"Good Morning Commonwealth! It's your local DJ Traveling Miles, hoping everyone is drying out from another barrier storm ok. With us finally getting some contact from the outside world again, I guess we should expect more of those, the rest of Equestria's hearing about our little fishbowl and we've got treasure hunters, raiders and even worse ...politicians all trying to get here!

Oh well, gotta take the good with the bad right? And the good is more than just a wider selection of news and music on your radio dial, courtesy of the great DJ Pon3 all the way in Tenpony Tower. That's right, got another news dump from my esteemed colleague for all you good listeners out there, the Commonwealth minute on his station hits the broad strokes, but I get the in depth report to relate to all my fellow natives, so let's dive in huh?

First off, seems like the crazy reports from everyone on the coast were right, there really was a giant pony way out there over Fort Loyalty, before it went kaboom anyway. I'm told the monster was defeated and dispatched before the big lightshow, last seen limping off towards Fog Harbor, so it wasn't responsible for all the fireworks anyway, still weird huh? The Brotherhood of Friendship were spotted going to and coming from the old fort just beforehoof, along with a certain dark protector of Trotson, so maybe we'll get more of the story.

Speaking of the coast and our listeners that way, another wasteland ruin that was apparently up to drug related no good got taken down the other night by the Pale Pair! We've only got a little info on this dynamic duo of pony and griffon, not nearly as theatrical as our Shrouded Stallion, but they get things done! Another gang controlled den got wiped out, one that toooootally has nothing to do with our noble Svengallop family here in Diamond City of course.

All my listeners who believe in better living through chemistry need not worry though, Chem-I-Care's or your favorite local backalley dealer might be running into supply problems, but all those drugs are still on the market through Goodneighbor buying them up, let's just say to finance the campaign of our newest wasteland heroes. Whoever this pair is, they might not necessarily be do-gooders, but good is getting done!

On another hero related note, we got a few interesting rumors of other Stable dwellers up north joining our wild wasteland too. A fresh faced filly wearing familiar blue barding with 111 across the back, put on a movie night of all things at Starlight Drive In! After helping to fend off a raider attack no less. The small settlement is a new member of the Kingdom of Sanctuary and now they're putting on a bit of old world magic, thanks to their clever visitor. We hear the regular mechanic mare left in the direction of Graygarden not long after, be carefull out there kid, it's a dangerous world above ground still! If any of my friendly audience happens to run into her or any other 111 dwellers new to the wasteland, give them a helping hoof huh?

Finally, things are continuing to heat up down south. Gunner forces are consolidating and getting aggressive, giving us up north a break but making things rough down there. On the plus side, our favorite Princess and her Knight are the ones pissing them off, meaning things are getting better too! Slavers that way have practically been wiped out in one night, our own Miss Silver Seed seems to have suffered a 'tragic' loss of territory, and Jamocha Plains is now officially allied with the Kingdom of Sanctuary too, making it a haven for any down that way.

Let's wish those friends of the station all the best and hope they're safe with a little Sweetie Belle to start the day!

The terrible nightmare I was having of a terrified pale pegasus bleeding under me was slowly shifting to something better, something warm and soft... The broken form of Hail Mary changing to my Jade, kissing and nuzzling tenderly, roaming hooves and talented magic lighting me up with much better sensations than the taste of blood and the feel of bashing pony flesh under my hooves.

A soft touch running down my side and groping somewhere tender and very awake, brought a gasp and a voice that didn't match my Princess though, startling me at the purr of pleased surprise. "Oh my... that never fails to disappoint, and on such a small pony no less. I so rarely get to do this just for fun too!"

The press of warm lips against mine and a very talented tongue running over my fangs woke me the rest of the way, blinking into a pair of lidded almond eyes widening as my wings and other bits sprang up under the attention. The merry gaze was framed by a tan face and dark brown and cream striped mane, pushing into the kiss as I mumbled an 'eep!' and tore myself away. I scrambled back to hide under the ratty blankets that had been tossed aside in the corner of the bedroom we had taken last night.

Cocoa Latte gave a cheery little whine and sat up at the edge of the dirty mattress I had been sprawled on, huffing and wiggling her way to me in the corner, trying to shake the sleep off and figure out what happened. We were in the Summerset Plantation manor house, taking what had been a higher up's private space at the insistence of our allies and newly freed slaves.

All of the former enslaved workers had been moved to the manor for Jade to attend their care and a minor celebration had sprung up, lasting well into the night as she worked. Everyone's wounds were tended, even those of the Silver Seed workers who had surrendered, the employees food stores had been distributed to underfed slaves.

Witching Hour had even spread her collection of musical instruments around to a few slaves who knew what to do with them. Letting me see she really was very talented, playing along with the radio to fill the night with music and stories, giving tired, grateful slaves new hope. I had felt better, but kept my distance, falling to a deep sleep with Jade and Ivy, after a tender bit of exercise together that eased their worry over my behavior last night.

The next thing I knew, Cocoa was here... approaching in a sultry strut and tugging at the blanket I held over my head. "Oh come on... Just a teensy reward my little Shrouded friend, you're as good as your word and now I really want a taste. I can go get the Princess too if that will sweeten the pot? I know you want to..."

Fighting back urges that woke up before I did, I groaned and kept my grip on the blanket, squeaking when she gave up on the front end and tore it away from my rear, humming appreciatively and rubbing my flank to coax me out. "Nnnn! No! N-No reward Cocoa! I promised I would, you already have your deal with Glitter, I'm not part of it!"

"Actually you are, I gave in on the 90% discount for chocolate and sugar for the little thief in exchange for free access to you, no daughterly interference! But fine, you really do have old world ideals about some things, don't you? She did say she was getting the better end of that deal. I'll wear you down though, I always get what I want, but I'm patient. Come on, I had to slip past the Princess and your guard, everyone's busy-busy waiting on you lazy bones, if you're not interested in sealing our partnership in a much better way than a hoofshake, then get to work, I suppose I have plenty waiting for me here too." Cocoa sighed and stopped her seduction with a regretful whinny, waiting for me to peek out warily.

The sexy ruler of Jamocha Plains gave happy little nickers watching me slink out and shrug into my armor and saddlebags, enjoying the show and allowing for no privacy. At least she kept her distance, staring with a warm, lidded smirk while I dressed and stammered to fill the awkward silence. "R-Right... work. Surprised to see you here already Cocoa, you er... didn't strike me as the type to go out wandering the wastes away from your town often."

"Oh I can take care of myself, if I have to. Besides, I paid Large Marge for an escort, plus we ran into a patrol of your Minutemares! They were very cooperative when I mentioned a general and their Princess being here, didn't have to pull out any tricks when I said we were allies. I think I'll like having my own army of protectors on call." Cocoa answered breezily, huffing in disappointment when I finished dressing and tucked my hat down, walking out into the hall past her and to the stairs.

By the light pouring in the eastern windows, it was early, making me a little sluggish, though I did feel better than last night. Losing control always made me shaky and afraid, but in the light of day things weren't so bad and I felt more sure of myself. The manor house was packed with ponies I had to weave my way around, Cocoa's guards who helped us, freed slaves being fed and treated by Jade, even a few of the former Silver Seed overseers who had waited for day to leave with Jade's blessing, hiding to themselves in a guarded ground floor room everypony kept an eye on.

It was this room I paused at, peering in and spotting the pale mare cringing in the corner to herself. Hail Mary was completely healed, no more bite marks anyway, strips of magical bandages wrapped around her and her right eye was only a little purple. I still felt awful, worse from the way she shivered and tried to hide under her blue and gold mane and single wing at my approach.

Digging in my packs, I pulled out her mangled cybernetic foreleg and wing, I had spent a good deal of time last night trying to repair the damage, wondering how exactly I had managed to do it to begin with. They were both scorched and ...crushed... torn away from where they connected to her flesh by force, my telekinesis wasn't that strong though... It had made for difficult repairs to delicate technology I was curious about the origins of, but I had managed to cobble them back together into something like working order.

Floating them out and over just made her shrink away from my outstretched hoof though, whimpering and drawing interested stares from her former underlings. Sighing sadly, I stopped trying to get closer and simply floated them to the floor in front of her, speaking softly and as kindly as I could.

"Hail... I'm sorry, I really am. Here, I fixed them as best as I could. I've never gotten to fool around with much cybernetics, but the leg will hold so you can walk at least. I'm guessing you know better than me how to umm... reattach them. I'll just... leave you be. I'm sorry...."

She wouldn't look at me, didn't move at all... leaving me to trudge back out to Cocoa's surprised stare. "I've dealt with that one before, quite the tough customer, or she was... What happened?"

"She hurt Jade..." Despite my efforts, that dark growl seeped into my voice remembering the blood.

At least Cocoa didn't push, ignoring my grumble and playfully bumping her bouncy rear against mine as we walked down the crowded hall. Luna help me even her tail was talented, flicking and twining with mine, roving over my rump and down between my "H-Hey!"

Her tinkling giggles didn't help, "Sorry! I told you I get what I want though, better get used to it since we're partners and all. I'll wear you down eventually, Miss Ivy tells me radiation may help, I'll get my hooves on something before you come back. So, I hear you're trying Salt Lick next?"

"Yeah, Val says Minotaurs are tough and might help. No offense, but we are trying to find help for a fight. I'm glad we could help these slaves and your town, but you...."

"Aren't really fighters, I know. Sorry we can't help more, but there are ways we can help. Gunner troops do slip into town for a little fun with my girls still, usually in ones or twos going awol, they may start having... accidents... or they may let slip a secret or two. I told you, you bucks all get so silly and chatty when you're done. One more reason for me to keep trying with you, I'm very interested in what kinds of things you'd say when you're happy enough..." Cocoa grinned as we reached the porch, giving me room to edge away from the jiggly mare fluttering her long eyelashes.

Her obvious flirting was enough to send Jade galloping over from our plundered school bus being packed up to go, ceasing her last minute medical instructions for Cocoa's guards concerning the care the slaves needed until some of her Followers could get here, trotting right up and curling a possessive wing around me as she snorted down at the smaller mare. "There you are, she did not wake you, did she Fast? I explained you needed rest and Miss Latte simply disappeared, did she..."

"Not as much as I'd like Princess, don't worry, your buck behaves, we'll just have to try again all together hmm? Now then, I can offer this much help for your alliance, if you're going to Salt Lick, Large Marge wanted to talk to you anyway, helped in paying her escort fee to get here so soon. Oh Marge dear, right over here!" Cocoa smirked at Jade's sputtering blush, glancing over to where the unicorn called.

The Minotauress I had seen selling meat in Jamocha Plains stomped across the muddy yard in front of the manor, ponies falling away from her path as the hulking creature walked up to stare down at me being covered by Jade's blue feathers. "This is Shrouded Stallion pony? You're sure Cocoa?"

Cocoa nodded cheerily as I grumbled and came out from under Jade's wing, tipping my hat and trying to look 'Shroud-like'. "Yes, that's really me. No short jokes... You wanted to talk to us? I've never really met a Minotaur before, nice to meet you, I'm Fast Times."

Marge snorted around the tarnished ring through her nostrils, eyeing all of us suspiciously like this was a joke on the muscular minotaur lady. She looked to trust Cocoa if no one else though, scratching her pale grey hair and shrugging. "Ok... You going to Salt Lick, right? Want to ask favor, help my people like you do other ponies."

Jade gave her a wide smile and bowed graciously, answering in her sweet voice while my eyes remained trained on the bandages around her chest still. No scarring at least once it healed completely, but I kept seeing the long horizontal slash on her perfect chest spraying blood... red... I clenched my eyes shut and shook my head to clear it, it was ok, she was fine, all over... let it go. Listen to what she said stupid.

"Of course Miss, if we see somewhere we can help, we will certainly do so. Your people need assistance? How may we help?" Jade beamed beautifully, making the pale minotaur less cautious as she nodded back.

Digging in the heavy leather pack at her side opposite the large riot shotgun on her hip, Marge pulled out a dented chunk of metal, a deep impression of a hoof smashed into it, making a weird kind of medallion she handed over. "Monsters come from Glowing Sea lately, more and more. Going through Flutterforest, heading right towards Salt Lick. You give this to Chief Steelfist, say Marge sent you, help stop monsters, join hunt if Shroud really is strong as they say. Do this, my people help you back like Miss Cocoa says you need, on my honor."

Jade gently took the scrap of metal in her teeth and nodded, tucking it away in her medical box saddlebags as she replied. "We will go directly to this Steelfist and do so then, if we can help we will do so, whether you can return the favor or not. Though I do hope you can. Thank you for asking Marge, I know asking for help can be hard, I am glad you did."

The tall Minotaur grunted and strode off, proud but willing to seek help, things must be bad there... One more reason to get moving. I left Jade to her preparations and joined Val at the bus, tossing several of the Silver Seed worker's flamers into the back one after the other as Glitter and the pale pink slave filly played nearby.

I eyed another flamer battlesaddle and all the glowing orange liquid fuel canisters she kept grabbing and tossing in, raising a questioning look to the griffon as my daughter and her new friend raced circles around us. Val chuckled noticing me and shrugged. "Blue wants ta go to the Ministry of Peace, we need fire, lots and lots of fire... Breezidores boss. 'Sides, run into those slimy freakin' zombies twice now, gonna be prepared if'n it happens again now that we can haul more loot!"

Thinking on it, a flamer would be a good defense against the speedy little monsters and I commended Val's good sense. She didn't agree with going to the MoP hub whatsoever, but she was loyal and bound to make the best of it she could, earning a warm hug as I joined her packing and went over the bus.

A few scavenged spark batteries from around the plantation topped us off for now, the flux regulator was in poor shape but operational, it would fly well enough. Now we had a way to haul things around if we needed, better a safer place for Glitter than on one of our backs, and a place to cram together and sleep wherever we wound up if need be. No fancy sports chariot or Vertibuck, but the old yellow school bus seemed fitting for us.

Mostly yellow... Glitter and her new friend had been painting one side with flowers and a childish but sweet picture of Jade with a crown of hearts. Only done with black, red and blue as their paint choices were apparently limited, but they both beamed up at me looking it over, my eyes hanging on the tiny butterfly winged shapes they had stuck here and there.

"Do ya like it daddy?! Me an' Tinkle worked hard on it! Ain't it pretty! She's seen REAL fairies daddy, can ya believe it!" Glitter bounced and pointed a paint spattered foreleg up to the closest of the illustrations with an awed look of jealousy.

"Actually yes I do sweetie. I met fairies too, they helped me. You've talked to them before Tinkle? In the greenhouses?"

The light pink unicorn filly hid behind Glitter a bit, looking up from under her dirty blonde mane. Jade had apparently been at the foal and run a brush through it, but she was still filthy and painfully thin, shuffling in her rags and answering in a whisper. I really hoped she was just nervous around any grown up, not me specifically... I was already getting too many looks from those who saw what I did last night.

She shook her head vigorously and looked up with sparkling golden eyes anyway, "Nuh-uh, they never let us go there, off limits. The fairy would come to tha window sometimes, leave food or medicine. It said it was tryin' ta help other fairies here, you saw them?"

When I nodded back, Glitter pouted and gave a shove to my chest, yelping with a snort. "No fair! You saw fairies too!! Where are they!? I wanna see!"

"Sorry sweetie, I let them go free. They were Breezies though, not Fairies. Well... sort of Breezies, maybe Fairy Breezies? They were nice anyway, but scared and hurt just like all the other slaves. They still helped me though, so I freed them, long gone now I guess. Maybe you'll get another chance somewhere."

Grabbing the pouting filly in a hug got her to brighten up despite the missed encounter, the small bundle of struggling warmth against my chest a soothing balm as I pondered that little run in. Real Breezies... one could speak pony and said they'd go home, to some 'Breezie Nation' wherever that was.

Given the wonderful Nectar they could make, I was curious for multiple reasons, but I didn't exactly interrogate them before letting them go. They were beaten and skittish little things, making my heart ache at how afraid they had been of somepony trying to help. I let them go and gave them their space, hoping they were safe still.

Glitter watched her little friend go pounding off towards the manor house, calling in a bright voice as she hit the porch. "Momma! Mom! Mr. Shrouded Stallion saw 'em too!! I told everypony they were real!!"

My daughter slumped a bit in my grip, forcing me to let go to spin her in a toss that got a mild squeal, catching her and tilting her muzzle back up from where it was frowning at the dirt. "Don't worry. We see all kinds of crazy stuff right? I'm sure we'll see more on our madcap adventures together honey, you're my little Ambassador of Cuteness right? You'll get to talk to them, they're reeeeally small, so you're the best pony to deal with them if we do! Then me I guess..."

That and a tickle got her to giggle and launch herself into a hug, bowling me over to her delight and squeezing my neck as she nuzzled happily. "I hope so daddy! I'll do a good job! Don't worry, I'm glad you're short so I can do this!" Emphasizing her point, her little hooves tightened and she flipped me through the mud in a rolling hug, giggling madly as she nuzzled and gave sloppy kisses.

Coming to a halt near the bus, I wheezed as her grip loosened and tried to wipe the worst of the mud away from her silver mane, chuckling ruefully. "Yeah, yeah, fun for you... what am I gonna do when you grow up and toss me around as easy as mom huh? Then everypony will be taller than me..."

Her pink eyes widened and looked up in thought, envisioning the day she passed me by, probably as a gangly teenager no less. Her wide grin promised more rough treatment when that day came that she obviously looked forward to, but she brought it down to a soft smile and knocked mud from my coat in return as she answered. "But you'll always be my daddy, right? I still get hugs an' kisses even when I'm older?"

"Always and forever sweetie, no matter what. Now, wanna go see some more minotaurs like that one? Go look for fairies and get in trouble?"

Reminding myself she sometimes still needed reassurance after being adopted and forming a new family, I felt a rush of warmth and light that banished any lingering shadows in my head at her brilliant smile. Glitter was my little filly, no matter how tall she grew up or ...how old she got... still a sticky thought with my extended lifespan that made me shove that fear in a deep, dark hole. She was my daughter though, her and Jade were the best things in all of the Equestrian wasteland, worth everything I had gone through and more.

Personally, I still looked forward to the day I got to introduce mom and dad to their granddaughter and my brother Better to his niece. To make that happen, I still had a long way to go.... Best to get started again.

"Oooooh.... a forest! Of course Ministry Mare Fluttershy's Trotson hub would be in such a location, I have not seen such a verdant place since what's left of the Everfree Fast. Where is the hub exactly Valkyrie?" Jade gasped from her harness at the front of the sky bus, insisting again she do the pulling for the same logical reasons she had laid out before.

She was drifting lower as she looked down at the riot of reds, oranges, yellows, silvery evegreens and browns passing below, a real forest... just waiting for a running of the leaves before winter truly came on. The bright canopy was thick and revealed nothing below, but Eyes Forward Sparkle kept flickering with motion and red dashes as we passed, making me nervous and keeping me right at her side, looking up to Val's groan of an answer.

"That'a way. Big tree, yellow shield, can't miss it." Val pointed a dark claw to the west, picking out a small valley where a glimmer of yellow was indeed visible.

Jade immediately rose and veered that way, climbing through the air with powerful flaps of her large wings that left me scrambling to keep up. I passed by Glitter peeking out the window of the bus, opting for a small bit of space to run and play versus one of our backs, but enjoying the ride and the view so far.

With enough altitude, I could make out the dome of a pale yellow shield spell, a big one... At the heart of it was an arch of silver and white, a very pale willow tree, a very big, pale willow actually... Sparkling fronds hung down and caught the morning light, the forest was its thickest and most vibrant around it, making missing the huge tree understandable.

Jade gasped at the sight and kept angling that way for a better view, pointing it out for Glitter with a shout over her shoulder. "Look dear! That must be the hub there, can you see? The Ministry of Peace grew their buildings to be in harmony with nature! Oh I can't wait to see!"

"Er.... Blue.... May not wanna get any closer, even goin' over this crazy forest is dangerous. Nobody messes with it, too much hassle. Sure ya wanna go boss?" Val tried to cut off her path towards the shining spot in the forest, gently shoved aside by the bulk of blue alicorn and the bus behind her.

"Of course he is sure, are you not Fast? You promised, I wish for my own date, and we must go to the MoP hub, for the Followers!" Jade spoke firmly, not doubting for a second she'd get what she wanted.

"Yeah, any Ministry hub is worth looking into. The MoM hub had been sealed forever but we got in right? We gotta try at least, that and the other hubs wherever they..."

A rising howl cut me off, my ears flicking behind me and my eyes following frantically. A vertibuck... easily overtaking us thanks to the pair of pegasus pilots up front, a heavily armored Steel Ranger was at the heavy minigun pointing out of the open side of the vehicle pulling in front of us. Both the vehicle, the Ranger and the pegasi piloting the vehicle and a third flying above it looked dirty and bedraggled, but the amplified voice from the vertibuck's speakers spoke from a position of superiority.

"Halt! This area is off limits! All Ministry hubs now fall under the jurisdiction of the Brotherhood of Friendship, turn back and continue on your course immediately or we will be forced to open fire!"

That crackling, booming, pompous voice sounded familiar... What they said was new and immediately prickled my tail, more talking like they were in charge of everything. I liked some of the Brotherhood, but I could do without that pervasive attitude. My horn lit up and I used my new voice spell to answer, keeping the Shroud out of my reply but not my annoyance.

"Says who! It's a free wasteland, we'll avoid you, but looks like the hub is up for grabs isn't it? We go where we want!"

"YOU!?" The speaker amplified voice shouted back, the loose power armored pegasus landing atop the Vertibuck blocking our path over the forest, stamping her hooves on the roof of the prewar vehicle.

"Target Prince!!" A second voice screamed, the left pilot of the vehicle disengaged from his position and came rocketing out, underwing novasurge rifles firing pink beams directly at me, what the fuck?!

I seemed to be the target so I dove away, banking sharply from Jade and Glitter, towards the bright canopy below. The first familiar voice shouted at the pegasus stallion speeding my way, furiously barking orders. "Private Brittle!!! Stop this instant! No order to engage was given! I know this idiot!!"

Whoever she was, her private paid no heed, closing the distance as I spun and pulled up as sharply as I could. That let me roll my way past a stream of magical energy weapon fire, but put me in his sights again with no way to outmanuever him. I was concerned for a tense moment when a glowing green shield sprang to life around me, blocking the deadly fire as Val screeched and dove on him. Her red M.E.W. blazed red beams down and Witching Hour's silver combat rifle chattered from below, the pair of infinitely better fliers covering for me along with Ivy.

Ivy's shield started moving, dragging me along in a hurry back towards the bus, the green alicorn sitting cross legged atop our bus in deep meditation. As soon as I was in range, the shield spread and enveloped the vehicle, Jade and everyone nearby, leaving Val, Witchy and Zed just outside to deal with our attacker.

Ivy spoke telepathically as I watched Val and the others defend and chase off our frustrated attacker, he couldn't get to me and wasn't interested in taking on three deadly defenders at once.

The pegasus mare in charge broke it up, grabbing him a diving tackle that mom would have been proud of, wrapping an armored foreleg around his neck and shouting in his ear. "You will stop this insubordination this instant private!! Agent Prince is not classified as a target! Cease and desist right now or I'll kill you myself!"

After a long pause, the buck stopped struggling and hung limply in her grip, grumbling back and sent to return to his position piloting the vertibuck. The mare in charge stayed where she was, just outside the shield, close enough to recognize the red mare when her helmet slid back to reveal her scowling blue eyes and braided matching mane.

At my wary thought, Ivy's glowing shield disappeared and we were face to face. "Hello Lieutenant Dawn, nice to see you again too..."

The former Enclave mare I met in Bunker Hill kept right on scowling at my friendly hoof extended in greeting, snorting angrily in response. "You again civilian... I see you've managed to become a bigger nuisance Fast. Now leave, the Ministry of Peace hub belongs to the Brotherhood of Friendship, all you do is cause trouble and sow dissent in my troops."

I flew a little closer and ignored her smirk at my unsteady progress, at least she didn't seem to hate me any more than before, that was fair. Her behavior towards me was unchanged even if I was, her superior attitude in general was the same too, making me repeat myself. "No. I still see a shield over there. You just don't want anypony else getting close do you, were you guys sent to take it? Run into a little trouble?"

I pointed to their muddy, damaged armor and their vertibuck hitching in the air, wondering what was giving the power armored ponies difficulty. Actually that vertibuck shuddered and shook too much... it didn't sound right either, my enhanced hearing picked up a whine and rattle that was steadily growing lower deep in the machine, making my repair-pony sense tingle in alarm.

The yelp of the other pilot cut of Lt. Dawn's answer, "Lieutenant! It's happening again!!! We're losing power, instruments are going crazy!"

I would try to diagnose and fix the problem, but Jade's sudden cry made everything else much less important. "F-Fast! Is something wrong? This does not feel right!"

Our bus was sagging in the air... dragging her down slowly as the lift system sputtered under the long yellow transport. But it shouldn't!! I went over everything twice, we had plenty of spark batteries, my makeshift repairs weren't perfect, but they shouldn't be going out already! I dove for the drooping underside of the bus, ignoring the Brotherhood's matching troubles as their vertibuck began to list and sputter in the air.

I clung to the patchwork web of arcano-tech cables and equipment, immediately focusing on the damage to the flux regulator and disconnected lines, what the hell? Reaching out to plug things back in resulted in a flurry of sparks and the sound of something vital dying, what remaining lift from the levitation talisman keeping it aloft suddenly cut out and we were plummeting towards the forest.

Jade and Glitter's screams focused me like nothing else, scrambling against the G forces to repair the damage down here first. I had to cling to the bus like a spider or risk being thrown clear of it, our descent slowed slightly by first Jade's then Ivy's magic enveloping it, their powerful alicorn telekinesis lifting for all they were worth as we kept spinning towards the ground.

Keeping up a tight grip as we continued falling, I put one leg in front of the other and climbed towards the door on the side, shoving myself in and towards Glitter clinging to one of the seats. For once she didn't find a crash in progress hilarious, hitting the ground hauling this thing would be a lot more damaging than just me stumbling to the ground and smacking into something.

"Daddy! T-There! Somethin' blew up!" My brave daughter pointed a shaking hoof towards the access panel for the banks of spark batteries. Batteries I had made sure were inspected and topped off before leaving.

Glitter made a daring leap from her perch to my back as the bus spun around us. If nothing else, I'd dive out of this deathtrap and have Jade let it go, but we had a lot of stuff in here now and I spent time working on this thing, it shouldn't be malfunctioning dammit! I fixed it! This was a matter of repair-pony pride, I had fixed this thing, it shouldn't fail without a reason!

Tearing the panel open with my magic, I gaped at what I found. The main gem capacitor was just gone... lines had been cut, several control talismans were missing too. What the hell did this!? The ground was rushing up as I thought desperately, keeping an eye on the emergency escape door in the back just beyond the panel, I caught a glimpse of the vertibuck in a poorly controlled crash down to the trees, spinning in widening circles and fighting a losing battle for altitude. Something did this to both of us...

Ok... capacitor gone, fix the broken connections, bypass the missing control talismans, then cheat.. I tore through my pip-buck's inventory sorter under the 'junk' tab, flipping through the list and coming up with an empty Sparkle Cola bottle. Good enough... I crammed the bottle in the slot and started focusing magic on it, causing glowing cracks to immediately appear, come on...

Without a properly cut and enchanted talisman, this wouldn't work long, but if I could just get it to hold the spell I was trying to cast on it for a few minutes, it would serve as a jury rigged stopgap. I practiced my stupid magic primers every day, the crystalline glass should be able to serve as a makeshift gem before it blew up, I could do this, it wasn't complicated, just a capacitor...

My horn sparked and I gave the whole assembly a hard buck, gasping with relief when the system hummed back to life under us. I'd feel better, but our sudden slowing let the Brotherhood vertibuck go zipping past us, caught in a rapid, spinning crash to the forest. Diving forward as we leveled off, I leapt for the emergency exit and flew out, zooming back to Jade and floating Glitter to her back.

"Land! It won't last long, try to put it down! If it fails again, ditch it! I gotta try to fix that thing before they crash!" I yelled as Glitter clutched her mother, pointing to the careening vertibuck and moving as fast as I could at Jade's determined nod.

Oh this was hard... landing was enough of a challenge normally, catching up to a spinning, looping ton of metal in the air was infinitely more difficult, let alone trying to aim for the open side door and the Steel Ranger holding on for dear life in it. I banged off the long barrels of the heavy minigun jutting out of the door, bouncing to the ceiling and then thrown to the floor on top of a squealing bit of warm filly, that was thankfully not covered in angular steel armor at least... but I made it in somehow.

Val was right on my tail, grabbing the edges of the opening with her claws and wedging her paws at either corner, screaming over the slipstream as she drew her pistol on the aggressive pilot from before. I could see him from the cabin, harnessed among all the blinking red controls and gauges up front and moving his scorpion like tail in my direction.

"Boss what the fuck do you think yer doin'! This baby's comin' down! And that fucker right there deserved ta go with it!" Val gave the pegasus pilot wonderful incentive to lower his weaponized tail, his insectile helmet hiding his scowl.

I had to scramble off the Scribe I had flattened and shove the shocked pair of Steel Rangers aside to get to the rear hatch, wrenching it free with my strongest telekinesis and taking stock of the damage. Same thing... missing talismans, cut wires, detached connections... Ok, these were military, there had to be redundancy systems... follow the lines, primary control processor gone... panel under it... aha! Detached but still here, my tools moved in a flurry rerouting the arcane energy needed to control this thing, reconnecting it to the pegasus harnesses up front.

I cheered in victory as the system rebooted, turning back to get a facefull of leaves when the latest wild swing tore through the tops of several branches, dislodging Val with an angry squawk. I heard the pegasi up front screaming and pulling with everything they had to stabilize the dive now that they had proper control again, but we were mid crash at this point.

Val and Witchy were both chasing the spinning vertibuck and screaming as my magic spread out and surrounded the vehicle. Bailing was probably the wiser course of action, but I could only focus on one thing, adding a layer of overglow to my horn and sweating under the effort. My magic was a lot stronger, but this thing was reeeeally heavy. Just lightening it would help the pilots, at the very least it would make the crash less potentially deadly.

I really hoped so anyway, the ground was coming up fast...

For a second I thought we'd pull out of it, the latest tumbling loop was slowing as I roared and pulled with my telekinetic grip, willing this stupid thing to go up again, that's where you belong, UP! Go back to your home stupid machine! It was leveling off... then a thick tree branch covered in orange leaves slammed through the open doors, my side pierced by something jagged and amazingly painful, the world then lurched and flipped upside down as the vertibuck's inertia was completely and abruptly redirected down.

This qualified as my most spectacular crash landing thus far actually...

The leaf strewn undergrowth below zoomed up to meet us, the magically lightened steel vertibuck didn't crumple and crater at least, bouncing off and digging a long trench at each tumbling point of contact towards ....buildings? A tattered old billboard was leaning from its overgrown supports beside what must have been a road into a small town once. Hitting the buried asphalt made us bounce and twirl again, my breakfast making an escape attempt and the pale pink scribe making a screaming dive to clutch at me, caught in essentially no gravity in the center of the spinning cabin while I dumbly watched Ministry Mare Flutteryshy's faded face swelling in my vision.

My sharp eyes hung on the barely legible text below that kind yellow face zooming up to meet me, then we came to a sudden stop that sent me flying, shouts and squalling metal filling my ears as the lights went out.

Owwww.... Warbling shouts and the smell of smoke brought me around again, Jade's bright cry from somewhere nearby... had to get up... Trying to do so was a horrible idea, I could barely breathe, ow... probably because of the jagged branch sticking out of my side, the remaining leaves rustling at my feeble movement.

Of course the prone and very heavy form of one of the Steel Rangers didn't help... all that armor was sprawled over me, dribbling blood down from a head turned at a sickening angle. Something decidedly softer moaned and squirmed under me too, blinking weakly, I took in the pert pink rump my face had been buried in with a weary flush, a light paler pink five petaled flower adorning the flanks and twitching tail of a matching color filled my view that way. The Scribe lived at least...

Trying to use my weakly flickering magic and hooves to shove the dead Ranger off, I attempted drag myself out of the ...upside down vertibuck... I was stopped short and a surge of burning agony from my left hindleg made me voice a gurgling scream. I was pinned, everything down there vaguely numb and what I could feel was soaking in a puddle of warm blood, while I grew chilly and shivered from blood loss.

The leaf strewn ground outside was spotted with small fires and wreckage, while one huge peeling blue eye from Fluttershy's billboard behind me watched my struggles impassively. It had fallen over the flipped vertibuck on that side, making a lean-to of rusty steel and canvas. On the plus side, me and the groaning Scribe were in equally embarrassing positions, I felt her head shift between my hindlegs and squeaked, she was a unicorn apparently... More twisted metal and wood filled the cabin that way, some of it effectively pinching on my hindleg and refusing to let go, a terrible tearing feeling coming when I tried. Not good...

Muffled movement to my left revealed the pilot slipping free of his harness and stumbling outside, maybe he'd help... Or not... his mark on Eyes Forward Sparkle turned red once he staggered free and spotted me, limping to the twisted door out and over the loose minigun fallen to the ground outside.

He darted a look from one side to another, his blank black helmet betraying no emotion, but his voice was thick with anger and fear. "M-Monster... you're halfway there anyway, you died in the crash... yeah..."

"H-Help... Jade..." I groaned hopefully, watching him canter back a step and raise his tail threateningly. Great... he was working himself up to it, hoping I just bled out and saved him the trouble...

Trying to pull my leg free again just made everything grow faint and dim, I gasped weakly around the branch in my ribs and turned towards my bags instead, potion... and Med-X, lots of Med-X... The warning click and hum of the pilot's underwing novasurge rifles charging cut that short, turning back slowly to goggle at him, mumbling to himself still. "Die already... come on, what's it take! Just DIE!"

"P-Pilot... What are you doing? H-Help!" A muffled voice under my tail sputtered as the Scribe made her presence known, shifting the shapely flanks in my face around trying to pull loose and sending my drooping muzzle back to her tail with a gasp.

Looking again, my already dry mouth grew sour, red marks... several red marks were appearing on Eyes Forward Sparkle among the green, shouts and growls outside... I gurgled and grunted at the Brotherhood pilot powering down his weapons at his comrade's weak voice, trying to point a shaking hoof that way, which he insanely took as a threatening gesture. What did he expect, that I'd launch myself at him in a frenzy?

If so he was greatly overestimating how dangerous I was, trying to drag myself forward with my forelegs against the dead Knight was the best I could do, and that brought another sickening, tearing sensation from my leg that made me whimper. Though it did give the Scribe room to brace her hindlegs, squeezing my head between them before she shifted loose. Still those magical energy weapons remained trained on me, his armored scorpion tail twitching over his back as he fell back another step, I must look much scarier than I felt...

Rising yells and gunfire from my friend's voices and the Brotherhood forced him to look up guiltily, spotting the struggling Scribe and reaching out a helping hoof before it was simply torn away in a blur. There were screams from the direction he vanished, snapping, tearing, crunching, growling... Two red marks became one that started prowling back, then three.... a rising clicking from my pip-buck coming along with the tingle of radiation that barely soothed me.

The glowing green eyes that peered from the undergrowth outside filled me with childhood fear as they drew closer, revealing the jagged, splintery face and fangs attached. Mom's scary warning drifting up from the depths of memory; "Never wander into the woods alone Fast... Timberwolves will gobble a little colt like you right up!"

A Timberwolf... Something like one anyway, a big, lupine shape compose of shards of blackened branches and rocks, and more... asphalt and rusty steel was mixed into the body, a stop sign made up one big flank, rebar and concrete snaked its way down a foreleg taking another step forward, long .50 shells and larger anti-air rounds made up a few of those slobbering teeth...

The biggest difference was the balefire though, green flames burning from its eyes and tips of its ears, up to a shaggy, flaming scruff, guttering down its spine and making a green torch at the end of its tail, the wood was blackened but never consumed, this was something new... For me anyway, the Scribe screamed and scrambled back towards the dubious shelter of the fallen billboard behind us as I gawked senselessly.

"B-Balewolves! They are very bad! Y-You can fight right? Scribe Wind's reports said.. ayah! Your leg! Oh no... hang on please!" The scribe's whispery, fear-filled voice spoke up behind me as the big wolf scratched at the narrow entrance, looking for a way in to the tasty treats inside as more of them prowled up behind it.

Fighting... sure... no problem. Whimpering at the effort, I propped the Terrible Shotgun over the dead Knight's flank and fired half a dozen rounds. Several of the slugs found the looming target outside, chewing up bits of its face and chest that were reforming as it leapt back. A growl floated back as the red marks spread around the vertibuck, the creatures yipping to each other, working together to get at the prey that bit back.

A pinch in my flank made me look back, the soothing relief of Med-X spreading out from the injector the pink mare had jabbed me with. She looked over the branch jutting from my ribs apologetically, reaching for it and suddenly stopping at the sound of a long, ragged inhalation. The Scribe ducked back behind me and pulled me along, using her dead armored compatriot as cover as everything was lit up in green and my pip-buck absolutely roared with chatters of radiation.

The torrent was tapering off, letting me struggle up and peer over the blackened armor. The wolf breathed balefire... of course it did. The last wisps were trailing from its drooling maw, the ground outside blackened and spotted with patches of green necromantic fire filling me with soothing rads.

The rising radiation helped a bit, but nowhere near enough. More of these things must be out past the three currently posing the bigger threat too, I heard fighting and yells beyond it filling the crumpled door out, Jade! Glitter! I had to move, get loose... I tugged my hindleg again and got another inch that nearly made me pass out in the effort.

"Stop! You will bleed out! R-Radiation heals you correct? If you can get out to fight, you will be restored against those monsters, but you must live long enough! Let me tourniquet your leg before you..." The shuddering Scribe yelped at my struggles, the snap and twang of plastic tubing being stretched and cinched on my burning hindleg barely registering.

"C-Can't fight long... rads help.... need lots... how bad...?" I croaked back, firing another few rounds at the next timberwolf thing to try pawing at the door, without a better shot, they were going to keep getting braver and one was digging at the fallen billboard behind us already.

"Bad! I... I hate it, but... I have combat drugs... I could..." The pained reply made me like this Brotherhood pony more immediately, she asked and didn't like the only idea she came up with, but it was a good one...

I took the decision out of her hooves. My pip-buck's health system and inventory management spells could do what I needed. She was right, if I could get out and fight, get those things to breathe more balefire maybe... I'd get better. I just had to get loose and live through the initial assault, without passing out or going into shock. This was basically the kind of thing all those wartime combat drugs were made for, better they serve their true purpose than just being used for fun.

She already jabbed me with Med-X so no more of that, Buck would help.... maybe Rampage would give me enough adrenaline to last. Aha... a single dose of Stampede was buried in my packs, a combination of the two, perfect. I emptied the drum on the Terrible Shotgun and glanced back, taking in the Scribe's frightened purple eyes and accepting the waiting prompt in my vision.

"Don't worry, I got it. Stay back and pray..."

The pip-buck's magic took the drug and administered it for me with a thought, a surge of strength flooding into shaking muscles as it started taking hold and a red haze filled my vision. Adding my wings to my straining effort and hooking the edge of the vertibuck's roof ahead of me let me give one more screaming try as the next timberwolf approached.

That tearing sensation doubled the pain, then tripled it, then I popped free with a tortured scream. Clenching my eyes and trying to stand, I fell flat on my face as my hindleg didn't support any weight whatsoever, like it wasn't even ...there... I gulped and looked back, feeling faint at the ragged stump twitching on the steel plating, the Scribe's quick tourniquet kept it from pouring blood at least.

I would be more sickened and worried at losing a leg, but the Rampage part of the drug cocktail I just took was taking hold. I didn't feel 'good' exactly, but I did feel pissed... and strong... If I couldn't use that leg, I'd stick to my wings. Best Served flashed out and cut the branch in my ribs off to a more manageable size, letting me loose to fly right at the glowing green eyes peering in.

The Balewolf must have smelled weakness, but obviously didn't know what to make of a small pony flying right at it and tackling its burning head. The big monster reared back and yipped as I clung to its head and started blasting away with Vengeance, soaking up the radiation it was putting off, along with all the guttering green balefire that blackened the outside of the vertibuck. My radiation gauge was climbing slowly, adding to all the adrenaline and bloodlust Stampede was designed to bring out in its users.

"The heart!! You have to hit the heart!" My new Scribe friend shouted behind me, nearly lost in the pounding in my ears as I snapped and gnawed uselessly at the blackened wood and junk comprising the things head.

Right... heart, maybe that would stop it from continually reforming. A better way to kill it sunk in to the delicious rage I was in anyway, looking up just in time to see one of the others nearby inhaling to blast more balefire. Good... I rolled off to the opposite side as the torrent of flames came in, using the wolf's bulk as cover and sighing at the surge of radiation as I reloaded on the fly.

Rolling across the damp, leaf covered ground under the wolf's prancing paws, I snapped Vengeance back up and shoved the silver barrel in the thing's chest, unloading the full cylinder where the radiation and glow were strongest 'Awareness!'. Wooden shrapnel was blasted away in splinters with each fall of the hammer, revealing a blackened, twisted lump of petrified wood consumed in an eldritch green light. The last two rounds were clear to hit the target and did so, the stone heart exploding in its chest and forcing me to go flapping clear as the construct simply fell apart over me.

Now I knew what to go for, get rid of these things while the drugs were working, find Jade and Glitter, try not to die... easy peasy... Another blast of balefire lit the tree behind me in green flame that added to the rads and just made me feel better, feeling my hindleg and side itch madly. I hovered a moment near the torch of flame and reached to my side with my teeth, yanking the branch out in a spray of blood the prowling wolves lapped up hungrily.

The ragged hole left behind started sealing immediately, these things were better than a healing potion, so long as that flame didn't directly hit me. I could breathe again at least, though my heart was still racing, pounding in my temples with the demand of more killing I was happy to oblige. The growl of 'Be Dark...' liked Rampage just fine, feeding off the fury and strength the stuff was designed to induce. Four more of the wolves were circling where I hovered, a little wary but determined to fight, though one was trying to slink off towards the burning vertibuck again...

I dropped a trio of grenades behind me and dove for that one, slamming into it from the side and knocking it away from reaching in the door to the Scribe's screams. The explosions going off behind us sent us rolling across the scorched ground together, my hooves digging into the branches and scrap making up the balewolf's ribs. S.A.T.S. recognized the dimly glimpsed stone heart as a target when I pulled it up, selecting a trio of rounds at point blank range and letting the targeting spell take over.

The second slug struck home, the snarling wolf turning into a pile of junk under me in a clatter, letting me spin back with a snort looking for more. One dark hunk of glowing green stone was drawing the detritus towards it, blown to shards by a reloaded Vengeance before it was surrounded by junk again. The second had been destroyed in the explosion, while the third damaged balewolf was reformed enough to try retreating. Taking a stalking step after it caused me to fall on my face again when my hindleg wasn't there to take the weight, though there seemed to be more of it back there at least.

I'd expect the last wolf to take advantage and pounce, but a long guttural howl behind it made it wince and back away into the shadows. I wondered what the hell would make it less inclined to finish this, until I saw the hulking form stomping up in its place... A much bigger balewolf... Large sections of brick walls, carriage doors, blackened branches and small trees, along with all manner of dense junk made up this one's body that was wreathed in a shaggy fur of green flames.

Rusty metal claws were coated in the flickering flames, its scruff and shoulders wore a thick mane of balefire, half the steel cables comprising its long tail were consumed by the eldritch fire forming the rest... this was the wolf in charge... A quick check of S.A.T.S. confirmed it, labeling the creature as 'Alpha Balewolf' and assessing it as an extreme threat, heavily armored, very big and healthy... lots of scrap separated me from its heart, this wouldn't be easy.

With the stew of drugs coursing through me though, I simply didn't care. It was in the way. I could see motion and Ivy's large green shield over its bulk, if I had to go through it to get there, then I would. Or I'd try... charging right at it like a lunatic just let it swat me from the air with one huge, jagged paw, sending me sailing back to dent the already smashed vertibuck with a hollow bong. Ow...

I slid slowly down to the ground with the slow squeal of a bloody squeegee wiping down a vertibuck window, staggering back up under the whitish-pink glow of unfamiliar healing magic. The scribe was peeking out of her hiding spot and helping, fumbling for healing potions in her heavy looking packs and floating one to my muzzle. Not one of Jade's green tinted ones, but I'd take what I could get, swaying woozily as the Alpha Balewolf prowled forward and wincing as my bubbling stub of a hindleg touched the ground. I had most of a hoof again... that was disgusting yet helpful...

Limping forward a few steps to match the Alpha's circling prowl and lead it away from the obvious non-combatant, I hissed through the side of my gritted teeth. "Help if you can, run if there's a chance, this won't be pretty..."

She gulped and nodded back as I drew the beast off, crouching behind the dead Steel Ranger armor and watching with wide eyes. I could hobble along the ground, though each step on my stump brought a wave of pain cutting through the drugs. Definitely couldn't run then... had to stick with flying, not my strong suit still. So long as the big brute was willing to keep its distance, I reloaded the Terrible Shotgun with the single drum of explosive rounds I had, tearing through the scrap and junk that made up its body was going to take some doing.

The drum clicked in place just as it pounced, sending me flapping up frantically and barely avoiding a razor sharp scythe that made up one of its balefire coated claws. A reflexive shotgun blast vaporized the huge paw, making it stumble and giving me room to maneuver. A rolling dive put the thing's tail up front, so I grabbed hold with all four legs and clung to it desperately, floating my shotgun a safe distance away and hammering at it's ribs, one explosive round after the next chipping away at the dense barrier surrounding its glowing heart.

The Alpha roared and spun in a tight circle, chasing its own tail and me clinging to it, finally wising up enough to flick its thick tail against a large tree nearby and knock my wind out. Hanging on just below the green torch of its tail had sent my radiation meter spiking, healing the damage as I took it, just in time for a heavy paw the size of my chest to come smashing down on me.

Sizzling drool dripped down around me as it growled and sucked in a deep breath, it was going to cook its meal... shit... I struggled weakly but couldn't move, flinching as its chest started reforming while it swelled out with impending balefire. It lost the incinerating breath in a weak puff of flame with the long roar of a minigun firing started chipping away at its side.

The Scribe had foregone the opportunity to run and floated the vertibuck's formerly mounted minigun up, yelping and cantering back as the recoil sent it up and spinning back towards her. She obviously wasn't familiar with heavy weapons, but she was trying to help even so, raising her in my estimation again.

Her bravery made the Alpha wince, growling her way but disregarding her being chased back by her own wildly firing weapon, turning back on me struggling under its paw. Val's furious screech from above was the sweetest music I had ever heard, a fiery blur coming down from the canopy that was actually camouflage for her. Her stream of red M.E.W. fire scorched the large hole I had managed to blast in its side, followed up by several 25mm grenades going off all around its hindlegs, crippling it and sending its paw sliding off me.

Val had her Shishkebab ignited and slashing, slicing cleanly through the big claws swinging at her as the monster wolf reared up. With it towering over me on its hindlegs, I was able to dive under it, flinching a bit when it crashed back down to all four paws reforming from Val's attacks.

With a thought, Blue Moon clicked out and started sparking. I was rubbish with magical energy weapons, but this one had some tricks. One good flap sent me up to the Alpha Balewolf's stomach over me. My fangs biting into a rusty fire hydrant incorporated into the thing's chest were fairly useless, but added to the deathgrip hug of all four legs as I started firing one blast after another from Blue Moon at my side.

The Alpha bucked and howled over me, jumping in place and giving me a regular upside down rodeo ride that made keeping my grip a struggle, 'Be Unwavering!' Its jagged rear claw came up to scratch me off like a flea, but Val dove and sliced it off before it came down, giving me time to reload. I could see the dark boulder that made this monster's heart, selecting the 'Ka-Boom' setting on Blue Moon, I pressed the sparkling crescent moon tip into the gap and fired the full clip at once.

The wide, flat beam of pale magical energy blasted out, turning the heart to ash and blowing out the Alpha's head, shearing off the nearest tree as the huge beast turned into a mountain of junk raining down on me. I flew as fast as my wings would take me, narrowly dodging a mailbox clattering down and not so lucky with a large chunk of asphalt slamming my flank.

A dark claw reached through the rain of scrap like a lifeline, Val grabbing my coat roughly and yanking me out with one powerful flap sending us diving away. We rolled across the blackened ground together in a ball of fur and feathers, collapsing to the ground near the vertibuck and gasping together.

"Oh you stupid bastard boss! Are ya happy!? Ya saved one! Only nearly got killed for it!" Val panted beside me, reaching a shaking claw up to the sky and letting it fall limply to thump my muzzle for punishment.

Since there were several guttering green spots of balefire nearby, I groaned tiredly and leaned up, waggling my stump of a hindleg where I could see it slowly regenerating and fighting my stomach. It was pink and prune-y looking... stubby fur filling in near where it had been torn free. My hoof, the one I was born with, was still in the vertibuck... Should I bury it? Burn it? I had that hoof all my life, now I didn't anymore...

"Urk... Sorry Val. Had to... Jade!! Glitter!?!" With the haze of drugs lifting, I remembered what I was trying to do other than survive, I had to get up and find them!

Val wound her claw into my coat and held me down from weaving my way up, "They're fine, took care of them firstt. Not proper bodyguardin' but they're safe, no runnin' off ta find more troub-"

A low growl cut off her complaints, forcing us both to drag our heads up and look around. More Balewolves circling us... fantastic. Val sneered back at the monsters and hopped into a predatory crouch, she glanced over at me fumbling my way back up and her violet eyes widened taking in my missing hoof, glaring my way and spreading a red wing protectively over me.

The bravest of the four wolves lunged through the air, jagged fangs slobbering green drool coming right at us and... WHAM!

I blinked in confusion at the pile of junk where the wolf was, there was now a steel club formed from the bottom half of an ornate lightpost, a head of concrete still clinging to it had smashed the wolf's body to tinders and pulverized the heart in one blow, held by a hulking shape stomping up behind it.

Another wolf turning on the newcomer was skewered by a spear of blackened wood and jagged, sharpened scrap metal. A booming cannon blast of a rifle took down a third, then a blur of movement charging from the undergrowth went after the last trying to run. A muscular, upright thing ran it down with surprisingly quick strides given the weird two legged movement. A huge, rusty sword made of a carriage bumper smashing through the balewolf's chest and ending it.

Our rescuer tromped forward on two hooves, a minotaur... a very big, very strong, very scary looking minotaur... His coat was darker than mine, marred with lighter patches of scar tissue, wearing ornate leather armor decorated with bones and feathers. A pair of long horns curled up from his thick brow, ending with sharpened metal caps that had distinct bloodstains. The hulking minotaur loomed over both of us, glowering down and making me very nervous.

One dark, hairy arm shot out and the monstrous creature's weird hand things grabbed my foreleg, yanking me up like a winning prize fighter and shouting in a booming, cheerful voice as I dangled limply in his grip. "OH YEAAAAH!!! They tried ta block and you showed that you rock! Proof enough right boys!?! Big Blue pony wasn't lying! This is the Shroud!!"

He had me in a headlock before I could react, but a friendly one? Considering this thing could probably snap my neck in this position, getting noogies wasn't so bad. I wheezed a weak reply, managing to wave off Val's instant scowl and reach for her pistol. The trio of burly minotaurs were green on Eyes Forward Sparkle, and they weren't freaking Balewolves.

"Er... Hi?"

Discovered Location: Rainbow Brook

My pip-buck updated as soon as we trudged our way down the road, past the vertibuck crash site and closer to the ruins nearby. The land leading east of the river and swamps beyond was hillier, hard to tell under the canopy of trees from above, but appreciable down here under it.

What had been a small prewar town was just another wasteland ruin now, though in this case, nature was taking over as it should have with the rest of the world to begin with. If we hadn't poisoned everything with our stupid war, things might look more like this all over, maybe we'd be better off that way...

Most of the buildings here had once been humble thatched roof homes, a few sturdier businesses that held up better, narrow streets arrayed in a winding path criss-crossing over a dry creekbed that led off to the west repeatedly, passing several stone pools full of scummy water. Trees and other strange plants grew throughout all of it, prickly weeds poking up through the cobblestone streets, spiky evergreens poked right through roofs tumbling around them, vines snaked their way over the grassy mounds of tougher buildings near the center of town.

The focus of the village held a rotting wooden gazebo, still the center of activity, but for a small gathering of hide tents and small fires. A hunting band of Minotaurs made their camp here, cooking, cleaning their varied and bizarre catches and tending their wounds, lots of wounds... They had it rough it seemed, not that I wasn't pretty banged up myself.

They were very hospitable anyway... After tackling my thankfully safe and sound wife and daughter in a grateful embrace, Jade breathlessly informed me the minotaurs had ridden their shaggy, nimble, six legged radgoats out to investigate the crash. Jade's quick thinking of displaying Large Marge's badge made her and the others friends of the tribe to be helped, when she begged them to follow where Val had flown off to, they got to watch the show and that put me even higher in their estimation.

Apparently, these minotaurs respected the hunt, fighting off balewolves missing a limb was good, taking down an Alpha on top of that was better. I had to deal with several hearty slaps to the back that sent me reeling as they passed, busily putting on a mid-morning meal of exotic meats they had butchered here in welcome. They were all rough and scary looking, but nice so far.

Jade huffed at the latest such congratulations, helping me back up and fretting over my regrown hindleg. I could do without Glitter continuing to poke and tickle it... The thin fuzz of fur filling in rapidly -thanks to a few blasts of Jade's Gamma Gun- was very sensitive and the limb itself was weak, but I did have four hooves again...

I could also do without Scribe Sakura Blossom doing the same thing... slurping an orange Rad-Away packet down and prodding at the appendage with her pale magic. The pale pink unicorn scribe eagerly informed us she was a medical specialist, instead of a repair-pony like Summer. I was glad Jade had found a new friend, but she was both very touchy and pretty, not a good combination with as much radiation I had absorbed to survive all that saving her.

"Fascinating... and you were a normal unicorn previously Mr. Times? Do you think I could have some blood samples? Examining the changes made to you may help with my research into making more effective radiation medicine, you process it very efficiently. Are there any side effects? Glowing green? Growing? Visible aura perhaps?" Scribe Blossom murmured in delighted curiosity, poking my hoof again and making me giggle despite myself.

"Fast's side effects are ...unique... Scribe Blossom. I would be happy to discuss my own medical records if it would help, your research sounds brilliant and I would be pleased to contribute. A better version of Rad-Away would certainly help you at the moment, do you need more yet?" Jade smiled brightly beside me, the Scribe's medical focus endeared her to the alicorn doctor immediately.

In answer, the pale pink mare took another long slurp at the disgusting, orange flavored drug and shook her head, waving a pip-buck bedecked foreleg in answer. "Back down to green! Much better already. May I really see your data Dr. Jade? I've examined your kind in the past but never had an opportunity to get any hard information about the process itself! Though I suppose this case is unique as you say, but still! Oh if only we had gotten in to..."

"Scribe! That's enough..." Lt. Dawn glared from across the bonfire we were seated at, huddled together with her surviving Brotherhood of Friendship ponies, other than the friendly Scribe Blossom of course.

A single stallion in Steel Ranger armor that had been thrown clear of the crashing vertibuck, the other pilot who bailed out in time and Lt. Dawn herself. From what I had managed to gather from the angry red mare, that was down from half a dozen former Rangers and Enclave each. Her stern order made Scribe Blossom look up absently, but she shook it off almost instantly, returning to poking my hoof with Glitter and humming in thought.

"Why don't we cut to the chase Dawn. It's nice to see you again, now let me guess... you're after the MoP hub, but you can't get in. Now your transport is trashed and you're low on troops, but I bet you still want to claim it's yours right?"

I thought her braided blue mane would burst into flames as she scowled back, crossing her forelegs over her dark armored chest and pouting back. "Interesting to see you again too Mr. Times, nice wings... You've found a way to become more of a nuisance than before somehow, it's impressive really. The hub is ours... All Ministry facilities are under the jurisdiction of the Brotherhood of Friendship and New Canterlot Republic...."

"Except that one, you know, the one I took? That one's not yours. Oh, and the M.A.S. hub with all the alicorns already living there. Neither is this one it seems, you can't get in, it's not yours. So, want to tell us what happened? I would have expected to see you at the shield itself, not this far away, with a bunch of minotaurs no less. They sound like they know you already." I smirked back, somehow happy at her snotty attitude being exactly the same as before. She didn't hate me any more or any differently for being an alicorn, she disliked me for entirely different reasons, more of a frenemy really. Which was halfway to being friends!

Sledge Smasher, the dark minotaur in charge, laughed and answered for her, giving the pegasus her own heavy slap to the back that knocked her around too, even in power armor. "Ha! Back again, told you to leave while you could missy! These big bad Brotherhood in their fancy suits and ship come right on in ta take a stroll through the woods little Shroud pony! Tried ta warn em about this forest, but oooooh no! Turned back after trying to wander off into the woods, stuck here with us for a couple days and finally got em out of our hair, just for em ta crash again! Ha! Believe us now prissy pants?!"

Lt. Dawn's pouting grumble wasn't very informative, prompting Jade to ask politely. "Believe you? About what sir? We are interested in reaching the Ministry of Peace hub as well and would be glad to take any warning you may offer to heart."

The rough looking minotaur grinned with a mouthful of yellowed teeth, displaying Marge's mark made his tribe like Jade already, her working on healing them along with anypony who needed the same equally had made her a pony to be respected more. "Least some of you silly ponies will listen! You got less ta worry about anyway lady! Less fancy tech, the gremlins won't bother you as much!"

"Gremlins?" Glitter looked up and asked for me curiously, a slightly fearful look crossing her face.

"Yes, pack leader Sledge did try to warn us. I admit I thought it superstition as well, though in retrospect it seems there's a grain of truth there. Lt. Dawn still doesn't want to hear anything about gremlins though, but the results were..." Scribe Blossom tapped notes into her pip-buck and kept prodding me, cut off by her Lieutenant's glare.

She wasn't going to shush the minotaur though, chuckling to himself and pointing a thick finger towards the power armored ponies. "Were what I tried ta tell ya, weren't they? Gremlins little missy, forest spirits, they don't like tech, cause all kinds of mischief. You ought'a be ok, long as ya don't try flyin' that bus outta here, they'll put up with personal firearms and what not. Big fancy flyin' ships and power armor though? Like puttin' on a great big 'kick me' sign out here! Wasn't it Dawny?"

A hearty clap to the back made Lt. Dawn's wings twitch in annoyance as she ground her teeth and pouted, unwilling to reply to the mild ribbing. I raised an eyebrow her way, looking over their damaged and roughly repaired armor and weapons, they had run into trouble hadn't they?

Having Ivy looming over Scribe Blossom and obviously annoyed at the pale pink mare taking her spot let me cheat, her soft mental voice speaking up along with a flood of images and memories delivered rapid fire. Dawn and a full complement flying in, a familiar vertibuck malfunction over the forest, a forced landing at a known prewar town currently occupied by the minotaurs.

Then Dawn leaving a pair behind to repair the vertibuck, arguing with the minotaurs and striking out into the woods, monsters, fighting and constant problems, suit malfunctions, weapon jams, missing ammo and supplies... Dawn forced to turn back, returning to her transport to leave and get more help, pausing to try to shoo us away and then the rest... It was practically poetic justice really, if we hadn't been caught up in the weird attack too that was.

(Thanks Ivy, let's find out then, keep an ear out so long as she has her helmet off.) I nodded back and smiled to the green alicorn beaming back proudly, finally losing her patience and shoving the smaller Scribe aside to wiggle her way to my side.

Taking a better look at the minotaurs, I saw their gear wouldn't suffer such problems. Only a few personal firearms were on display, most of them seemed to do their hunting with massive spears, strong bows with long, barbed arrows, knives, clubs and other melee weapons. No advanced technology, no mysterious malfunctions. If I hadn't experienced it myself, I'd find it silly, but something fried two sky vehicles in short order, just for passing over the forest.

Zed had been enjoying the company of the minotaurs so far, finding a horned spiritist among the group and speaking in murmured conversation together. Talk of forest spirits drew him back to the larger conversation and he voiced a question I had myself. "Ponies are amazingly disconnected from the spirits, I am unsurprised these in particular did not take your warning to heart. Though I am curious, your Large Marge who gave us her mark said your people needed help, but you seem very self sufficient. Why do you need pony help? Er... not that that's a bad thing...."

Jade's glower forced the zebra to soften his question a bit, getting a friendly smirk out of her as she nodded to the gathered minotaurs sweetly. "Yes, asking for or giving help is never a bad thing. I am interested myself as well, how could we help you when you had to help us? You seem very strong and wise, what could we possibly assist you with?"

Sledge shrugged cheerily and waved to the woods beyond the borders of the ruined town, "Dunno! You're that Princess pony and the Shrouded Stallion though, right? You make stuff better yeah?! Monsters keep coming in from down south what don't belong here, riling all the game up, pissin' off the spirits. No idea how ta help with that, but you guys figure that kinda thing out! We'll be fine either way, but you should talk to tha Chief. All of ya can walk out when we're done with this hunt if ya want, that bus of yours has got wheels anyway! Gremlins won't mess with a regular ol' cart on the way out."

I had been keeping a careful eye on our battered vehicle parked nearby the minotaur's own trio of radgoat drawn carts and nodded, we could pull it down the broken roads easily enough, so that was ok. Without proper parts it wasn't going in the air again short of using a lot of telekinesis to float it though, my makeshift cheat had fried a few more fuses and circuits in the levitation system.

Even without Ivy's help, I could see how much the mention of leaving empty hoofed burned Lt. Dawn as well, she was on the verge of total failure on her mission and it pained her. The fact her medical specialist had survived to this point was still giving her hope, meaning she owed me, which only further annoyed her.

Four Brotherhood were manageable, plus I did feel somewhat bad for her, less so for what I had done to piss off the rest of the Brotherhood, but we should try... to be better... I sighed and looked from her to Sledge, rubbing his furry hands together in glee as a roasted radhog was brought by a heavyset brown minotaur. He wrenched a leg off easily, the meat falling off the bone and making my fangs extend in a rush of saliva, waving out to everyone to take a meal together.

I was surprised when Jade did so, floating a small hunk over on an offered piece of bark, along with some of the strange grasses we had been told were safe to eat, a fancy buck snack cake from Glitter and a glowing red bottle of Sparkle Cola Rad! that was her favorite joined it in her magic as she tucked in. She normally was a vegetarian... was she being polite?

As I watched she smashed the snack cake with one big hoof, her tongue stuck up out of the side of her muzzle cutely as she played with her food. She rolled the meat around in the mush to coat it in orange carroty-tasting sweetness, then wrapped the whole thing in grass and started taking big bites of her creation happily, her stomach gurgling in anticipation as it reached her soft lips. I wasn't the only one watching the odd display, her cheeks were puffed out as she chewed and blinked at the attention, slowly licking her frosting coated hoof while everyone nearby watched with matching disgusted looks.

Almost matching, Ivy's held a raised eyebrow of suspicion, but Jade's furious chewing let her gulp some down and look around in blushing embarrassment, mumbling around her meal softly. "Mmmrrr is something wrong? Mmm hungry, it is very good, thank you Sledge for your generosity."

"N-No hon, glad you like it..." I gulped, remembering Jade's idea of cooking differed from most ponies wildly. She liked what she made anyway, her eating meat was an oddity, but we were omnivorous as my own sharp canines readily tearing into roasted radhog proved.

Minotaur hunters were awesome cooks... my eyes closed in a blissful expression and it took a few minutes of chomping before I remembered to get back to our hosts and our own mission here. "Mmmm! Thanks Sledge! So, you're going on another hunting trip from here before you leave right? Is there any way we could head towards the MoP hub? Sounds like we need knowledgeable guides, if we could go take a look, I'd be glad to leave back for Salt Lick with you after. Then we can try to figure out if there's anything we can do, umm... we're not magicians though, I don't know what we can do about changing a horde of monsters migrating this way."

Grinning around a mouthful of meat, Sledge's head bobbed rapidly as he boomed a reply. "Sure Shrouded Stallion! We can try to the western woods, always good hunting that way! Hub place won't let you in, but give it a shot anyway! Them that don't try, just cry! We'll leave soon, take some rest and feel free ta wander the camp, we keep these ruins fairly clear!"

Relieved at having a cadre of powerful minotaurs that knew the woods to lead us, I smirked over to Lt. Dawn and tried to sound consoling. "So Dawn, want to try again with us? I won't let you just have the hub, but we probably can't get in anyway. At least getting there will give you something to report right? Kind of help me make up for... er..."

"Blowing up a major military resource? If you promise not to destroy this one then... y-yes... A joint operation is acceptable Mr. Times, I make no promises for how much goodwill you'll get, but I'd rather this not be a complete failure. If you and Mr. Sledge's people will help, I'll take it..." Well, she was still sulking and mad, but willing to work together. Any Brotherhood that didn't want to kill me just for existing was a plus in my book, we really should try, maybe running into Lt. Dawn again would give us another chance with the military group.

Sighing as I leaned back into the blue and green wings curling around Glitter and myself, I munched happily and looked around the crumbling village. Probably cleared out or ruined by the invasive forest, but I could use a walk anyway, try to get used to this new and weak rear hoof... Plus the place was vaguely familiar somehow, but the only thing I could dredge up from the nagging thread of memory was ...rainbows... there should be rainbows here. More than simply because of the name, I just felt it somehow, there should be rainbows...

"I promise I'll try really hard not to blow up the Ministry of Peace hub Dawn..." Jade's horrified gasp at the thought gave me an excuse to nuzzle her neck and reassure them both. "I'll try, really, reeeeally hard, I swear. So long as there's not horrible monsters infesting it, or weird biological research that could be a plague that makes ponies turn cannibal and go crazy or anything, we want it too. Besides, we probably can't get in right? It took me weeks to crack the MoM hub and we don't have that kind of time, sorry Jade..."

The wistful look in her sparkling blue eyes made me desperately hope I was wrong and could find a way for her, but she nodded and smiled brightly. "I understand Fast, merely getting to see it will be a treat! We... we will know what to do when we return at least, someday you will find a way in for me, will you not my love?"

"Anything for you Princess. I promise."

Mission Updated: Lifegiver

Objectives------
---Find the Ministry of Peace Hub
---Follow the minotaurs to the MoP Hub
---Gain entry to the MoP Hub

Optional Objectives------
---Help the Brotherhood gain entry to the MoP Hub

New Perk Added!-----------------------

Mighty Alicorn Telekinesis (Rank 1)------
---You're getting used to your new magic slowly but surely, but attempting to lift a vertibuck maaaaaay have pushed your limits a bit. Just like building a physical muscle though, straining yourself results in growth and opening up to what's possible. You triple the mass that you can levitate with your alicorn magic, putting you at Twilight Sparkle tier with the simple spell.

Reputation Change!-------------------------

Jamocha Plains == Idolized
---You kept up your end of Glitter's mercilessly extracted deal, gaining a new ally and member of the Kingdom of Sanctuary. They may not be able to help much in a fight, but Jamocha Plains has its own strengths and they trust you as a true friend now!

Salt Lick == Accepted
---The hunters of Salt Lick view you as a friend of the tribe simply with Large Marge's mark. Taking down an Alpha Balewolf missing a leg earned you their respect too. You should receive a fairly warm welcome for a pony when you arrive and word spreads, until then you've got valuable guides willing to help you out in their home turf.