When Lightning and I finally make our way down to the ground floor, Cygnus and Arrow are near Thunder’s body. I can tell that Arrow is just as torn up about Thunder’s death as Lightning is. No doubt, Arrow was crying while waiting for us. “All clear then?” Cygnus asks as we approach them.

“Yea,” I nod and glance at Thunder’s body. The armor is bent and twisted in horrible ways. I’m afraid to imagine what his body looks like inside it. Lightning walks over to him, and sits down beside him after setting my armor aside.

Arrow approaches him after a moment. “I...I’m sorry…” She mutters. “It’s my...fault. I was suppose to...cover him…” I can tell by her voice she is really shaken up by his death. Lightning shakes his head without looking at her.

“It isn’t your fault, Arrow,” Lightning tells her. “I saw that glowing ghoul in the hall, I saw the amount of bodies. There was no way you two could have done anything more. He should have retreated up after us. Thunder was always prideful when it came to holding the line.”

I step up to them. “If it is any consolation, I killed Hearty,” I tell him. Lightning turns abruptly to look at me, I’m sure his face is showing surprise. “Turned his head into mincemeat,” I explain. “He caused Thunder’s death, it was our duty to judge him for it.”

Lightning nods and turns back to his brother’s body. “Thank you,” he mutters. After a few moments, he speaks up again. “Arrow, can you carry Ratchet’s armor? I...I should carry Thunder,” Lightning asks. Arrow nods as Lightning puts Thunder’s body on his back.

Once Lightning and Arrow get situation under their burdens, Lightning turns to me again. “What now, boss?” He asks sadly. “We...I want to bring his body back to the base as soon as possible.” I think for a moment, but the answer is obvious.

“We should split up,” I state. “You and Arrow head back to the base, Cygnus and I will let those ponies know the job is done and meet up with you. CORA can use a spritebot to keep an eye on you two. Cygnus and I should be able to catch up with you two before you get home,” I explain.

Arrow and Lightning nod, but Cygnus just looks on in concern. “Arrow,” I start, “if you two run into trouble, drop my armor if you need to. CORA can track its location if necessary.” I think for a moment and add, “I should also probably stop by the DJ’s and let him know about the radio station in the tower.” They both nod and we go our separate ways.

After Arrow and Lightning are out of sight, I finally ask Cygnus, “What?” The question seems to catch him off guard. “You were looking at us worriedly earlier, and you’ve been awfully quiet this whole time,” I say.

Cygnus looks deep in thought for a moment before saying, “Are you sure it is wise to send them off on their own? I know they are Rangers, but it could still be dangerous,” he tells me.

“They need some time alone. Those three were comrades even before I came into the picture, so I’m sure they have some things they want to discuss in private. If they get into a fight, they’ll win. Not because they are Rangers, but because they are angry. They won’t fall before they get Thunder home, of that, I am certain,” I tell him.

“If you say so,” Cygnus mutters. “I don’t know how I should feel at the moment,” he says. “Thunder was a decent buck, but I didn’t really get to know him well enough to feel sadness over his death. I suppose all I can do is honor him by remembering him,” he explains.

I nod as we walk. “I kind of understand. I’ve only been with them for about a month, which is why I let the others be alone. Thunder was a good friend, and an important member of the team. Which is why…” I trail off.

“You killed Hearty?” Cygnus asks. I nod. “Did killing him make you feel better?” He asks.

“I’m...not sure. My anger subsided, but I still feel...empty,” I explain. “I keep thinking about kill him too. Was it the right thing to do? Should I have let Lightning or Arrow decide, or at least asked them about it?”

“All valid questions,” Cygnus mutters. “But I think killing him was the right thing to do, I’m sure the others would agree. Perhaps you are upset with how you killed him?” Cygnus asks. “You did say you turned his head into mincemeat, and he was unarmed after all.”

I furrow my brow. “He deserved it, he was a monster,” I explain. “Conducting experiments on ponies, trying to get ghouls to kill us…” I trail off.

“He did deserve it,” Cygnus confirms. “But the method of his demise is what is wrong. He was unarmed, non-combative, and you just put him down. I’m not condemning you for it,” he explains. “I did the same to Static, after all. Killing her was liberating, justified, but killing her the way I did was wrong.”

I think about what he just told me and think about how I killed Hearty. He was bound and unable to defend himself, not even able to beg for his life. I just decided that he should die, no trial, no discussion. I even gave him a moment of hope, only to dash it in the blink of an eye. I was cruel, hateful, and no different than a murderer.

I’ve only been in the wasteland for little over a month, and I’ve killed so many ponies, but never any that weren’t trying to kill him, until now. Has the wasteland corrupted me? Made me so self righteous in my own thinking that I thought I could justify cold blooded murder?

I stop walking and fall to my haunches. “What...have I done?” I mutter, staring blankly at the ground. Cygnus stops and looks down at me.

“What you thought was right, Ratchet,” Cygnus states simply. “No one will fault you for what you did, especially anyone in the wasteland. You just need to remember what you’re feeling now, keep your head about you, and keep going. If you dwell on it, it will consume you, trust me,” he says, offering me a hoof.

I look up at him, the slight smile on his face. “Cygnus…” I mutter. I nod, and take his hoof. He pulls me to my hooves. “You’re right,” I agree. “I’ll remember, and try to keep my wits about me. I’m trying to help the wasteland recover, killing ponies who aren’t a threat anymore isn’t the way I will do that. But, Cygnus...I’ll need your help,” I tell him, returning his smile.

“And I will be there to help you,” Cygnus replies. “We’ll help each other,” he adds. “The wasteland might consume us if we are alone, but together I think we have enough sense about us that we can change things.” With our immediate mental issues taken care of, we continue on our way to Friendship City.

Cygnus and I cross the water on the barge and enter the city as the sun finally finishes setting. As we walk around the entrance, I wonder if those prissy ponies will be here this late. But soon my question is answered as I see the same three standing next to a wall. They seem to be talking to a rugged looking buck wearing decent leather armor.

As we approach, they notice us and the buck steps aside. “Ah, and so the mare in the labcoat returns!” The fancy buck declares. “Knot here just finished informing us of the completion of your job. Very good, very good,” he says with glee.

“Indeed, and it took them long enough too,” The mare, who I assume is his wife mutters, looking rather unpleased. “Tenpony isn’t that far from here, I bet they went and slacked off,” She says.

“I had to pick up some gear,” I tell her, trying to maintain a positive attitude and really hoping to finish things up here quick. She rolls her eyes.

“Now, now, darling, the fact of the matter is that the job is done and the tower is ours now,” the buck says, putting his hoof around her. “Now then, I do believe we agreed on two thousand caps?” he asks, addressing me.

“That was the plan,” I confirm. He looks over to Knot, who nods back at him.

“Well, Knot here informs us that in the process you shot out quite a few windows and made a complete mess disposing of those monsters,” The buck tells me. “You’ll understand if I can’t offer your the full amount, yes? After all, we must replace the windows, very hard to find, mind you, and hire workers to clean up the mess you made. We will give you half the agreed upon amount,” He says flatly.

I hear Cygnus let out a sigh and I can’t blame him. These ponies really piss me off. “Of course we made a mess, how else were we supposed to get rid of all those feral ghouls?” I ask them. “The windows, I can understand, but the mess is hardly our fault. Look, I’ll settle for 1,500, will that work?” I suggest.

The other mare rolls her eyes and mutters, “Typical uncivilized ponies, always wanting more than they should receive.” I narrow my eyes at her, and she flinches.

“That is hardly our problem, you could have led them all outside,” The buck tells me. “We will give you 1,100 caps, and honestly that is uncomfortable for me,” he says. My anger rises, I can’t help it.

“Uncomfortable? Paying a fair price makes you uncomfortable?” I ask, raising my voice. “One of us fucking died! Even the full amount can’t make up for that,” I growl at them. Knot steps up between us and them, glaring at me threateningly.

The buck coughs. “It is fine Knot, I understand. Look miss, we are sorry for your loss, and we will offer your 1,250 caps. You knew the risk that the job carried, just one death is fortunate,” he says with a smug expression.

I am about to lose it. “One thousand two hundred and fifty caps!?” I yell at him. “Thunder’s death isn’t…” Cygnus steps in front of me and cuts me off.

“We will take your offer and conclude our business,” Cygnus tells the buck, who pulls a small bag from a pocket and gives it to Knot. Knot then gives the bag to Cygnus. “Thank you, we’ll be leaving now,” Cygnus says and begins to walk away.

I stare at his back and then at the other ponies, narrow my eyes and mutter, “Don’t forget the other part of our deal, the DJ is moving in.” With that, I turn and catch up with Cygnus who is already halfway back to the barge.

“Why did you do that?” I ask him, my anger still bubbling.

Cygnus sighs. “You saw them, right? Not a speck of dirt on them, other than their bodyguard, Knot. Expensive looking clothing too, before the war. And the way they acted, as though they were nobility? Not to mention they never gave us their names,” He tells me.

“Yea, so what? Does that mean they can be cheap and rude?” I ask.

“It means they think they can be,” Cygnus says. “They don’t care about ponies like us, ‘commoners’, as they say. I doubt they would ever agree to a price you suggested, they wanted to have the last word because they think they are better than us. You could have been the only survivor, and they wouldn’t take pity on your, they’d still fight to keep as many caps as they could,” he explains.

“And we are going to give them control over a place like Tenpony?” I ask him, considering returning the caps and giving the tower to the DJ alone.

“We are, because if we go back on our word, we would be no better than them,” Cygnus says. “Like them or not, they might be best suited to running Tenpony. More than likely, those three were just a few of a collection of ponies like them, ponies with resources to restore and keep Tenpony working,” He yells me.

“But if they were that rude and indifferent to us, do you think they will help anyone, or just stay locked in the tower, safe from the world around them?” I ask him, trying to see his reasoning.

“They don’t seem that stupid, and their resources aren’t limitless. They will more than likely allow trade and new residents to live in the tower. It won’t necessarily be the best place ever for those who aren’t one of them, but it will be one less hostile place,” Cygnus tells me.

I let out a sigh. “I guess you are right,” I say with resignation. “We’ll have to see what happens as time goes on. Maybe I’ll have to go yell at them later on,” I chuckle. “Now then, let’s go tell the DJ the good news.”

The two of us make our way back through the ruins along the safe routes and reach the DJ without incident. We inform him of the good news, which he is pleasantly surprised by. He says he will send someone there to check the place out before he move over there himself. With that taken care of, Cygnus and I begin heading towards the lab.

After about half the night, we catch up with Arrow and Lightning, who given their burdens, aren’t walking as fast as usual. Once we are all together again, we rest for the rest of the night.

In the morning, we forge ahead. At around mid-afternoon, CORA gets my attention. “Ratchet, I’m picking up a radio signal, you should listen to it,” she says as she adjusts the radio. The DJ is in Tenpony already? That was fast. I wonder what he has to say now.

CORA gets the radio on the right frequency and it starts playing. “five seconds,” it says, before stopping. I’m about to ask her what it was, when it continues. “This is Elder Archimedes of the Stable 36 Steel Rangers. This message is for all Steel Ranger operatives within range. We are under attack. All Rangers within range are to return immediately. Message repeats in five seconds.”

I feel my blood run cold, my face going pale. “You all...heard that as well, right?” I ask the others. Arrow and Lightning have frozen on the stop, and Cygnus looks on in concern. “We need to go, Arrow, drop my armor. We can’t have you lugging it around if we get into a fight,” I tell her.

She nods and drops it. “Lightning, move as quickly as you can, Arrow, provide him with cover as we get closer. Cygnus and I will run up ahead and scout things out,” I say, and the others nod. I begin running towards the stable with Cygnus right on my hooves.

After a while, I see the farmhouse that the stable lies under. However, the farmhouse is burned to the ground and still smoldering. I scan the horizon, but don’t see any signs of life. “Let’s go, keep your eyes open,” I say as we move closer to the ruins. Within moments, we are standing right beside them.

The foundation looks solid, and the cellar entrance looks functional. I don’t think the basement collapsed. They must have made it extra reinforced. “Ok, looks like we can still get in,” I mutter. “Let’s wait for the others,” I tell Cygnus, who nods in agreement.

Roughly ten minutes later, Arrow and Lightning catch up with us. Lightning looks a bit out of breath. “We should be able to get in, Lightning, I think you should set Thunder’s body down before we enter. There is no telling how many enemies we are going to find,” I say. He nods, and carefully sets Thunder down beside the entrance.

After giving him a moment to catch his breath, I pull open the cellar doors with my magic. A wave of stench strikes us, a mix of iron and gunpowder. Carefully, we enter the cellar. At the bottom of the stairs, I stop dead.

Corpses are everywhere, at least a dozen. Many are raiders, but a few Rangers lay slain in the basement entrance. Blood is on every surface and spent casings litter the ground. In a few places on the walls ‘Discordia’ is been painted in blood. The door to the hallway has been blown off its hinges.

The others are equally caught off guard. “We need to get inside, now,” Lightning says, anxiety evident in his voice. I nod, and we carefully make our way across the bloodstained floor. It is hard to avoid stepping on anything as we reach the hallway.

More raiders are dead in the hallway, the turret at the corner clearly gave them some trouble, but the turret now lies smoking on the floor. We turn the corner and see the Stable entrance. The large gear-shaped door has fallen back into the Stable, explosives were clearly used to open it.

In the entranceway, a few more raiders lay dead with another Rangers among them. Judging by the scorch marks and the state of the bodies, both sides are using explosives and laser weaponry. “These raiders are way too well armed,” I mutter. “Is this what Grimoire has been up to?”

“They appear to have poor armor and training though,” Cygnus says. “Numbers are the only thing giving them an advantage here,” he adds. We continue deeper into the stable, finding more bodies as we go. The raider corpses outnumber the Rangers.

“This is bad,” Lightning says. “We haven’t seen anyone or heard any sign of fighting. They couldn’t have...killed everyone, could they?” He asks.

“No, we just haven’t found them yet,” I tell him, more trying to reassure myself than him. “We just need to keep looking.” The armory is locked up tight, which seems like a good sign. If the Rangers were all dead, the raiders would have tried to get into it. We have already searched most of the Stable. All that remains is the command center, the residential area, and medical.

We quickly move through the halls and approach the command center. Dead rangers are outside the door along with a number of raiders. “This is bad,” Lightning mutters. “If they’ve made it this far…” He trails off as we enter the room.

The monitors and terminals in the room have all been destroyed, the largest monitor has the word ‘Discordia’ scrawled across it in blood. The command center’s staff looks to have fought valiantly to defend the room, but since many were scribes they were easily overwhelmed. We approach the Elder’s desk.

Peeking over the top, I see Elder Archimedes’s body, full of bullet holes. A final shot placed in his forehead. Beside him lies a 10mm pistol and countless spent rounds. He went out fighting, doing all that he could. He even recorded that message and broadcasted it. As I look down at the Elder, I hear Lightning walking off towards the hall.

I turn and look after him. He is walking at a brisk pace. “Wait, Lightning. Don’t go off on your own!” I call after him. Arrow looks between me and him before trotting after Lightning. “Damn it, come on you two, we can’t get separated, what if there are still more raiders lurking around?” I ask as I begin to follow after them.

Cygnus follows after me. “I don’t think they are going to listen to reason, Ratchet,” He says. “No doubt, they are seeking vengence. This will be bad if we get into a fight,” Cygnus tells me.

“I know, I know…” I bite my lip. “We’ll just have to let them take the lead and cover them as best we can,” I say. Cygnus lets out a sigh, but we keep following after the others. As we go through the residences, we find nothing but death and destruction. ‘Discordia’ is painted in various places. After a few minutes, we reach the doors to medical. The last place we haven’t checked.

Lightning works the door controls and slowly the doors slide open. We stare down the barrels of multiple guns and return those stares with our own guns. But slowly, realisation dawns on both parties. “Lynx Squad?” Star Paladin Lily asks as she lowers her gun. “You’re alive?” She says shakily before adding in a much sterner voice, “Did you encounter any raiders in the Stable?”

“None that were alive,” Lightning replies. At this point, everyone else has lowered their weapons and we enter the room and close the door behind us. Once we get the details of our arrival out of the way, Lightning asks, “How did this happen?” Lily removes her helmet and sets it on her back.

While she does so, I look around the room. Besides Lightning and Arrow, I count twelve Rangers. Seven of which are lying on cots without armor and bandaged up pretty heavily. The other five, including Lily, look like they’ve been put through the ringer as well. As Lily begins, Senior Paladin Twinkle joins us.

“The raiders attacked in mass and with a ferocity we’ve never seen before. It was like they did not care if they died. The guards gave us warning and we went into lockdown, the Stable was sealed and we armed ourselves,” Lily explains.

“Our guards were instantly overwhelmed,” She continues. “The raiders crowded into the basement and began mutilating the guards, writing on the walls. Some began to set explosives on the door and within minutes, they were in the hall. The turret gave them some pause, but one of them finally shot it with a missile.”

“The Stable door held them back for an hour, they tried various ways to enter, but none worked until Grimoire showed up,” Lily scowls in anger. “He took some C4, teleported on the other side of the door, and destroyed the mechanism. It was easy enough for the raiders to push it open after that,” She explains.

“What’s crazy, is that we were there when Grimoire appeared on our side, but none of our weapons did anything to him. They hit him, but he instantly regenerated from our attacks. But at that point, everything went south. The raiders quickly spread through the Stable, and no matter how many we killed more would take their place,” Lily says.

She lets out a sigh. “We kept being pushed back, and soon arrived at the command center. Elder Archimedes recorded an SOS for the rangers who were away at the time, Senior Paladin Twinkle’s squad, Paladin Beam’s squad, and your squad. He then used his override to deadlock the armory, filtration, and reactor chambers. At that point, the raiders reached us again,” Lily took a deep breath.

“Elder Archimedes ordered me to fall back with non-essential command center personnel. I didn’t want to, but he simply told me that he had a duty as Elder to remain in the room. He knew he would die, but he just kept shooting. I was the last to leave the command center. I saw him bleeding, bent over his desk, but still shooting. I saw when another bullet caught him in the chest and he fell to the ground…” Lily trails off.

“I saw him get back up, and put in a command on his terminal. I saw the Scribes do so as well. The Elder hit a final button, and all of the terminals and monitors exploded. He coughed up blood, turned back to the raiders, and began shooting, along with all the scribes. They fell, one by one, but no matter how much they show him, Elder Archimedes kept shooting back,” Lily says, choking up a bit. But I could tell she had pride in her voice, for the Elder, and her fellow Rangers.

“Before I closed the door, I saw a bullet catch him in the shoulder and he fell behind the desk. Those of us that remained, kept fighting, creating choke points, firing lines, and traps where we could. But they kept coming, and never stopped. Half of us were dead, and our injuries increased by the minute. Then, Paladin Beam and Senior Paladin Twinkle returned,” Lily says with a nod to Twinkle.

“Their squads began hitting the raiders from the rear, forcing them into a two-sided fight. An hour passed before our two sides met up in the command center. Paladin Beam had fallen along with most of her squad, but only a dozen raiders remained. Grimoire was sitting in the Elder’s chair the whole time as we killed the rest of the raiders and circled around him,” Lily tells us, but doesn’t seem pleased.

“That bastard muttered something about how he should have brought more of his troops, laughed, and then teleported away. Those of us remaining combed over the Stable and brought anyone still breathing here. We fifteen are all that remain,” Lily concludes. A realization seems to dawn on her and she asks, “Where is Thunder, by the way?” I can see Lightning’s features darken, and Arrow hangs her head.

This seemed to be enough for Lily and she let out a sigh. “Thunder too? We are down to fourteen then,” She mutters. “We need to bury our dead and treat our wounded, the rest of the base is secure, yes?” She asks Lightning. He nods. “Good.”

Lily looks over at Twinkle, who nods and walks over to her squad. “Come on boys,” Twinkle tells them, “It is time to dig graves and burn the raiders. They might try to attack us again, so keep your eyes open for anything on the horizon while we’re out.” She sounds content, not like how I’d expect someone who lost more most of their friends and family to sound.

As Twinkle and her squad leaves medical, I hear her saying happily, “Eberron has had his fill this day. Now, we must honor our fallen.” With them gone, ten of us remain in medical, more than half wounded.

Lightning looks after Twinkle and says quietly, “I’ll join her, I want to bury Thunder myself.” Lily nods and Lightning leaves after them.

“Now then, Arrow, will you help tend the wounded?” Lily asks and Arrow nods. Lily then glances at Cygnus and I. “You two do what you like,” She says with a hint of disgust in her voice. Lily turns begins tending to the injured as well.

Cygnus steps up beside me as I stand in the middle of the room. “She didn’t acknowledge our presence until just now. Is she always this indifferent to you?” He asks.

I shake my head. “This is only the second time I’ve met her. The last time, she was suspicious of me. This time, most of her friends have been killed or injured. I can’t blame her. We should go help Twinkle and Lightning outside, give her some space,” I tell him.

He nods and we head out to join the others. Cygnus, Lightning, Twinkle, her five squad members and I split into two groups. Twinkle, Cygnus, Lighting, and I start digging graves while her squad members begin carrying out their dead. We dig next to the graves already present, including Iron’s.

It is hard work, digging so many graves. The first Ranger we lay to rest, is Thunder. His body and armor are too twisted together to separate completely, so we bury him in his armor. Lightning waves the rest of us away as he slowly shovels dirt over his brother’s body. Once finished, Lightning sits beside the grave for a few minutes, head hung. None of us bother him.

As night falls, we aren’t even half done. We do not stop, however. The Rangers turn on their headlamps, Cygnus summons a lantern, and I turn on my PipBuck’s blue light. With only our lights illuminating the darkness, we continue digging and bringing out the fallen. By midnight, all the fallen Rangers are outside, waiting to be laid to rest.

The others that were bringing them out, begin digging as well. The nine of us dig and bury as quickly as we can, but exhaustion is apparent in each of us. As the sun rises, we manage to bury the last of the Rangers. Each of us nearly collapses from exhaustion, but we enter the base once more.

We return to the living quarters to rest, while Twinkle reports our progress to Lily. I sleep for a few hours before I wake up once more. Some of the other Rangers have woken up before me, and have started to carry the raider bodies out of the Stable. Others are still sleeping, including Lightning. Cygnus is awake and talking to one of the Rangers that is showing him one of their weapons.

I decide to help get the raider corpses outside. Without power armor, it is tough, especially since I’m running on only a few hours of sleep. Since we aren’t digging graves however, just tossing the bodies in a pile, it doesn’t take nearly as long, despite their numbers. By noon we get most of them out, and have started four pyres ablaze. The stench is awful. I have never smelt the stench of burning flesh before, and I really hope I never do so again.

While heading back into the base, I see Senior Paladin Twinkle standing outside, looking at the burning bodies and smiling at them. I walk up and join her, as much as I don’t like the sight of burning ponies, I feel like I should talk with her. “Hey Senior Paladin, how are you holding up?” I ask her.

“Gloriously, Scribe Crusader. This combat, this fight, my lord Eberron is pleased at all this death,” Twinkle says with glee. “I would say it is a shame we lost so many of our own, but lord Eberron does not discriminate in his choosing of victims, and regretting the deaths of my comrades would diminish their sacrifice and the honor of their deaths,” She tells me, adding, “By the way, it isn’t Senior Paladin anymore. It’s Star Paladin.”

I raise an eyebrow. “But isn’t Lily Star Paladin?” I ask her. If I remember correctly, there could only be one Star Paladin per Ranger division, but there could be multiple Senior Paladins.

Twinkle shakes her head. “Lily is the Elder now, never thought I’d be calling her ‘Elder Lily’,” Twinkle says with a chuckle. “I was the logical choice to become Star, and she Elder. Old man Archimedes would be pleased with his replacement, but…” Twinkle trails off, her smile shrinking slightly.

“But what?” I ask.

“Lily doesn’t understand the glory of Eberron, she sees this combat, and despairs in it. I think it might have changed her, and despite my attempts to adviser her, she has ignored me. She plans to destroy the stable and have us leave our home. Says it is compromised,” Twinkle shakes her head.

“I told her we should say, keep fighting, not shrink down from Grimoire and his army,” Twinkle smirks. “She wants to stop pursuit of Grimoire, to lay low, to survive. There is no honor in running away. Eberron would not approve, but, she is my Elder, and I will follow her, till it is my time to replace her, and I will lead till it is time for another to replace me,” Twinkle explains.

“By the way, she doesn’t think of you very favorably. Lily thinks you are the one who brought this down upon us, but she’s wrong. It is our duty to protect, one way or another, we would have gotten into this ourselves,” Twinkle tells me. “I just have one question for you, you who lead Lynx Squad when Thunder fell. Did he die with honor?” She asks.

I nod. “He protected Lightning and I from a swarm of ghouls. Stopped them from getting behind us. You should have seen how many he took out before he fell. He died with honor, he was brave, loyal, and he will be missed,” I tell her, choking up a little.

Twinkle closes her eyes as she listens, and nods her head. “Eberron will see Thunder honored, and I shall remember him to the moment I join him. You are alright in my book, Ratchet. I’m sure lord Eberron looks favorably upon you as well,” She says with a smile, looking at the burning corpses once more.

It has been bugging me for a while, since the first time I met her. “Why do you follow Eberron? An old god? Most ponies believe in Celestia and Luna now,” I ask her.

She smiles even wider. “Celestia and Luna,” Twinkle chuckles. “They aren’t Goddesses, anypony who was alive before the war ended knows that. Just powerful magical beings with extremely long lives. I might not have been born before things went to shit, but I’ve read books, heard stories. The assassination attempt at Shattered Hoof Ridge is enough proof that they aren’t Goddesses,” She explains.

“A Goddess can’t be assassinated, they wouldn’t fear death. But the old gods, lord Eberron, they exist,” Twinkle tells me. “If Goddesses or Gods were truly upon this earth with us, they would not have allowed those Megaspells to fall. No, the gods don’t live in our world, but they help us occasionally,” She says.

She really seems to believe that. “I agree that Celestia and Luna weren’t Goddesses,” I tell her. “But, why do you believe so completely that the old gods exist?” I ask.

She turns to look at me, giving me an odd smile. “They talk to me, sometimes,” Twinkle says. “Eberron especially. He grants me power in exchange for the evil I wipe from this world. Some of the others think I’m crazy, imagining things. Lily told me I suffer some multiple personalities and that’s the reason. But I know better,” She explains.

“When you walk through a battlefield, bullets, grenades, and rockets flying around you, but nothing hits you, nothing hurts you, you keep walking out in the open, expecting to be hit, but you aren’t...that is how you know you are protected by the powers of a god,” Twinkle says.

“In all the battles I’ve fought, I can count the number of times I’ve been hit on my hooves. Bullets might ping off my armor, but nothing ever penetrates,” She tells me. “You can doubt me, if you want. But I can tell, lord Eberron, the God of Death, watches over you.”

I could feel a shiver go up my spine. I recall the bony figure cloaked in black, Death. I recall his words about watching me, supporting me. I wonder if Death ever went by the name Eberron. “I...believe you,” I tell Twinkle, who smiles back at me.

“I knew I liked you, Ratchet. Now then, we should return to the others. I think Lily is getting restless to leave,” She says and turns to head back inside. I follow after her, and we walk through the halls until we reach medical.

Other the last few days, going through healing potions, drugs, and a lot of bandages, all the injured are now on their hooves. Twinkle and I enter just as they are putting their armor back on. They seem sore still, and it takes them awhile, but they eventually squeeze into their armor.

“That’s right, everyone get armored up, we are moving out tonight,” Lily declares, standing in the center of the room. “Under the cover of darkness, we will destroy anything we cannot carry, and leave,” She states, watching as the Rangers put on their armor. Lily notices Twinkle and I approaching.

“Ah, good, Twinkle. Have your squad rig explosives in the armory, the cellar basement, the Elder quarters, and the Maneframe and other Stable systems. We don’t want raiders moving in after we leave. We will destroy everything,” Lily orders.

Some of the others look skeptical about leaving, but they follow their orders never-the-less. “We are leaving, so soon?” Twinkle asks. “Our injured could use a bit more rest, there is no honor in fighting so wounded. Please, reconsider, Lily-” Twinkle begins, but is cut off by Lily.

“Elder, Lily,” Lily emphasises, glaring at Twinkle. “And no, I have told you already, we need to leave. The enemy knows where we are, they know our defences. If they attack again, we will be wiped out,” She says harshly.

I step up. “If you want, you can all come to my lab. It has plenty of room, and it isn’t too far away. We can even transport all of your equipment there, so you don’t have to destroy it all,” I offer.

Lily looks disgusted at the thought. “Absolutely not. I have had enough of your help, Scribe Crusader,” She says, saying my title with venom in her voice. “I want nothing more to do with you, and from henceforth, you are no longer leader of Lynx Squad. Arrow and Lightning will leave with us,” Lily declares.

This snaps Arrow and Lightning to attention, and they walk over. “Elder Lily, Ratchet has been a huge help,” Lightning explains. “She is one of us, we can’t just abandon her,” He says.

Lily shoots him a glare. “Remember she is the one who got Thunder killed, she was leading. Not even trained to lead, yet we gave her a squad. Elder Archimedes was too trusting, she is nothing but a civilian,” Lily spits. “No, we will have nothing more to do with her, and the two of you will be coming with us. We can not spare anyone now, not that I would even if we were greater in number,” She says.

“But what about Grimoire?” I ask. “You’re still going to help stop him, right?”

Lily rolls her eyes. “I want nothing more to do with him, it was a mistake to get involved in the first place,” Lily says.

Twinkle takes a step closer. “A mistake? Grimoire is responsible for Iron’s death, for the death of most of our friends!” Twinkle declares. “Are we going to just turn a blind eye on what he’s done to us? Are we going to run and hide?” She asks.

“Yes.” Lily says adamantly. “We cannot stand against him, he has hundreds more. We are but fourteen. We must survive, continue fighting where we can. But if we fight against him, it is suicide,” She hisses.

The other Rangers hang their heads. We’ve become quite the spectacle, standing in the middle of everyone. “She’s right,” one of them mutters. From there, the murmuring spreads and echoes of agreement can be heard. Only Twinkle, Arrow, and Lighting seem opposed.

“This is cowardice, Eberron will frown upon this!” Twinkle shouts, but once Lily glares at her, Twinkle just grits her teeth and says. “You are our Elder, we will follow you, but know that I do not support this decision,” Twinkle says.

Lily nods. “Now, you two, follow orders and get ready,” Lily says, addressing Arrow and Lightning. “And you two,” She says, looking at Cygnus and I, “get out of here now.”

Cygnus stands motionless beside me, Arrow shifts around nervously, her eyes darting between me and Lily, and Lightning scowls, clenching his teeth. “Ratchet,” Lightning finally says. “We have to. We are Rangers. I don’t want to, I know Arrow doesn’t either, and Thunder wouldn’t like this, but we have to. Just know, we will always be friends, comrades. If you need us, you know our frequency. It was an honor, Ratchet,” he says and puts his helmet on, sealing it with a hiss.

Arrow looks between him and me, then glances at Lily, who glares at her. Arrow looks at the ground for a moment, then rushes to me and embraces me in a hug. It catches me off guard, but after a moment I return the hug. “Take care, Arrow,” I mutter. She nods, and pulls away slightly.

Arrow bites her lip, and then suddenly kisses me. My eyes go wide in surprise, and she stops after a moment and mutters, “I love you.” Before pulling away and putting her helmet on. I didn’t think she felt that way, she was always hard to read though. I regain my senses and feel Lily’s glare on me.

I let out a sigh. “Lily, this is the wrong course of action,” I tell her, staring back into her eyes. “But I understand why you feel this way. If you change your mind, if you need my help, anything, you know where I live,” I tell her. “I’ll stop Grimoire, with or without your help,” I add.

Lily just shakes her head. I give one last smile at Arrow and Lightning, and give a slight nod to Twinkle before heading to the door. I stop just before I leave, and turn to the Rangers. “Thank you all, for everything,” I tell them, and leave. Cygnus follows silently, and after a while, we are in the openness of the wasteland.

Halfway to my lab, I hear the sounds of multiple explosions, and I know, Stable 36 has been sealed forever.

Quest Complete: An Arrogant Request
Quest Updated: The Chaos Crusade - Current Objective: Search for more information on Grimoire.
New Perk! - Protected by Eberron - You are favored by the God of Death. Sometimes in battle, bullets that seem destined to hit you will miss completely.