backbone?

That’s the one.

Then it all started to make sense. It’d been a challenge matching each of Koe’s physical descriptions to the personnel files our contact had given us, but we’d obviously pulled it off during the interrogation. Otherwise, I don't think we would've gotten quite the reaction we did. Getting inside somepony's head is an art more than a science. It requires keen observation, and a wanton disregard for more or less anything someone could hold dear. Derecho had been easy, it didn't take a genius to see the inexperienced little brat was terrified of things spinning out of his control. Letting him think I could read minds was an excellent way of playing on that fear. Most of the ponies in that room probably also thought I had some weird, demonic powers to be able to know everything I did. Although, I suppose that isn't an entirely unfounded theory. I didn't even know where Koe's abilities came from.

I distinctly remembered this mare's file. With the way he'd treated her, and after seeing the sheer staggering amount of unanswered reports that she'd filed against him, this pony had every reason to hate Derecho. There was also the little fact of her having served alongside the two Captains, perhaps they’d been friends once, and that’s why I wasn’t a pile of green goo on the floor right now.

Not-Violet seemed to come to a decision as she marched forward, shoved past me, and approached the pod. She pressed a few keys on the panel, and the display changed to, “Access Granted.” With a hiss, the door opened, and revealed a simple seat and harness inside.

I almost stepped into the pod, before the mare shoved me back and levelled the rifle at my head.

“If I ever see you again, I’m bringing you down,” she stated flatly. From her emotionless tone, I could tell that it wasn’t a threat, but a promise. I know, I’ve used it many times before.

I nodded slowly in response, and she moved aside. As I settled in the seat, several status lights blinked to life, and the hum of a talisman starting up filled the air. The mare gave me one final look, before she pressed another key on the display, and the door sealed shut. A thunk sounded from below me, before the entire pod violently shook, and then dropped.

Even without sight, I could feel the free falling sensation taking hold. The pod shook this way and that, buffeted by the intense winds. I sealed my eyes shut, hoping that we were still at a low enough altitude to not be targeted by the lighting rods.

After a few seconds, the concern was assuaged, but only to be replaced by another. The humming of the slowed descent talisman rose to a fevered pitch as I fell, until a loud bang sounded from the outside. Immediately, I could feel our speed double, plunging us in complete freefall to the surface below.

“Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck,” I whispered to myself, true terror beginning to edge into my heart.

Oh, come on, Koe chimed in, don’t tell me you’re afraid of flying?

“Shut the fuck up, shut the fuck up, shut the fuck up,” I chanted, trying to keep my thoughts off the fact that several tons of steel was plunging toward the surface with no hope of a safe landing. I almost even considered praying, but figured there were plenty of other useless things I could also do.

Time almost seemed to slow for a bit, and I knew we were just moments from landing. I closed my eyes tighter, and waited for the end.

The resulting crash was louder than anything I’d ever been forced to endure. The harness surrounding me jostled and jolted, throwing me around the pod until it finally tore free. We were sliding along the ground, until the metal death trap began spinning end over end. I was thrown around the small space, slamming into the sides as we tumbled. The reinforced walls dented in with every impact, and the shriek of metal followed the door flying away.

Seconds later, we smashed into the ground a final time, and came to a halt. My breath was coming in panicked gasps, and my heart felt as if it were about to pull free from my chest.

But we made it.

Elation flooded every corner of my body as I whooped for joy, and pulled myself out of the open door. Turning back, I saw a gouged path of sand trailing down from the top of a nearby mesa, where I must have initially hit the ground. The slide down the mountainside may have been unpleasant, but it saved my life. Looking around, I could see we were still in the Marejave and, judging by the surroundings, only a short ways from where I was supposed to meet my contact.

Sparing a glance upward, I spied the Eclipse as a black mark against the gray clouds. It hadn’t halted its ascent and, soon, it disappeared from view.

“Looks like I’ve finally got a bit of a lucky streak going, huh?” I said aloud to Koe. “What do you have to say about that?”

Five.

“What?” I asked.

Four.

“What are you doing?”

Three.

“Stop that."

Two.

“What are you going on about, you piece of-!”

One.

My shoulders exploded in blinding pain, collapsing my front half to the sandy ground. My ribs soon followed, then the dozens of plasma burns, and, finally, the hole clear through my broken shoulder. I gasped in agony, unable to draw in enough breath to properly scream. I lay there, writhing for what seemed an eternity, before Koe spoke again.

Hooveston, we have landed.

What was I thinking, Lavender thought to herself as she moved through the Eclipse’s halls. This wasn’t just insubordination, or some little bending of policy, this was full blown treason. And for what? Some petty revenge against Derecho? Sure, he was piece of shit. Yes, nopony in their right mind would put him in command of a cleanup crew, much less an entire cloudship under normal circumstances. But did that mean he deserved to die? Or, the better question, was it worth letting one of the most dangerous criminals the Enclave had ever faced go? She wasn’t even entirely sure what drove it. Every instinct she'd developed had screamed that she was doing the wrong thing, that this action would have far worse ramifications down the road. Yet, still, she'd ignored them.

Logically, her actions didn’t make any sense either. The deed was already done, Derecho was dead, and she could’ve very easily detained the psychopath and just piled it onto his charges. Maybe it was that he’d shown her old friends mercy, letting her see that, maybe, he had some sense of morality after all. Or, it could just be that he forgot to finish them off.

But, in the end, did it really matter if there was some deeper meaning to the atrocities he'd committed, and, whatever those might be, were they even worth letting him go? What noble goal could somepony like that be striving for?

Her communicator buzzed, and the voice of Downpour broke through, “Lieutenant?”

She took a deep breath before responding, “Yes, Private, what is it?”

“Well, ma’am, most of the recruits are hanging around medical, we’re not sure what happened, but there’s a lot of ponies here, and they’re saying the General is hurt or even dead and-”

“The point, Private,” Lavender interrupted before her guilt could set in further, “please get to it.”

“Y-yes ma’am,” he stuttered, “somepony here is screaming that they need to see you ASAP.”

She felt a bit of worry course through her, “Who?”

“Well, I’m not sure, but it almost looks like your sister.”

Lavender’s heart dropped before she broke into a full gallop, shoving anypony that got in her way to the side. It can’t be true, she thought to herself, he’s mistaken, or she’s just helping out

Even though she was younger, Violet had always been the better fighter, the stronger pony. Violet had been the one that beat Lavender in every wrestling match growing up. Violet was the one who got kicked out of basic for breaking a drill-sergeant's jaw during a sparring match. Violet was the one who'd gotten accepted into the EIW right after getting booted out of the military, and made Wing Commander within her first few years of service. She was, physically, the strongest pony Lavender had ever know. Nopony could beat her, right?

As she rounded the final corner toward medical, she saw a thick crowd of uniformed ponies all buzzing about. Looks of fear and worry were prevalent among them, and their conversations were ablaze with trying finding out what had actually happened. Most of them must have been completely in the dark about Stab ever having been on board, much less what'd occurred afterwards. Lavender had only figured it out because she'd glued herself to the security terminals ever since the elevator fell, and later found an unauthorized access of the General’s emergency lift. Coupled with the unscheduled slowing of their ascension, she’d been able to put two and two together and marched right to the Tartarus jumper deployment station.

She shoved her way through the crowd, knocking over recruits and bowling over anypony that tried to get any information out of her. Once inside, she found pandemonium. Medical staff were swarming the facility. Two pegasi lay on operating tables, their EIW armor piled up nearby. One, a yellow mare, had her throat slit. The other, a black buck, had his stomach sliced open. Although horrified by the image, she breathed a sigh of relief, at least she couldn’t see Violet anywhere.

As Lavender turned, she found herself staring over the corpse of General Derecho. There are very few ponies who have ever not wished someone dead. Be it a rude supervisor, an annoying neighbor, maybe even a poorly-behaved child. It's a guilty pleasure we must allow ourselves, feeding that little psychopathic monster inside us all. Otherwise, that same little monster will eat at us, begging to be sated, until its behavior begins to spill over into our daily lives. However, it's one thing to wish somepony dead, to replay the countless horrifying ways we can make it happen in our heads, and quite another to see it actually done.

The little blue pegasus had his eyes wide open, and his mouth was plastered into a horrifying screech. The entire front side of his neck had been violently ripped off. Lavender shivered, could the buck she spoke to just minutes before really have gone through with something like this? A chilling terror struck her as she looked on, and realized the horror of what she'd done couldn't be ignored. On the table before her was no longer the snarky, spoiled General she'd known. In his place was a fellow soldier, scared and calling out for help, and she'd been complicit in making sure he never received it. The Lieutenant was also able to answer one her earlier questions, nopony deserved this.

Before she could react further, a scrub-wearing, turquoise unicorn mare called from across the room, “Lieutenant.” Lavender pried her eyes from the General, and made her way over.

“Doctor,” the Lieutenant responded, “one of my recruits told me-”

“This way,” she interrupted somberly, before turning around and marching toward one of the operating rooms.

Dread settled across Lavender's body, would they really ask Violet to help out with surgery? The ridiculous thought was the only comfort she could grasp onto as the true reality of the situation unfolded. As they drew nearer to the room, piercing cries of intense agony split the silence. It only redoubled as the doctor opened the sliding door, and allowed Lavender to step inside.

Upon the operating table, surrounded by some of the best surgeons on staff, was Violet. Nausea and shock immediately struck the Lieutenant as she stared at the scene before her. Violet’s rear legs and lower waste were lying beside her on the table, crushed nearly flat. The welding torch used to cut off the flattened armor and ruined flesh was still spewing flames. The pegasus was only still intact from the bottom of her stomach up. Her intestines were spilled out onto the table, tangled as one surgeon delicately tried to unravel them. Every other doctor worked tirelessly stitching her back together, applying potions, and even a panning her with the golden light of a pre-war healing talisman, but anypony could tell it was a lost cause.

Lavender fell back against the wall, before pitching over a nearby bin and puking the contents of her stomach. It wasn’t that she had never seen such degrees of gore, but to see her sister as the victim, and knowing she’d let the pony responsible go, it made Lavender’s body feel as if it were going numb.

It didn’t make sense, nopony could beat Violet, that had always been true. How could Stab have possibly managed this?

Another screeching cry erupted from the pony on the table, drawing forth anguished sobs from the Lieutenant before she galloped forward. Violet’s eyes peeled open as Lavender’s shadow fell over her, and her agonized expression calmed somewhat.

“H-hey big sis,” she whispered.

Lavender smiled, before grabbing onto one of the doctors. “Why isn’t my sister under anesthesia for this,” she snapped angrily.

The buck kept his cool, “There’s no time, ma’am, if we’re to save your sister’s life, we have to act quickly or else-”

“Bullshit,” Violet rasped quietly, drawing everypony’s attention. “We… all know… I’m not-” She coughed up a small spattering of blood.

“Don’t talk like that!” Lavender screamed down at her, before looking back at the doctor. “You can save her, right?”

His expression turned sorrowful, “I’m sorry, ma’am, but she’s right. The damage is just far too severe. We can try, and it may give her a few more hours, maybe days, but she will be in excruciating pain the entire time. In the end, it may be best to consider a more... merciful option.”

Rage suddenly erupted in Lavender’s heart, and she drew back a hoof as if to hit the surgeon who dared say her sister couldn’t survive this, but Violet spoke first. “Don’t… Lav.”

At the sound of her nickname, she let the hoof drop.

“Please,” Violet asked to the room, “leave my… sister… and I… alone.”

The surgeons gave each other uncertain looks, before they collectively set down their tools, affixed the talisman to a stand above Violet, and filed out of the room.

A river of tears poured forth from Lavender’s eyes as the hopelessness of it all set in. Thinking of nothing better to do, she decided to affirm the obvious.

“Who did this?” she whispered, pleading for the remotest chance that her sister wouldn’t give her the answer she knew was coming.

“You… have to… ask?” Violet questioned, a quizzical look touching her expression of pain. “You were… always… really bad about… seeing the obvious,” a small smile formed on the dying mare’s face.

"H-how?" Lavender stuttered.

"Dropped a... fucking elevator on me... if you can... believe it." Suddenly, Violet's face contorted in rage, before grasping Lavender's hoof. "You gotta... promise me Lav..." She grimaced in pain, before gritting her teeth and continuing, "promise me you'll kill that son of a bitch."

"I-I... Vi-," Lavender's heart hammered in her chest, her blood ran cold, and a cool sweat broke out on her coat. How do I tell her? she thought.

"Please," Violet begged, "he can't get away with-," she broke into another small fit of bloody coughs. Every effort to speak again was met with more sodden chokes, and the shining trails of tears began to fall down her cheeks.

Lavender threw her legs around Violet, laid close to her, and held tight. She began running a hoof through the dying mare's braided mane, and humming gently. She soon felt a wet spot begin to form on her chest, as her little sister's tears soaked her coat. "Shhhh," she whispered, "it's ok Vi, I'm here. Big sis has got you."

They stayed in each other's embrace, the subtle beep from the EKG machine periodically piercing the silence. As her sister's breaths grew shallower, Lavender gently said, "I love you."

The small smile returned to Violet's face, and she closed her eyes as the beep devolved into one continuous note. Her breast fell as she exhaled her final breath.

Lavender's shoulders quaked with sobs, and her own teardrops spattered against Violet's coat. The encroaching numbness from before was suddenly overwhelmed by anguish. The air of stoicism the Lieutenant wore shattered as she threw her head up and let out every ounce of sorrow, rage, and guilt in an animalistic wail. She continued on as her breath ran short, and her throat threatened to rupture. Finally, only a weary croak escaped her lips.

Drawing in a shaky breath, Lavender laid a gentle kiss on her sister's forehead.

"I promise," she whispered.

Author's Notes:

The quote for this chapter is from Marilyn Manson. I chose not to include it at the top because I’ve been trying harder to not break the immersion of the story.