The horizon – that line between the lifeless desert and the cloudless sky – was blurry to Party Favor's exhausted eyes. He'd been out for… how many days? Two? Three? Five? Whatever it was, he hadn't had a drop to drink nor a bite to eat in that time, and despite the sun keeping his spirits up with her whispers of love and care, the heat that radiated from her was sucking the life out of him. He didn't even know where he was going anymore. He knew he had to go west to get to Brustworth Bridge, then southwest to get to Our Town, but although he'd been taught as a child that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, the reality of it proved more complex. Just from sheer exposure to the fact, he realized that the sun set neither exactly east nor exactly west. It was even harder to tell in times outside of sunrise and sunset, and especially at noon. He wondered how the Wanderer managed to navigate through all this, but then he remembered… he used a compass! And not only did he use a compass, but also the constellations of the stars at night, which were far more consistent with where they sat in the sky than the sun. Party Favor neglected to even think about bringing a compass, and he didn't even know the difference between Big Dipper and Little Dipper, so he was very much lost. This grievous error he made in running off unprepared would certainly prove fatal very soon… but then, the sun might have wanted it that way. After all, how could he get close to the sun without first freeing himself of his earthly body? Why would the benevolent sun deceive him?

But before he could ponder these questions further, he saw six radiant colors, glowing in the near distance. Purple, orange, blue, yellow, pink, and white. Could it be? Did the sun send angels to carry him up to her? He rubbed his eyes and looked more closely; he sighed sadly at the sight. These looked like just normal ponies. Likely slavers. Maybe merchants – after all, the orange one carried a large sack on her back. He was too weak to run off, though, so he figured he'd let the pieces fall where they would.

“That's the one!” the blue one shouted. “That's the guy!”

Hitmares. Great. Starlight must have guessed where he'd gone off to, so she must have hired a hit squad to shut him up. But as they galloped towards him, he could see the expressions on their faces. They looked neither gleefully sadistic nor ragefully hostile. They looked… concerned. Was this altruism? Because that was something he hadn't seen since he left Our Town. Although he wasn't entirely convinced, he was hopeful. Once they were near him, he opened his mouth to greet them, but words refused to come out of it.

The yellow one gasped. “Oh, you poor little thing!” she cried. She turned to the purple one. “Twilight, can you give him some water? You can just tell he's just dying for a drink.” The purple pegasus pulled a canteen out of the orange one's sack with magic from her… horn? Wait, a pegasus with a horn? That couldn't be right. He must've been hallucinating. “Now, open wide,” the yellow one said, lifting his head up by his jaw. He obeyed, and like divine nectar, the cool water rejuvenated his mouth and throat. He attempted to speak again.

“Ho-… horror… p-please…”

“Take your time, dearie,” said the white one.

He took some time to collect himself. “S… S-Starlight… cutie marks… lies...”

“He's talkin' 'bout that mayor of theirs,” the orange one said to the purple one.

“That's a good start,” the purple one replied, “can you tell us where she went? Maybe we can talk to her.”

“N-no...” Party Favor mumbled. “She lies...”

“Look, just tell us where she went. We'll deal with her.”

Suddenly, the group all heard a voice echoing from far behind Party Favor. A deep Imperial voice. “What is going on over there? Party Favor? Is that you, boy?”

“Look over there!” the pink one yelled, pointing in the voice's direction, “big old stallion in shiny red suit, twelve o' clock!”

'Oh, crap.' Party Favor thought to himself.

“Come over here, darling!” the white one called out, waving at him, “we don't mean you any harm!”

The Wanderer walked to the group in slow, deliberate step; his white goatee and thinning mane glistened under the sun almost as much as his armor. He was carrying some baggage of his own, and his helm, slung on his back. The six mares, growing impatient with him, began walking to him, but not before the blue one lifted Party Favor up to carry him on her back. The Wanderer and the six mares met.

“Good day, girls. I assume you are treating the boy well?”

“Why?” the purple one asked, “Do you know him?”

“Well, of course I know him, dear child. He is my grandson. I have been looking for him for some few years now.”

“Do you know where he's been?”

“Of course not. He ran away, like children do. Such a pity. His parents died long ago.”

“Look at his flank,” the blue one demanded. “His cutie mark was taken away from him! He got mixed up in a cult!”

Leaning in close, he inspected Party Favor's equal mark. “That is not the mark I remember him having. Again, such a pity.”

“L-liar!” shouted Party Favor. “He's evil! Don't listen!”

“The heat has already gotten to his head, it seems.” The Wanderer sighed. “The sun does that, you know. Makes folks go mad.”

“No! Sun loves me!”

“Now that you mention it,” the purple one mused, “he does show symptoms of severe dehydration and hyperthermia. Psychosis is a fairly major symptom.”

“Quite the eloquent one you are, child. I wonder: are you complimented for your intellect often?”

“Quite a bit, actually.”

“By… colts, perhaps?”

The purple one let on a sheepish smile. “Oh! Well, no, not so much by colts.”

“A shame. Really. Such a fine trait going unappreciated. And such pretty eyes, too. A young stallion would be very lucky to have you.”

The white one scoffed. “Oh, puh-lease!”

“Ah, I apologize for the digression,” the Wanderer said. “Can you tell me your names?”

The purple one put a hoof to her chest. “My name is Twilight Sparkle. There's Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy. What's your name?”

“It is nice to meet you, Miss Sparkle. My name is Good Favor. I do thank you for taking care of my grandson, Party Favor. We do not have enough folks like you in the Wasteland, you know. You can give him to me now.”

Rarity leaned into Twilight's ear. “I don't know if I trust him,” she whispered.

“He's fine,” Twilight replied, “just a nice, old grandpa who misses his grandson. Isn't that right, Good Favor?”

“Of course.”

She motioned to Rainbow Dash. “Put Party Favor down, please.”

“Please,” the Wanderer interjected, “allow me.” Magically, he lifted Party Favor off Rainbow Dash's back, and set him atop his rucksack. “It was a pleasure speaking with you, Miss Sparkle.”

“Wait!”

“Was there something more you needed?”

“Well, yeah. We're looking for a mare. Starlight Glimmer. Do you know anything about her?”

The Wanderer put a hoof on his chin. “Starlight, Starlight, Starlight… no, I do not believe I do. Perhaps you will have better luck describing her to me.”

“Well, um, she's purple. Not my purple, but different.”

“Lavender, dearie,” said Rarity.

“Right. And she has this streaked hair bunched in the back of her head. And she has an equal cutie mark, like the one on Party Favor… or so we hear, anyway.”

“Lavender… equal mark… ah, yes! I have spotted someone of that description on a shuttle to the city of Kov, to the west.”

“That don't sound like a normal name for a town to me,” said Applejack.

“It is the capitol of the Principality of Ruusonia. The city farthest to the west in the Wasteland. After the Imperial cities of Benn and Wenn along the road northwest, further up, you will find a forked road. Go to either Belogorsk to the right, or Serov to the left. Either one will bring you to Kov. Did you get all that, Miss Sparkle?”

“Alright. I'll make sure we mark all the right things on our map.”

“I am sure a bright young lady like you will not make a single mistake.”

“Trust me. I go out of my way not to.”

“Good luck, Miss Sparkle, and all the rest of you. Bring this Starlight Glimmer to justice for us, would you?”

They turned around, and started on their way back west. “We will, Good Favor!” she said, waving back, “Take good care of your grandson!”

The Wanderer turned east and began his own way. Party Favor saw that last twinkle of hope fading away, the six mares getting smaller and smaller as they stretched the distance, until he could barely see them. In despondence, he dropped his gaze to the ground, where he caught just the slightest glimpse of some large stone being magically lifted up from the dirt.

“Gullible little harpies, are they not?” the Wanderer grumbled. “I cannot tell whether I am not as rusty in guile as I once thought, or if they are simply that naive. It does not matter. For some strange reason, Miss Glimmer found it expedient to at least try to have you spared. A waste of effort, in my opinion, but it is not as if Equestrian nobility is abundant around these parts, and Lord help us if she tries to travel the wastes without me. She would be almost as hopeless as you.” He paused. “There is something I think you should see, boy. It will take us some time to get there, and it will be easier for me if you sleep throughout the trip. This rock should do the trick nicely...” Just then, he felt the rock slam against the back of his head, then went out cold. A quick and easy way to lull someone to sleep, albeit crude. And liable to cause brain damage. Next Chapter: Chapter 8 Estimated time remaining: 7 Hours, 3 Minutes