"I don't see what the big deal is." Celestia huffed as she, her sister and her six recruits had dinner together in the royal dining hall. "You don't think I can hold my own?"

"It's not that as much as it is that you're going to a nuclear dead zone!" Luna snapped.

"Lulu, listen to me for just one damn second will you?"

"Fine."

"You and I move the sun and the moon every day. You and I have both fought in wars alongside each other. We kicked Discord's ass, wasted King Sombra, survived a changeling invasion, and Tirek's rampage!"

"Not to mention my staying on the moon for a thousand years. You try going that long without sex and see how good of a mood you would be in."

"See? That's what I'm getting at, Lulu! We're tough! We're experienced in everything! We've seen just about everything the world be it ours or otherwise can throw at us!"

"Celestia, you...I...*sigh* damn it all, you're right."

"See? We'll all be fine. We will all be looking out for each other so we'll go to this place, find out what became of Radius and come back home."

"What do you think became of him?"

"I'm trying to keep an optimistic yet at the same time, realistic mindset. We'll just have to wait and see."

The royal sisters and the six volunteers spent the remainder of the evening in each other's company, conversing over a dinner fit for royalty and even shared a few laughs together. Just as Soarin started asking everypony if they were going to finish what was left on their plates, dessert arrived in the form of chocolate cake accompanied by strawberry ice cream. These ponies were about to wake up bright and early to go to the abandoned city of Pripyat the next morning so Celestia made it a point to treat them all to the best her money could buy.

After a while longer, Celestia continued to talk things over with her sister to help put her mind at ease. Luna did gradually calm herself more after remembering all of the trials and hard times she and Celestia have pulled themselves and their whole nation through over the last several thousand years. After dessert, the volunteers were served wine of which they all knew their own limits to. As silly of a bottomless pit Soarin can be at times, even he preferred not to overindulge on the drink and make a fool of himself in front of the Princesses.

Finally, the time neared nine o'clock which for most meant it was time to go out for an evening on the town but everypony needed a full eight hours of sleep before waking up a five in the morning. They needed to reach the bus station by six where they would then have a brief meetup with Prime Minister Groysman and then finally head off to Pripyat. The volunteers all shared a large guest room as most of them slept soundly. Rainbow Dash on the other hoof was having some difficulty falling asleep though.

"Psst. Yo, Big Mac?" Rainbow Dash whispered, wanting somepony to talk to. She received no answer from the slumbering farm pony so she decided to try somepony else. "Spitfire?" Again, no answer. "Shining Ar...is something burning?"

Rainbow Dash caught a whiff of smoke while she searched for anypony who may still be awake. It was a much different type of smokey odor than she remembered from campfires or cookouts and very unpleasant to boot. Curious as to where it was coming from, Rainbow Dash quietly slid out of her bed and pushed the already slightly open door open and looked around for a moment until she heard the faint tapping of hooves on the hard floor to her right. A few yards away to where the hoofsteps seemed to be coming from was a balcony off the side of the castle where Luna's magnificent night sky dotted with a great many stars could be seen.

As Rainbow Dash trotted towards the balcony, the smell of smoke got even stronger. After a few more steps towards that direction, she could just begin to make out a light colored pony leaning against the railing with a strange, small orange glow, directly in front of his face.

"Hey, what's up Shining?" Rainbow Dash asked, startling the unicorn.

"Whoa!" Shining gasped as he waved a hoof in the air. "Oh, hey, Dash. What, um...whatcha up to?"

"What are you up to? Setting stuff on fire?"

"No, that was the...uh...fireflies."

"Fireflies don't smell like that, dude."

"Every fifty years they do. They burst into flames every half century kinda like a Phoenix."

"Really? Cool. It looked like one did right in front of your face."

"Well yeah, it totally did. So I take it you can't sleep either, huh?"

"Nope. We're going to Earth tomorrow to a desolate wasteland and are bound to see some action."

"So you're nervous?"

"Nah, man, I'm excited...in a sick...kinda fucked up way. Oh, sorry, that just slips out sometimes."

"Are you kidding? I always have to watch my mouth around Cadence, Flurry Heart and pretty much every other stuck up mother fucker around here and the Crystal Empire. It's a breath of fresh air to talk to somepony who I can actually have a real, casual conversation with."

Rainbow Dash and Shining Armor were really more acquaintances than close friends as they haven't actually spent any time to talk one on one before. Be that as it may, judging by Shining Armor's odd, shifty behavior and seeming to gripe about life at home, Rainbow Dash could tell there may be more to it and decided to get him to open up about how he was feeling.

"What's bothering you, dude?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"N-nothing, I just..." Shining Armor stuttered before realizing the pegasus was on to him. "Rainbow, I just...*sniff* I didn't know this was gonna be so fu*hic* fucking hard."

"Hey, hey, keep it together, big guy. So you're a father now. I get it, being a parent isn't easy. I don't know if I'll ever be cut out for that so major props to you."

"Th-thanks, Rainbow. It just all happened so fast, you know? I don't even think I was ready for it and to top it all off, my daughter's a fucking alicorn! Oh, and don't get me started on being Prince of the Crystal Empire. One regular unicorn isn't made to deal with all this shit!"

"Shining, buddy, just relax, okay? Look, you and I may not really know each other all that well but if there's one thing I do know about you is that a lot of ponies look up to and admire the hell outta you. Twilight has always gone on about how you never back down from what needs to be done. Hell, as awesome as I am, I don't think I even have half the ponies who feel that way about me."

"You're right, Rainbow. I do have that and I feel bad that I'm bitching about it but-"

"But at the same time, having all those ponies who depend on you and a shit ton of responsibilities-"

"Can drive anypony crazy and sometimes y-"

"You just need to get away from it for a little while!"

"Rainbow Dash?"

"Sup, bro?"

"I think you and I are gonna get along great."

"Alright, dude. Well hey, there's no shame in crying once in a while so don't let that get you down."

"Yeah...I'm glad we had this talk, Rainbow. Thanks for listening."

"No problem. Now c'mon. We should get some sleep. We got some big fish to fry in the morning."

"You go ahead, I'll be right behind you."

"Alright then. Oh, Shining?"

"Yeah?"

"Make sure you scrub the smell of those dead fireflies off you in the morning, alright? You smell like you were burning some nasty shit."

"Ah, right...that."

After getting back to her bed, Rainbow Dash could finally shut her eyes and drift off to sleep. Approximately five minutes later, Shining Armor followed suit and was soon snoring away. They all needed to get all the rest they could before their departure to Earth and their search for the missing pony. Even though this trip would not be one of leisure, it could be just what Shining Armor needs to get back into the saddle of what life was like in his days as a bachelor. It had been quite some time since he had a break in routine so it seemed like this could actually help him.

Just before Celestia began raising the sun one last time before she would be joining her volunteers, an alarm clock that sat upon a night stand in the guest bedroom rang, jolting everypony up from their sound sleep. No compalints could be heard from a single one of them though as they were all used to waking up early in their lines of work by now. Shining Armor was formerly the Captain of the Royal Guard so getting back into early rising was easy enough for him. Rainbow Dash, Spitfire, and Soarin were wonderbolts and today was just like any other to them. Daring do often found herself waking up before dawn to start her own quests and Big Macintosh would be hauling heavily loaded carts around the farm around this time or even earlier sometimes.

To save time and ensure their timely arrival to catch the bus, everypony packed their luggage the night before. Shining Armor had provided enough standard issue guard supplies for everypony and even had some extras left over. Supplies such as food rations, water purification tablets, binoculars, first aid kits, and a great many other items went into the bags everypony was carrying. Though they were ill equipped for any radioactive dangers they may encounter, the Ukrainian Authorities would be providing the team with such necessities.

After a brief shower and quick breakfast, everypony joined Princess Celestia on a brisk trot to the bus depot which was less than a mile away and did not take long for the group to reach. The trot was indeed not very long and everypony except one was able to get their without any trouble which was a cause for concern when a white unicorn re-joined the group in a winded panting state.

"Shining Armor, are you alright?" Celestia asked out of concern.

"Yeah, you're acting like you just got done chasing your filly around." Spitfire added. "What gives?"

"I-I'm fine, you guys." Shining Armor replied. "I just put on a few pounds after leaving the guard is all...and my bag feels extra heavy for some reason."

"You'll be fine, buddy." Rainbow Dash said as she patted Shining on the back. "Just remember, you can talk to me anytime."

"Thanks a lot, Dash. I'm really glad I got somepony here who gets me."

"Hey, I think that's our bus." Soarin said while pointing a hoof down the road.

Sure enough, rolling towards the awaiting group at a slug's pace was a somewhat short, older model, slate gray bus with six rows of seats and thick, black smoke billowing out of the tailpipe. On the side of the bus was strange white text that nopony recognized. As the bus inched closer and finally came to a stop right in front of the group, Celestia could get a good look at the text on the side and interpret it.

"Let's see..." Celestia said as she squinted at the bus. "Ukrainian Exclusion Zone Authorities."

"Y'all can read that?" Big Mac asked.

"You have time to learn a lot of things when you're as old as I am."

"Good morning, comrades!" Said the driver in a thick Slavic accent as the two piece door swung open. Seated behind the steering wheel was a short, slightly heavier man in his late fifties. The driver donned a full uniform which included dark green pants, a jacket, and a matching security guard style cap atop his head. A cheerful, welcoming smile could be seen underneath the thick, bushy, gray mustache that covered most of his upper lip.

"Good morning, sir." Celestia greeted as she was the first to climb the steps onto the large machine. "Thank you for picking us up."

"Oh, my pleasure, Your Majesty. You have a beautiful country here. I'll have to take my next vacation here. Anyway, my name is Denys and I'll be taking you to see the Prime Minister and then to zone after that."

"Ah ain't never been on one of these before." Big Mac said as he took a seat.

"Oh? Then you'll love the ride we're all about to go on. Once we pass through the gate, you'll all need to buckle up and hold on tight. Everyone on? Okay, off we go then!"

Once everypony was on the bus and had found a seat of their own, the driver shut the door, stepped on the clutch and shifted into first gear which brought the bus to it's sluggish pace. Since there were a lot of ponies and a few people walking around, the driver put safety first and did not exceed fifteen miles per hour until he was clear of the bus station and the pedestrians he shared the cobblestone street with. The team was now headed towards a short stretch of highway which lead to the gate to Earth and the driver could safely get up to forty miles per hour. Rainbow Dash was getting slightly impatient as she was not fond of low speeds. She would have to wait just a bit longer though as the driver had to slow down as they approached the gate.

The inter-dimensional gates looked just like any other international border crossing. It had seven lanes, each with a set of two small guard posts with a security officer occupying each, one a pony and the other a human. Each lane lead to a continent of its own and the driver steered the bus towards the lane labeled "Europe". Once the bus was lined up with the lane the team needed to go through, the bus came to a complete stop and Denys opened his window to talk to the pony at the guard booth.

"What city and nation?" The Pony asked as Denys handed over a small booklet.

"Kiev, Ukraine." Denys replied.

The pony then briefly glanced over a few pages in the booklet, placed an ink stamp on it, hoof it back to the driver and proceeded to open the gate.

"Welcome home, sir." The pony said with a salute. "When you get to the portal under the big arch, drive no slower than seventy-five miles or one hundred and twenty kilometers an hour."

"Thanks, comrade." The driver replied as he shifted gears.

"Seventy-five?" Rainbow Dash said. "Now you're talking! I hate going so slow!"

"Heheheh, don't worry little pony! In about two kilometers we'll really be going for a ride!"

Without warning, Denys shifted the bus into its fourth gear causing it to rapidly accelerate until it peaked out at sixty miles per hour. Once the engine started to rev high, Denys shifted into fifth gear. Not long after, the bus reached seventy-fives miles per hour but did not stop there.

"The portal's coming up fast, everyone!" Denys announced before shifting into sixth gear. "Buckle up and hang on!"

Not knowing what to expect, everypony quickly fastened their seat belts and braced themselves. Celestia had been to Earth many times before so this was nothing new to her. Everypony else on the other hoof, especially Big Macintosh was getting very nervous. Out of curiosity, they all looked ahead out of the front windshield to see that sure enough, a giant arch made of concrete with a bright white light coming from the other side stood in the middle of the highway. Standing to the right was a large electric digital sign that read "Now entering Earth. Next Stop Kiev, Ukrain, Europe. Minimum Speed 75 MPH or 120 KPH. Turn on headlights".

"Here we go!!" Denys shouted as he shifted into the seventh and final gear. "Sit back, hold on and don't yell!"

Without warning, the bus whipped past the entrance of the portal causing it to jolt up to one hundred miles per hour.

"Whoooaaa!!" Everypony except Celestia yelled in unison as the rapid acceleration firmly pushed them against the backs of their seats.

As the Bus continued to accelerate, the walls of the portal flashed in every possible color imaginable. At this point, Denys the driver had put on a pair of sunglasses and proceeded to casually sip a cup of coffee he had brought with him. Despite his calm, collected behavior, the sweat running down his brow indicated that his complete concentration was required to get the bus safely to the other end.

The bus was now taking the team through the portal at one hundred-fifty miles per hour which was fifty miles faster than the bus's top speed on plain asphalt. As the large diesel engine roared so loudly it drowned out everypony's thoughts, it became clear that the wheels were no longer what was pushing the ten ton vehicle along.

At the end of the tunnel-like portal, a bright white light could be seen and it was approaching at a breakneck pace. Denys had all of his focus on that white light as he wiped sweat from his brow and had a grip on the steering wheel so tight that his knuckles turned white. As quickly as it began, the trip through the wormhole was over. The bus shot out of the exit like a twenty thousand pound cannonball and even became airborne for a brief moment. When the bus came down from its ten foot drop, it did so hard and at that point everypony was incredibly grateful that they had listened to Denys when he instructed them to buckle themselves in.

The second the wheels touched the asphalt, Denys pressed the clutch and brake pedals down with as much strength as his short, stout legs could muster. The sound of roaring engine was joined by the shriek of the tires scraping against the road and the metallic squeal of the brakes as they began to glow cherry red while they were pushed to their limits in order to bring the bus to a stop.

"Whoa there, old girl! Whoa!" Denys said aloud as the bus finally ground to a halt. "Whooo! After thirty-two years of service, the old slate buster's still got it! Oh, I probably should have mentioned the bags you're all welcome to use back there! Anyway, welcome to Ukraine!"