Chapter 23 - Revelations
“Three things can not be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.”

Silver and I kept staring at the horizon where the skyships were headed for what felt like an eternity. I don’t know what she was thinking, but I know what was going through my mind. Where were they headed? What was the plan that required that kind of a mobilization? Did the general really have access to that much ponypower? Or was more of the Enclave military involved now? And where was Muddy in all this?

“Dust!” Silver yelled right into my ear, knocking me out of my own thoughts. “Are you listening to me?”

I shook my head clearing my thinking. “Yeah… no, sorry,” I muttered. “Trying to figure out what’s going on here.”

“And what is going on here?” she asked back, still staring at the horizon.

“Silver, I really have no idea,” I said. “C’mon, let’s go find Brownie and Flower.”

We galloped through town, almost bumping into ponies left and right. The air show had attracted almost everypony’s attention and the townsponies were all gawking skyward like we had been. After a couple of minutes, and near misses on what could have been some very violent collisions, I was banging on the door of Brownie and Flower’s house.

“Brownie! Flower! Are you home?” I shouted while banging on the door.

“Yeah, we’re out back, Dust!” Brownie shouted back.

Silver and I trotted around the shack and Brownie and Flower were staring eastward, at the rapidly disappearing Enclave forces.

“What do ya think they’re up ta, Dust?” Brownie asked, his voice wavering.

“I really don’t know, Brownie,” I answered. “But I intend to find out and stop it.” I moved to block their view of the disappearing skyships and flyers. “And I need some help…” I sheepishly admitted.

An uncomfortable look settled on their two faces as they looked at each other. They shuffled their weight between their hooves uneasily.

Brownie finally broke the awkward silence. “Um, Dust,” he said uncomfortably. “I think Flower and I need time to talk about it.”

“I… I understand,” I muttered. I had to admit… it hurt. But I really did understand. “Look, I’m gonna go get myself outfitted to leave. I’ll wait until midday.” I paused, taking a deep breath. “I know I wasn’t honest with you in the past, but I am telling you the truth now. I am not with them. Whatever Muddy and the general are up to, I want to stop. I just want to help.”

I waited for some sort of response, but none was forthcoming. Brownie and Flower alternated uncomfortable glances between each other and me. I turned and trotted away. Sitting here wasn’t going to change their mind any. I started trotting my way towards the center of town to go shopping.

“For what it’s worth,” Silver said sidling up to, and startling, me. I forgot she was there. “I believe you. And I’ll be with you through this. I want to get Muddy as much as you do.” She paused awkwardly. “Even though I am severely pissed off at you right now.”

“I know and I’m sorry,” I said, sheepishly. “Thank you, Silver.”

The rest of our trot back to the center of town was uncomfortable. My mind was a mess of thoughts ranging from the relationship between Silver and me, the relationship between Gertie and me, and what I was going to do about the Enclave. I still loved Silver, but did she still love me? Could she ever forgive me for, well, whatever happened between Gertie and me? And what exactly did happen between us? I still had no recollection. And of course, how was I going to take on Special Operations, although it appears there was more direct military involvement now. Ugh.

We got to the center of town and went right into Warped Barrel’s shop. Unlike his name, his selection of weaponry and ammunition was top quality. How he managed to get all of it was beyond anypony. He certainly wasn’t finding it locally. What was even more amazing were his prices. In short order, I had restocked my ammo and got some spare parts for some badly overdue maintenance.

Stepping outside the shop, we were passed by a crowd of ponies cantering in the general direction of town hall. In my peripheral vision, I saw something moving towards us from the sky. Looking up, I saw Gertie circling and descending towards us.

“Dust, I’ve been looking everywhere for you,” she said, out of breath. I saw a short, dark glare cast in Silver’s direction before she focused on me again. “You have to come with me, but we have to stay hidden.” Gertie spun around and took off in the same general direction as everypony else. I looked at Silver and shrugged and followed Gertie.

A short trot later, we were nearing town hall, but Gertie stopped short and stayed tucked in a small alley between two houses. A general hum of multiple conversations filled the air. She gestured around the corner. I walked up to the corner of the building and peered around it. A large, for Coltington at least, group of ponies had gathered in front of Town Hall.

Standing on the raised porch were two Enclave military ponies in their sleek, black armor. I could never understand why armor made for flyers was made to look like a flightless arachnid, but it was damned intimidating all the same. The sharp, pointed tail and metallic wing guards sent a message: don’t fuck with us. The two laser rifles mounted to the armor added to that message. The two pegasi were both carrying their helmets under their wings. One was a dark purple mare with a silver mane and the other was a teal stallion with a white mane. I couldn’t see their rank insignia from where I was, but if they were wearing armor, they weren’t enlisted airponies.

The dark purple mare raised her hoof and the general hum of the ponies who had gathered began to disperse. “Attention Wasteland ponies! I am Lieutenant Funnel Cloud. I bring a message from the Enclave.”

At the mention of the Enclave, a general din began to fill the air again. Some ponies loudly booed and hissed and others were shouting general insults. Funnel Cloud raised her hoof again and eventually the crowd calmed down.

“I am sure you all noticed the airships that passed overhead a short while ago. Consider this a warning. The Enclave will be performing operations at a small plantation east of here. Keep your distance and nopony will get hurt,” she announced.

“And why the hell should we listen to you!” somepony from the crowd shouted out. A lot of the ponies nodded their head and murmured their agreement.

“We don’t want to hurt anypony,” Funnel Cloud started. “But, we will defend ourselves if necessary. What we are doing is none of your concern and we will not permit outside interference.”

“Interference my ass!” another pony near the front shouted. “You interfere every day when you don’t open the sky!” The pony who was shouting, a light blue earth pony stallion, began to charge the two Enclave pegasi. I recognized him as Dirty Rag, one of the employees at the bar.

“No!” I shouted, more out of instinct than any hope of stopping him. The Enclave stallion moved faster than I could have imagined. He quickly swung his rifle in the direction of the earth pony and fired. The bright red beam erupted from the barrel and hit the earth pony squarely in the chest. His body began to radiate a red glow. As he was still moving forward, Dirty Rag began to leave a trail of smoke behind him. As he reached Funnel Cloud, he broke apart into a cloud of ash and washed over the two armored ponies. The crowd gasped loudly and fell deadly silent.

Nonplussed, Funnel Cloud and her partner simply shook their heads, releasing clouds of dust. Funnel Cloud looked over her armor, which now had a thin layer of ash covering it. “Damn it!” she muttered. “I just cleaned this.” With a snort, she looked back over the crowd. “I hope we have an understanding now. We will not go out of our way to hurt anypony, but will defend ourselves if necessary.

“Oh, and one more thing,” she continued. “We understand that a former Enclave pony you know as Dust Cloud may return here. There will be a reward for anypony who captures him and hands him over to us. He must be captured alive to earn the reward. And if we find that you are sheltering him, there will be consequences. We’ll be back weekly to see if you have found him. Thank you for your time.”

With that statement, the two flyers replaced their bug-eyed helmets and walked off the porch. The ponies in front stumbled over each other to clear a path for the two pegasi. With a few flaps of their wings, they began to hover off the ground and then took off towards the airships that we had previously seen.

“Dust, you don’t think they’re talking about…” Silver started.

“Manny and Leafy… yes, yes I do, Silver,” I murmured, shaking my head.

“What’s going on, Dust?” Gertie asked.

“Long story short?” I answered. “There’s a war-time, underground hydroponics bunker where fresh food is grown by robot workers. Some acquaintances of ours run the place. The Enclave must be taking it for themselves.”

“Shit,” Gertie mumbled. “Typical Enclave. Taking whatever they need regardless of the consequences.” Gertie shot me a pained expression. “Sorry, Dust.”

“It’s alright,” I said, trying to comfort her. “The only thing I have in common with these pegasi anymore is my wings.” I sighed deeply as the realization hit me that I would probably never be going home again. And even if I did go back, could I fit in? Could I ever honestly live with myself knowing that I had abandoned the entire Wasteland, especially my friends, knowing what the Enclave was doing to the Wasteland? And everypony knew, or at least heard rumors, about what happened to dissenters in the Enclave. They had a way of disappearing, thanks to the military-run council.

The sound of a shotgun slide being racked drew me out of my thoughts. A deep, rumbling and familiar laugh came from behind me. “I knew I’d get you one day, thief. Or should I call you Enclave now?” the voice threatened, sending a chill down my spine. “And I thought you were just a nuisance to me… little did I know you were something much more important.” Gertie went for the pistol holstered on her left leg. “Uh, uh, uh… I wouldn’t do that if I were you, merc.” I turned my head and saw that Last Stand was flanked by a handful of other ponies from the company. I guess he had his new team.

I shook my head. “Gertie, no,” I ordered her. “Last Stand, what the hell is this for?”

“I always knew there was something wrong about you,” Last Stand growled between his teeth. “You know what the funny part is? I don’t even care about the reward. I just want you to get what’s coming to you.” He nodded his head towards the Sheriff’s Office. “Let’s get movin’.”

Last Stand and his lackeys waited for Silver, Gertie and I to move past them before searching us and removing all of our weapons. Gertie bristled at the idea of being disarmed, again. We were then forced to lead the way to the Sheriff's office.
As we got closer, I could see Old Tin reclining back in her chair on the porch. She was a deep blue unicorn mare with a graying mane. She always wore a cowpony hat and a neckerchief. She looked like every stereotypical sheriff in the western movies I used to watch as a foal. She leaned forward and stood up as Last Stand forced us forward.

“Now, Last Stand, what in tarnation are ya doing?” she called out.

“I have three prisoners I need you to hold on to until the Enclave comes back,” he grunted at her.

“And what law did they break ta become a guest o’ mine?” she questioned.

“He’s a dirty Enclave turkey and they want his ass,” he shot back. “And I want the reward.”

“So he did nothin’ wrong, then,” she laughed. “And t’ others?”

“Well, they’re friends of his and would probably try to break him out,” Last Stand tried to explain.

I heard a rumbling start to grow as we attracted a crowd. Many of the ponies, who had started to disperse after Funnel Cloud left, returned to the square to watch the new drama.

“Now, Last Stand,” the sheriff said, shaking her head. “Ah can’t keep ‘em locked up fer ya unless they done somethin’ wrong. Have any o’ ‘em broke any laws?”

He grumbled under his breath. “No,” he answered. “Fine, I’ll take care of this myself.” He turned to address the three of us. “I’ve got an idea. Let’s bring them to the stable.”

Silver and I exchanged nervous glances. “The stable?”

Last Stand laughed. “Yeah, the stable. One way in, one way out,” he chuckled. “And I know you won’t go exploring since the stable would probably kill you anyway!”

“Ah don’t think so,” another deep voice rumbled from the other side of the square. “Let our friends go!” Brownie rumbled from across the square.

Trotting across the square were Brownie and Flower. They were both carrying their weapons of choice and moving toward us rapidly.

“Brownie, Flower,” Last Stand grumbled. “Do not get involved. This has nothing to do with you.”

“That’s where yer wrong,” Flower fired back. “They are our friends and that has everything ta do wit’ us.”

Last Stand and his lackeys drew their weapons and aimed them at Brownie and Flower to repay the weapons being aimed their way.

“Now listen y’all!” the sheriff shouted. “Y’all put yer weapons down like civilized ponies!”

“Only if they do it first!” Last Stand yelled back. “He’s a proven liar and is wanted by his own military! He’s obviously the threat here!”

“Don’t ya think if his military wants ‘im back so badly he’s a threat ta them, not us!” Flower screamed back.

“He lied to us about who he was! How can we trust him!” a random pony from the crowd called out.

“What has he ever done to hurt us!” another yelled back.

The crowd broke down into two diametrically opposed sides. One side was calling for my incarceration and the other for my freedom. Neighbors were yelling at neighbors, friends threatening friends. The sheriff was trotting back and forth trying to put out fires before they blew out of proportion.

I almost didn’t see the bottle flying towards me. Ducking at the last second, the bottle flew over my head and crashed into the wall of the sheriff’s office behind me. That was all that was needed.

Ponies began to fight other ponies openly. Hooves were flying and ponies were tackling other ponies. Last Stand charged me. I braced myself for the impact but it never came. Brownie tackled Last Stand from the side and they both went tumbling away. They wrestled on the ground, neither seemingly having the upper hoof.

“Dust! Help!” I heard Silver scream. Looking towards the source of the scream, I saw one of Last Stand’s lackeys advancing on her. He still had his weapon drawn but it was currently aimed at the ground. I began to charge, having to sidestep a few combatants. Lowering my shoulder, I aimed for his midsection and made contact. He tumbled to the floor and I stumbled, but remained upright.

“And stay down!” I yelled as the stallion was trying to catch his breath.

“Silver, you alr…” I started to say. I felt a sharp impact on the back of my head. The world began to spin as the edges became black. Soon, I saw the ground rush up me at an alarming rate as my vision completely blacked out.

The void again. I was actually beginning to get accustomed to this.

“Foggy? One? Stranger?” I yelled out into the echoless blackness.

A sliver of light appeared before me. “C’mon on in, Dust, we need to talk,” the gravelly, female voice called out. The stranger.

I stepped up to the sliver and pushed with my hoof. The door swung open, revealing a room that looked a lot like the general’s office in Fort Canterbury. The same large map dominated the one wall but a large, opulent desk dominated the room. The windowed wall revealed the jet black of the void. Sitting behind the desk was the robed figure I have had several confusing conversations with already.

“So, we meet again, Dust, or should I call you Updraft now?” the voice rasped.

“Does it really matter?” I asked, rather aggravated.

“It does matter,” she responded. “Who are you?”

“What do you mean?” I asked, confused by the point of the question.

The windows behind the desk flashed bright before resolving into an image. Gaunt pegasi were lined up, clutching some sort of paper. Their cheeks were sunken and you could make out their ribs. One mare near the front of the line was clutching a small foal.

“Mommy, ah we getting food today?” the small pony asked.

“Yes sweetheart, we are,” the mother said, not very convincingly.

“Mommy, why are so many ponies hungwy?” the foal continued.

“You see, Gusty,” the mother started to answer. “It’s hard growing food up in the clouds. And there are so many pegasi. We all have to share what little we have.”

“Why can’t they just gwow moah food?” the foal innocently asked.

The mother pointed towards a tall, white tower with a cloud and lightning bolt symbol at the top in the distance. “See the tower over there?” she asked. The foal nodded. “That tower controls the clouds. Without it we couldn’t control them. A long time ago, the pony who built them didn’t turn them on all the way and hid the key to do it. We have some control of the clouds, but not all of them.”

“Oh,” the foal said, pondering the answer she just received. “Why can’t we build moah towews?”

“The pony who hid the key?” the mother started. “She also hid the way to build them.”

“Oh,” the foal answered. A loud grumble filled the air. “Mommy, I’m so hungwy.”

“I know, Gusty, I know,” the mother said trying to comfort her.

After a few more minutes they made it to the front of the line.

A well fed looking pegasus in a military uniform looked at the pair with an empty glare. “Voucher,” he ordered.

The mother handed it over with a shaking hoof. The solder placed the voucher in a box and reached into a different one. He turned and placed two sickly looking carrots on the table. “Next!” he yelled.

“B,but sir!” the mother protested. “This is barely enough for one pony, much less the two of us. We need more.”

“Look, lady,” the solder gruffly responded. “This is all you get. Take your carrots, count yourself lucky and move. I have to keep this line moving,” he rebuked. “Next!” he yelled out looking over her.

She grabbed the carrots off the table and handed them to the foal. “Here you go, sweetheart,” she cooed. “Eat these so you grow up big and strong.”

“What about you, mommy?” the foal asked, tears rolling down her face.

“It’s OK, sweetie,” the mother responded through her own tears. “We’ll try again tomorrow.”

The image in the windows faded.

“Why did you show me that?” I demanded of the cloaked figure.

“Oh, I’m not done yet,” she sadly responded, pointing towards the large map.

The graphics on the map faded as they were replaced with an image.

It appeared the be the Wasteland, but it was darker than I ever remembered it. The cloud cover was an ominous shade of gray, darker than I ever remembered seeing it. And it was nearly uniform in color. Usually there were light spots and dark spots, but this cloud cover was solid.

A large house was visible. It appeared to be Manny’s plantation house, but it was hard to tell in this darkness. I could barely make out shouting in the background. The image shifted to show a cave opening. Two military pegasi were flanking either side with laser weapons mounted on their battle saddles. Walking in and out of the opening were ragged-looking ponies drawing carts behind them. The carts would go in the cave empty, but they would come out filled with baskets of fresh fruit and vegetables.

“Keep moving dirtponies! We have a lot of produce to move!” another military pegasus yelled towards the ponies drawing the carts.

A crashing sound drew my attention and I saw it was from a cart that had tipped when it’s puller had fallen to the ground.

“Get up! Get up now!” the soldier yelled.

“I… I… can’t,” the earth pony muttered through grimaces and hisses of pain.

“Get up now or else!” the soldier yelled again.

The pony tried to shift his weight. But the instant he tried to put weight on his front hooves, they collapsed under him and he fell to the ground again. “No.. no.. I’m alright, I swear!” he begged.

The soldier nodded towards one of the pegasi flanking the doorway. A bright red beam lanced from his rifle, striking the downed pony square in the chest. His body began to emanate a red light as it began to fall apart at the extremities. In short order, a small pile of red, glowing dust was in the pony’s place. The soldier activated a radio on his shoulder with his chin, “Chains, this is Cornucopia. We need another worker. And try to make this one younger. Over,” he said into the microphone.

The image faded from the map, replaced with the familiar lines and markings.

“Who are you?” the shrouded figure asked one more time.

“I don’t understand the question!” I shouted back.

“Are you Updraft the Enclave operative? Or are you Dust the Wasteland pony?” she asked.

“How can I answer that!” I cried out. “I’m both!”

“But I thought you said you had nothing in common with the Enclave?” the figure asked, bemused.

“If you’re talking about the military, I don’t,” I muttered, fighting back my frustration. “But there are good ponies up there! Misinformed and ignorant, but they don’t mean poorly.”

“So you’re an Enclave pegasus then?” she asked. She flipped around a picture frame sitting on the desk. In the frame was an animated image of Brownie and Flower. They were sickly looking and clutching each other. “But what about them?”

“That’s not fair!” I shouted. “Those are my friends. Of course I can’t turn my back on them.”

The cloaked figure turned around another picture frame. This one had an image of Buster and my mother fighting off Enclave military pegasi. “What about them?”

I was speechless.

“Who are you!” the figure demanded.

“I don’t know!” I cried out and buried my face in my hooves. “You can’t make me choose! I can’t!”

“Dust, Updraft, whoever you are. I’m not making you choose,” she said. “But you have to make a choice. You can’t be one without harming the other.”

“How can I choose?” I cried. “If I choose the Enclave, I am dooming all the ponies down here to a miserable life, for as long as that lasts, even if they aren’t Enclave slaves. If I choose the Wasteland, I am dooming the Enclave to widespread starvation. I just can’t make that decision.”

“And where does Silver fit in all of this? Or is it Gertie now? It’s so hard to keep track,” the stranger queried.

“Low blow,” I mumbled.

“Doesn’t make it any less true,” the figure admitted. “Who are you?”

“I… I don’t know,” I admitted.

“Until you do,” the figure said, gravely, “you will not know what you need to do.”

The room faded to black.

My eyes fluttered open and the foggy haze faded. I was laying on a red, threadbare couch. My head was throbbing, but given recent history, this time wasn’t so bad. Looking around the room I was in, I saw a desk and one lone jail cell. I must have been inside the sheriff’s office.

“Dust, are you OK?” Silver asked as she walked over to my side.

“I’m OK, considering,” I asked, rubbing the back of head and finding a large lump. “Rock or bottle?”

“Rock, as far as we could tell,” she answered.

“How long?” I asked.

“About ten minutes,” she answered.

“Huh,” I grunted. “It felt longer than that.” I began to notice the rumble of a fight going on outside. “What’s going on?”

“It’s horrible,” Silver muttered moving towards the window. “The whole town is fighting. A lot of them are scared of the Enclave. Some want to turn you over to keep them from coming back and doing something horrible to the town. The other half want nothing to do with helping the Enclave and see you as a way to be a pain in their side. The sheriff is trying to calm things down, but every time she calms down a pocket, another one flares up.”

No. I had to stop this. I wasn’t going to be the reason Coltington turned on itself. I needed to be a solution, not a problem. I had an idea. Looking around the office, I found a repeater rifle hanging on the wall. I trotted over to it and grabbed it off the wall. Opening the chamber, I saw that the sheriff kept it loaded.

Silver eyes widened when she saw me take the weapon. “Dust?” she asked. “What do you think you’re doing with that?”

“Stopping this,” I said grimly as I walked to the door.

Swinging the door open, I saw that the situation had not really improved since I had been knocked out. Ponies I had known my entire time down in the Wasteland were still fighting amongst themselves. Many were muzzle to muzzle, shouting at the top of their lungs. Some had weapons drawn, but not aimed at each other. Yet. A few were wrestling on the ground, getting in kicks whenever they could. Fortunately, I could not hear individual arguments.

I aimed the rifle skyward and activated the trigger. The gun kicked like a mule, but I held on as it boomed. The crowd jumped, nearly in unison. The din of the fighting ceased almost immediately. The dozens of ponies in the square looked me in unison. Slowly, lest I be seen as a threat, I placed the repeater on the floor next to me.

I cleared my throat, steeling myself for what I was about to do. “Mares and gentlecolts! Please stop fighting over me. All I ask is that you give me a chance to explain things. I will ultimately concede to whatever the town decides, but I do want to give you some very important information.”

Everypony was now giving me their rapt attention, even Last Stand who had been fighting with the sheriff just now. “I won’t beat around the bush. My name is Updraft. Yes, I came to Coltington as an Enclave spy. Yes, I lied to you about who I was, over and over again. I know that this revelation gives you no reason to trust me now.

“I know that is isn’t enough, but all I can really say is that I’m sorry. My mission, at the time, was to get to know about the Wasteland and how it works. You have to understand that most pegasi above the clouds don’t know that there are good ponies down here. Hell, I didn’t even know there were good ponies down here. We’re taught all our lives that there is nothing but monsters down here.”

Some ponies started to grumble about what I was saying. I raised my hoof to try and calm the crowd. “I tell you this so you understand where I come from and not to insult,” I explained. The crowd seemed to accept that and calmed down. “I was under orders to collect information and report back to the Enclave. I was led to believe that we would be trying to help, or at the very least, co-exist, with you. I really thought I’d be helping.

“And you are all familiar with Muddy. We came down together as a team,” I said, scanning the crowd. Some rumbling began to arise, but I kept talking, hoping not to lose my momentum. “Well, Muddy… he went crazy when we found out we would never be going home again even though we were told we’d only be down here for about a year. He didn’t take too kindly to that. Not to mention, I stopped him from assaulting Silver here inside the stable. What he was going to do, I don’t know for sure, but I can tell you it wasn’t going to be pleasant.

“Now that you know all about my identity, let’s talk about who I am. All I ask now is that you think about who you came to know me as, Dust. Dust was never an act. I may have lied about where I came from, but I always acted true to myself. Everything I did, it was the true me. When I worked with all of you in the ruins of the Wasteland, trying to earn as many caps as possible, that was me. When I risked myself to help us clear a ruin with as few casualties as possible, that was me.”

I began to scan the crowd, looking for ponies I knew well. “Sage! Tumble! Those nights we played poker long into the night? That was me. Redheart! When I helped search for your missing foal? That was me. Last Stand! I know we never got along but, name one time I ever did anything to hurt somepony!”

The entire crowd turned their head at the same time to look at Last Stand. If his coat wasn’t so dark, I swear I could see the blood drain from his face. “Well, um, I can’t,” he stammered out among the gaze of the crowd.

“And haven’t I always tried to be helpful when I could?” I asked.

“I… I… guess,” he muttered. “But that doesn’t justify your lie!” he shouted, trying to regain the upper hoof.

“Well, you’re right, no I can’t. All I can do is ask for your forgiveness for that. And that you judge me for my actions while I was here living among you. Look, I’m not asking you to take my word for it. Talk to Brownie. Talk to Flower. Talk to Silver. For Celestia’s sake, talk to Gertrude, the Talon merc that came with me,” I pleaded. “Let them tell you what they saw.” I turned to the Sheriff. “Sheriff, I will turn myself into you while the town decides what they want to do. I will abide by whatever decision they make. I leave myself at your mercy.”

I heard a few gasps from the crowd, none louder than the one that came from behind me. I turned to look and saw Silver with her hoof over her mouth. “Dust, are you sure about this?” she asked, her face turning white.

“Yes, I’m sure,” I said with a sigh. “I’m sick of the lying. If the ponies here can’t see me for who I am, then I will never convince them otherwise. But I refuse to let the Enclave drive a wedge between ponies down here. Enough damage has been caused.”

I walked back into the sheriff’s office and into the lone jail cell. I momentarily flashed back to the prison cell in Fetlock Flats where the would-be assassin took his own life rather than serve the town. I thought I saw a splatter of red against the far wall, but when I blinked, it disappeared.

The sheriff walked in and closed the door behind her. “Dust, ya don’t hafta do this,” she said sadly.

“Yes I do,” I replied. “If you don’t lock me up, the ponies will worry about me leaving, angering half of that crowd. I told them I’d abide by their decision and I will be a pony of my word. I will not be the reason an attack squad of flyers get sent here. The town wouldn’t last five minutes.” I pulled the jail cell door shut behind me and sat down on the small bed inside.

The door to the office squeaked open again. Gertie walked in carrying a small duffel bag. “Well, don’t ever let it be said you can’t cause a scene, Dust,” she said with a giggle. “You should hear the conversations that are going on outside. The town is in a uproar right now, but fortunately there is no violence… yet.”

“Thanks, Gertie,” I deadpanned. “What’s in the bag?”

“Well, it’s our stuff,” she responded, dropping the bag on the sheriff’s desk. She turned to the sheriff. “By the way, you’ll find a jet black earth pony out there on the ground with a swollen face.” She placed her two claws in front of her, upturned. “I’m turning myself in for his assault.”

“Jet black? Last Stand? What did you do?” I said, partially in shock and partially laughing.

“Well, I asked him nicely for our stuff back and he refused,” she answered flatly. “He tried to sic Frik and Frak on me, but I convinced them otherwise.” She turned to face the sheriff again. “Oh, you’ll find those two with the other pony as well.” Gertie simply shrugged.

The sheriff was shocked. When her brain finally had a chance to process what was just said, she dropped her head and just shook it. “I think I’ll forego the charges, this time,” she laughed. “Besides, I don’t think Last Stand will press charges when I tell him he’d be arrested for attempted kidnapping.”

Gertie laughed. “Sheriff, if it’s OK, I’d like to spend the night here watching over Dust,” Gertie asked. “I am sworn to protect my contract holder.”

“I ain’t got no problem with that,” the sheriff replied with a laugh. “Hell, I wasn’t gonna even lock the door.” The sheriff turned and walked towards the front door. “The couch is purty comfy fer sleepin’, if ah do say so mahself.” She strode out of the office and closed the door behind her.

I turned to Gertie. “Sworn to protect my contract holder? Where did you get that from?” I asked, giggling.

“I don’t know,” she said, while shrugging. “It sounded good, didn’t it?” We both laughed heartily.

“So what are you going to do, Dust?” Gertie asked, sitting on the couch.

I laid down on the bed and leaned back with my hooves behind my head. “You know what? For right now, my only plan is to lay here and wait for the decision they make,” I mused. “Ever since all this shit started, all I’ve been doing is thinking, and something tells me when I get out of here, I will have to start thinking all over again. It will be nice to not have to think for once.”

“I think you’re right,” she responded, reclining on the couch herself.

Something didn’t feel right. It was as if there was something I needed to do, but forgot what it was. I scoured my mind, trying to remember what it was.

“Um, Dust,” Gertie asked nervously. “Before you check out, can we talk about last night?”

Oh… fuck… that’s what it was. “Sure,” I answered. But I wasn’t sure I was ready to talk about this.

“What do you think of us?” she asked.

“Well, that’s a tough question, Gertie,” I said. “First, can you tell me what happened last night?”

“Long story short…” she started. “You downed two whole bottles of whatever it was and then tried to make a move on me. But you were too inebriated to really do anything. You passed out drunk on the mattress. I stripped us both down and laid down with you, seeing as how it was the only bed.” She sat up, with a pained look on her face. “I wrapped you in my legs, and, at some point during the night, you returned the favor. But that’s all that happened.”

“Oh, thank goodness,” I said with a sigh of relief. I saw a pained expression flash across her face. “I didn’t mean it like… oh goddesses.” I took a deep breath. “Gertie, look… I feel something for you. I’m not sure what it is, but I care about you. But I love Silver. Even after seeing her with Scrapyard, I still do. I just hope she can forgive me and take me back,” I admitted. “I’m sorry that I’ve been sending mixed signals. It’s not my intent to lead you on.”

Gertie took a few short breaths and sobbed. “I know, Dust. Even back at camp, I knew you loved somepony else,” she explained. “Since we’re being honest here, I love you Dust. I know I haven’t known you that long, but you are such an amazing pony. You are strong and selfless. You are sacrificing yourself in order to save ponies, many of whom want you dead simply because you’re a pegasus. I know I could never be that forgiving. And on some level, I know you weren’t as into me as I am into you. And I understand. Please just know that if you can ever give me a chance, I’ll be here waiting.” She took a few deep breaths. “I need to clear my head. And please don’t feel bad, it’s not your fault. I’ll be back later, OK?” she asked.

“Gertie, I’m so s…” I started.

“Dust, shhh,” she said, while hushing me with a talon in front of her beak. “I’ll be back later, I promise. And I’m fine.” I didn’t believe her.

She strode to the door and gave me one last look, longingly. She turned and disappeared through the door. And then, I was along with the silence… and my own thoughts.

After about an hour, the door creaked open again. It was starting to get dark, so I could only imagine that it was early evening. First, I only saw the silhouette of two ponies, but it quickly clarified into Brownie and Flower.

“Ya have no idea what mess you started out thar, Dust,” Brownie said as he strode towards my jail cell. “The town is in a fuss over this.”

“Yeah, Dust,” Flower added excitedly. “Last time I saw everyone this excited was when that alicorn was spotted a few miles out. I think everypony except the foals is discussing you in one way or another.”

“Well, at least I made my mark,” I sighed. “Not what I wanted to be known for, but there it is. Tartarus, I didn’t even want to be known at all. Which way does it seem to be heading?”

“Raht now, seems ta be split, fifty-fifty,” Brownie informed me. “Some folks’r a might upset ya lied. Some folks’r defendin’ ya fer all ya did fer em while ya were here. Others jus’ wanna stick it ta tha Enclave.”

“Dare I ask which side you guys are falling on?” I asked, a little afraid of the answer.

Brownie and Flower glanced at each other and then back at me. “Now that’s a dumb question ta ask, Dust,” Flower scoffed. “We still aren’t happy that ya lied ta us. But, ya learn a lot about somepony by fighting alongside em. You’ve always given one hundred and ten percent of yourself ta help others, even if it meant putting yourself in danger. And a lot of the town seems ta knows that, too. Especially after talking ta Gertie.” Flower and Brownie both flashed a sad look on their faces. “A lot of the town was shocked ta hear what you went through. A lot feel bad fer ya.”

“Thanks, guys,” I said, tears forming in my eyes. “You have no idea how much that means to me.”

“Yer welcome,” Brownie responded. “But, ya need ta know. A lot of ponies arn’t happy that yer Enclave. They won’t listen ta any reason.”

“That’s alright. I made my bed, I have to lie in it,” I said with a sigh. “I just hope I’ve won over enough.”

“Well, whatever happens, Dust, we believe in ya,” Flower said, trying to comfort me.

The door creaked open again and another pony walked in. This time it was Silver, and she was holding a tray with a bowl of something steaming on it. “Oh!” she said with a start. “Brownie, Flower. I didn’t expect to run into you here. I’ll come back later.”

“Nah, it’s alright,” Brownie said with a wave of his hoof. “We were jus’ leavin’ anyway. See you tomorrow morning, Dust.”

“See you guys,” I added. They turned and walked past Silver and closed the door behind them. “So, come to see the condemned?” I asked, jokingly.

“Condemned?” she asked, clearly confused.

“Bad joke,” I answered. “Anyway, what do you have there?”

“I figured I’d bring you some dinner,” she replied. “I got you a bowl of the stew from the other night, you seemed to enjoy it.”

I pushed the door open as she got near. She jumped in surprise. “The sheriff didn’t think it was necessary. She doesn’t see the need for all this anyway,” I explained. I smelled the stew as she got near. “Mmmm.. thanks Silver, I appreciate this.”

“Well, I couldn’t let you starve, could I?” she answered.
She sat down on the couch in the office as I hungrily chowed down the stew. It tasted just as good as it did the day before. After slurping the last of the liquid, I put the bowl back down.
“That hit the spot,” I said with a little burp at the end. “Excuse me.”

Silver chuckled a little. “It’s OK,” she said between chuckles. “You have no idea the afternoon I’ve had. Everypony in town wanted to talk to me about you. We’ve all been busy: Brownie, Flower, your merc friend and me. Everypony wants to know what we know about you.”

“Understandable,” I replied with a nod. “Up until yesterday, I was one of them. Today, I am an Enclave spy. Not to mention how it came out.”

“Yeah, I know,” Silver said dejectedly. “I still don’t like it. It’s not like you hurt anypony.”

“Yeah, but think about it,” I answered. “Name one time the Enclave have done anything positive down here.”

Silver paused and looked in deep thought. “I guess you’re right,” she admitted. There was an awkward pause and it looked like she was going to say something several times but stopped. “Dust, can we talk about us, and the griffon?”

My heart skipped a beat, but I guess I knew this was unavoidable. “Yeah, we might as well,” I mumbled. “Silver, look…”

“Dust, please, let me go first,” she cut me off. “I have already forgiven you for hooking up with that griffon…”

It was my turn to cut her off. “But nothing…” I tried to say.

“That’s not the point,” she said. “You obviously have feelings for her. And I know you have, had, feelings for me,” she added awkwardly. “I know I shouldn’t, but I feel awful for starting something with Scrapyard, but what was I supposed to do?”

“Silver… I don’t blame you at all,” I answered. “You had no idea if or when I was coming back. It was weeks, months, that I’d been gone. And it’s not like there was a plan. Was I hurt when I saw you with him? Yes. Was I mad? Yes, at first. But I still love you.”

“Yeah…” she said and then stopped. My heart skipped a beat. “But I can’t wrap my head around this griffon. How long were you with her?”

“Well, all in all? A few weeks in captivity, a few weeks at her merc camp, I guess,” I answered.

“Do you love her?” she answered, shuffling her hooves.

“I… I’m not sure,” I said, after thinking a little. “I know I feel something for her. But I don’t know what it is for sure. I didn’t think it was possible for me to feel for somepony else when I already had a special somepony, but there is something there.”

Silver simply looked at me, stunned. “Well… well, I appreciate the honesty.”

“Do you still love me?” I asked, fearing the answer.

“I… I don’t know,” she said, which floored me and made my stomach lurch. “Every time I think of you, I see you with the griffon. But I can’t stop thinking about you. And it hurts.” She was nearly crying.

“Silver, please believe me when I say that I am so sorry for all of this,” I pleaded with her.

“I know, Dust,” she said. “I need time.” She paused, again looking like she wanted to say something. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Dust. Good night.” She walked over to me and gave me a kiss on the cheek. She turned and walked through the door, giving me a long glance before closing the door.

Today sucks.

A couple of more hours passed with no more visitors. I could see through the windows that it was an inky black outside. I laid my head down on the pillow and, breaking my own plan, thought about everything that had happened today. Between Gertie’s feelings for me, Brownie’s and Flower’s report of the attitude of the town, and then Silver’s admission that she may not love me anymore, it all made me exhausted. Gertie hadn’t yet come back from wherever it is that she went and I wondered if she would come back here at all, given what had been said. After running circles in my mind for a while, I finally drifted off to sleep.

I woke with an uneasy feeling and looked around the sheriff’s office. Somepony had come by and turned off all the lanterns. The office was pitch black and I could barely see outside the cell, much less beyond.

“Gertie, are you out there?” I called out, wondering if she had finally come back. I strained to listen for some response when I heard the soft sound of somepony breathing. The breathing pattern did not sound like somepony sleeping. “Gertie? Silver?”

The racking of a shotgun slide sent shockwaves through my system. “Hi, Dust,” said the low, rumbling voice of Last Stand. “It’s about time we had a talk.”

I saw a spark and then a lantern slowly came to life. It cast long shadows against the walls and barely illuminated Last Stand’s features. Then again, with his coloring, I doubt I’d be able to see him anyway. He picked up the lantern and placed it on a small table between the couch and the cell. Last Stand sat down on the couch with a few creaks of the springs.

“Why?” he said after a long silence.

“I don’t get the question,” I answered. “Why what?” I grumbled at him. “Why did I come down here? Why did I lie? Why did I come back? What do you want to know?” Last Stand just glared at me. “Look, I’m not going to waste your time here. I assume you either have spoken with everypony or have heard from somepony in town. By this point, you know I was an Enclave spy. You know my secrecy was an order for the duration of my time down here. You know that I was just supposed to collect information.”

I waited for some sort of acknowledgement from Last Stand, but none were forthcoming. I am so glad he never came to any of our poker games. He could probably bluff and win with only four cards in his hoof.

“And why did I come back?” I barked. “I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t for Silver. She was a big part of why I came back. But it’s not that simple. The Enclave has something bad planned for the Wasteland. And I can’t just sit back and let it happen,” I explained, becoming more aggravated as time wore on. “Oh… and of course, I want to get revenge on Muddy for assaulting Silver, killing One and Midnight Ink, and threatening my friends. And for all he has done to me.”

A cold silence filled the room as Last Stand simply measured me up. His lack of movement was unnerving, not to mention the fact that he never let go of his shotgun. After a long, eerie wait, he simply stood up, turned off the lantern and made his way out of the sheriff’s office.

“Good talking to you, too,” I called out sarcastically. I laid back down in bed and fell into a very uneasy, fitful sleep.

I must have been in one of my longer periods of “sleep” when I was startled awake by the sound of the door opening.

“Wakey, wakey, Dust,” Old Tin shouted as she walked in the door. “Sorry ta wake ya, but the mayor wanted me ta collect ya fer the vote. Seems like the town is gettin’ impatient.”

“Alright, Sheriff,” I said, resigned to my fate. “Let’s get this over with.”

The sheriff gave me a sad nod, and waited for me to fall astride of her. As soon as we made it out of the door, I saw that nearly the entire town had gathered. It was a much more peaceful gathering than yesterday. Ponies were packed in tight and there was a soft rumble as ponies discussed, assumedly, my fate amongst themselves. A sea of heads turned as the nearest heard the sheriff’s door close and the rest of the crowd followed suit. An eerie silence fell over the crowd.

It was a short walk to the front of town hall where the mayor was waiting. I never really got to know the mayor. Every now and then she’d make an announcement to the town, or congratulate a newly married couple or a couple expecting a new foal. Her face looked unusually grim, but I guess I understood why. Gertie was waiting in the front row as close to the mayor as was possible.

After the sheriff and I made our way to the side of the mayor, she cleared her throat with the entire town staring. “I’m not happy for the duty I must perform today,” she started her speech. “I never imagined we’d have somepony in town that we couldn’t trust, but here we are. Now, after overhearing discussions last night, I figure we have a few options. One, we could hold on to Dust here until the Enclave officers come back. Two, we could exile Dust. Or three, we could just continue letting him live here and protect him as best we could when the Enclave comes back.

“Or we could just kill him now and get it over with,” a pony called out from the crowd.

“I will not support murder,” the mayor shouted in response. “All I will say is this. After thinking about his situation last night, while I do not support his reasons, I can understand why he did what he did. After talking with many of you, I also know he has done far more good for this town than not,” she added in support. “But, I will leave this decision completely up to you since we will need to deal with the repercussions together. All those in favor of executing Dust, raise a hoof now.”

Thankfully, only one pony raised a hoof for this option. It was the same pony that raised the option. I released a breath I didn’t even realize I had been holding.

“Alright then,” the mayor continues. “All those in favor of exiling him, raise a hoof now.” A decent amount of ponies raised their hooves. I scanned the audience looking for Last Stand. His jet black coat betrayed him and I saw he was a couple rows back, dead center. His hoof wasn’t raised.

The mayor sighed deeply. “Now, all those in favor of turning Dust over to the Enclave?” she asked.

At first, a good number of hooves shot up in the air. Searching the crowd, I was trying to see who was sentencing me to this horrific fate. But the one thing I noticed was that I did not see a jet black hoof in the air.

A pony cleared their throat with a deep, growling rumble. The crowd looked towards the source of the sound. It was Last Stand. I was floored. The ponies whose hooves were in the air slowly lowered them. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.

The mayor breathed a sigh of relief. “And finally, who is in favor of freeing Dust and letting him do as he pleases?” At first, only a few ponies raised their hooves. Last Stand had a unsure look on his face. Finally, and slowly, he raised his hoof. Gradually, the rest of the town followed suit. It was so touching that my eyes began to well up with tears.

“Well, it appears the matter is settled,” the mayor declared. She turned to me. “Dust, you are free to come and go as you please.” She turned back towards the town. “Thank you everypony! You have confirmed my faith in ponykind today.” She turned and made her way into town hall.

The crowd began to disperse and heading back to their daily routines. Flower, Brownie, Silver and Gertie all rushed me on the porch and locked me in a huge hug.

“Dust, we’re so happy!” Silver cried out. “I can’t believe Last Stand actually supported you!”

“I know,” I mumbled, still flabbergasted. “I wonder what that was about.”

Almost as if the goddesses were listening to us, Last Stand strode up to us. “Dust,” he said flatly.

“Last Stand,” I answered in kind.

“Aren’t you curious?” he asked.

“Of course I am,” I said. “But I figured you’d tell me if you felt like it.”

“Dust, after talking to everypony, I saw that you’ve done more for this town than I have,” he admitted with some shame in his voice. “When most of the townsponies told me what you’ve done for them, and hearing about the torture you endured all in the name of helping the Wasteland, I knew I couldn’t turn you back over to them. I just never saw that in you before. I chose not to.”

“Last Stand,” I said, choked up. “Thank you.”

“Eh,” he shrugged off. “I still don’t like you,” he laughed, turned and cantered away.

“Who’s the son of a bitch?” Gertie asked.

“That’s Last Stand, and it’s a long story,” I said with a laugh. Brownie, Flower, and Silver all laughed also while Gertie had a confused look on her face.

“Well, let’s go celebrate, Dust!” Flower exclaimed with a slap on my back. She started trotting in the direction of Horseton House.

“Thanks, but sorry Flower,” I said, freezing her in her tracks. “This was an unexpected delay. I need to go see what Muddy and the general are up to. I’m heading out to Manny’s. I don’t care what Funnel Cloud threatened.”

“Well, we’re coming with…” all three started to say at the same time.

“Wow, I appreciate it but...” I interrupted them.

“No, Dust,” Brownie fired back. “Yer not gonna pull this it’s not yer fight bullshit again and then try ta sneak off without us. Haven’t ya learned yer lesson yet?”

“Brownie, if you’ll let me finish,” I answered with a modicum of mock annoyance. “What I was going to say was to wait since I have to go get my stuff from the sheriff’s office.”

Flabbergasted, the group looked around at each other. And then we all broke out laughing at about the same time.

Level up!

Speech - 55

Perk Obtained:

Convincing: “Duck season! Rabbit season!” You have talked your way out of many bad situations. Gain +1 CHR