On our return the scene of the massacre replayed in my head over and over. Nibble and Gale never asked what happened, but the look on Nibble’s face… She had been there when Elpis first attacked Jib. I doubted it had been any different.

Nothing remained. The artillery strike obliterated the caravan and all of our supplies aside from what we carried. Under Clover’s orders we immediately headed out for Manehatten, which meant no rest.

Silence and darkness encased us as we traveled. Exhaustion played a role but Clover was the definitive factor, he radiated an aura of frustration dwarfing the anger from when he failed to recruit the Steel Ranger. Even in the dark of the night his scowl cut through the black. Despite this I started to focus on another physical aspect of his, the leather armor stretching higher than most covering his flank, and his cutie mark.

Cutie marks could let you understand a lot about a pony at first glance. Nibble’s circuit board gave away she knew something about technology in one form or another, Gale’s scalpel and Mangle’s sledgehammer could be taken a few different ways, in the raider variety mainly, but nothing I learned about them betrayed the image of their cutie marks. If I just knew Clover’s cutie mark maybe I could find a reason, a justification for his actions. The thoughts and constant checks behind me for any stalking pink eyed ghouls carried me all the way to Manehatten.

Morning light shone through parts of the cloud cover, brightening the world below far more than the remaining green flames of balefire that survived since the war. Melody gave an inquisitive, “Moo,” now and again as she followed us from below. We had made it up onto an elevated road called “The Celestia Line.” An aged and decayed road built above the ground that had somehow managed to stay in one piece, aside from the random hole now and again. I failed to imagine how crowded the city must have been where it needed roads above roads, although given the endless red bar on my EFS from countless mutated insects on the ground and whatever monsters hid inside the skyscrapers I could grasp the concept. I turned off my EFS and stopped keeping an eye on the ground. The constant movements out of the corner of my eyes had driven my anxiety through the charts. If the ghoul was following us I would never be able to spot him below.

A flock of large flying creatures made their way into the city. Their leathery wings tipped with a curved talon, and massive fangs seen even from our distance. They looked like bats on steroids. They broke into smaller groups and disappeared into various skyscrapers.

“Bloodwings,” Gale said, anticipating the question. “Nocturnal hunters.”

Clover stopped and narrowed his gaze into the distance as a small flying figure made its way towards us.

“About time,” Clover muttered. The flying creature came into view. A stout metal owl hooted as it landed in front of Nibble.

“Hello Gearwing,” Nibble cooed as she brushed her hoof over the owl’s metallic feathers. “Good to see doing well.”

“What took you so long?” Clover said. The owl simply hooted again and with small little clatters, hopped over to stand in front of him. Clover extended the tool used to hack computers from his Pip-Buck and plugged it into a port on the owls back.

“Oh!” Nibble somehow found the energy to pep up. “Introductions are in order. Ardent this is Gearwing. Clover won him in a bet back in Friendship city. We use him to call in favors and send messages.”

I attempted to conjure some enthusiasm and gave a flimsy wave. Gearwing slowly rotated its head all the way around till it faced me and gave a short hoot.

“Whoa!” I cringed back. “That's creepy.”

Clover unplugged from the owl and pulled a slip of paper from his bag. He pressed a button on Gearwing’s side and a hatch on his belly popped open. Clover shoved the note inside. I caught the first line before he sealed it away, “To the owner of Absolutely Everything.” Was he making a delivery order? Once the compartment clicked closed Gearwing took off leaving in the direction we came from.

“Aweeee, we could have let him stay for a little bit.” Nibble whined.

Clover ignored her and picked up his pace. “Tenpony is just around the bend.”

Tenpony was a building out of time. Multiple layers of protection spells helped the building survive the megaspell that decimated the rest of Manehatten. Pristine posters from before the war still clung to the walls, the largest one of an aged lavender unicorn. I activated my EFS as we approached the gates, and my compass filled with neutral indicators. Words appeared at the top of my vision.

Ministry of Arcane Sciences

Ah, that would make her Twilight Sparkle. I thought, taking a second look at the poster. I tried to think back at what I knew about the Ministry from Shot Chaser but honestly realized I had learned just as much, if not more myself from my adventure. Shot Chaser simply knew they took part in making Pip-Bucks, the Steel Ranger armor, hell anything with a spell matrix was probably made by them, but I had learned they took in an earth pony from the printing press. Probably meaning the Ministry was biased to anypony lacking a horn if it made the news. They made I.M.P, not that I know what that is, but I knew Flim Flam Industries were stealing the incomplete mixtures to make the injections.

Lost in thought I bumped in Gale as we came to a stop.

“What’s your business,” a guard barked from behind a solid metal gate. A poorly written sign painted on the gate stated “No ghouls.”

“I'm Jaded Clover, leader of Elpis, and I have business with Dj Pon3.” Clover glared daggers into the eye slot.

“Elpis.” Apparently the inches of solid metal weren’t enough to make him feel safe as he took a step back. “I-is he expecting you?”

“He better be.”

After a brief moment of murmurs the gate grinded against its track and slid out of the way. Half a dozen guards held their ground, their weapons trained on us.

“That's them alright,” a blush colored mare said as she pushed past the guards. The only difference between her security barding was the gold star pinned on her chest. “I'm Aegis, head of security. You make one wrong move while you're here, I'll make sure you don't have time to regret it. Catch my drift?”

Clover scoffed.

Aegis raised an eyebrow. “Good. Dj Pon3 wants to meet with you immediately. The others are not invited. However, Dj has decided to treat you all as guests. A room will be provided for you along with a few other amenities. I hope that is acceptable.”

“How gracious,” Clover replied as he stepped forward, unaffected by the display of might.

Aegis turned and led us into Tenpony tower. I found myself awestruck after stepping inside. The tower resembled images I had only see in pre-war posters and books. The floors were free of cracks and grime that I had seen even in secret underground facilities. Ponies wore fancy clothes and had their manes styled. Somehow the destruction of Equestria never reached this place. Classical music hummed through the lobby. I took in a deep breath and let the scent of flowers and other sweet fragrances fill my nose. Is this what paradise would be like?

Nibble caught my attention by waving a key around in her magic and motioned to catch up. Aegis and the others piled into a small room, standing shoulder to shoulder with everypony I wondered why we had just crammed into the small metal box. A list of numbers were on one side of the wall. Aegis hit a number and the wall closed. The room rumbled and gravity decided to kick it up a notch.

“The fuck's going on?” Mangle asked as she readied one of her power hooves.

Aegis cocked her head. “Haven't you been in an elevator before?”

An elevator? I have heard that term before. I searched my memories finding a tale from Shot Chaser. Elevator, basically transportation device that travels vertically.

The room dinged, the wall opened back up, and Mangle leapt out.

“This is your stop.” Aegis motioned all but Clover out. A balcony let me see the dozen floors we had traveled, each one decorated with flowers and vibrant colors. Mangle had also been checking the view.

“Stairs would be just as quick,” she mumbled.

I chuckled. “For you maybe.”

Nibble pulled us along, continued down a carpeted hall as she constantly glanced between the key and the numbers on the wall. Eventually she found the corresponding number and unlocked the room. As the door opened without a single creak I couldn't believe my eyes.

Four large beds, trimmed with gold paint, were evenly spaced through the room. Each well padded and fixed with pillows the size of a pony. In the center rested a decanter full of water. In the back corner was another small room, most likely a bathroom.

I trotted to the center taking in the room. What I wouldn't give to live like this. I poured a glass of water and as I drank I couldn’t help but feel something was missing... My Pip-Buck wasn't clicking.

I choked, spilling some of the invaluable liquid. “It's pure!”

Nibble face planted on one of the beds. “Of course. This place has a water talisman,” she yawned, “makes fresh water.”

I wanted her to elaborate but Nibble had already drifted to sleep. Following her lead I stripped off my equipment and jumped into bed. The bed must have been part cloud because it gave way smothering me with delicate softness.

Right before I nodded off something touched my side. With a jolt, I twisted my head to see Gale. He had fallen into bed and sprawled out, one of light blue hooves lying over my side. I had never seen him so worn and battered. Too tired to switch beds or complain, I let sleep take me.

I awoke from another dream focused on Kalita. I followed her as she was unjustly persecuted. I grew frustrated at how willing she was to accept her fate. “For the good of Equestria, her home,” as she often put it. I had no idea how she could be so dedicated to Equestria as they took everything from her.

The sound of rain brought me out of my thoughts. That's not possible, we're indoors. I rustled out of the covers. Nibble and Mangle were still in bed, which only left the early riser. The room in the back had steam rolling out of it. I walked over and peeked in, a spout on the ceiling poured water with Gale underneath washing off. Instead if the mohawk I had become used to his grey hair curved down his neck in. If he styled differently he could easily look as fashionable as the ponies living in Tenpony. Gale turned and saw me peeking in.

He smirked. “Going to stare all day or would you like to join me?”

Washing off sounded wonderful but the way Gale had been acting the last few days I doubted joining him would be smart. “I'll wait till you're done.” I took notice of the steam flowing around my hooves. No way. I paid no attention to Gale as I stepped in and placed my Pip-Buck in the way of the spout. My Pip-Buck stayed silent as the clear water washed over it. Tenpony uses fresh water for baths! I failed to understand how anypony could rationally make such a decision. I wasn’t sure how much a water talisman produced, but certainly there were better uses for it than this.

“So does that mean you are joining me?” Gale raised an eyebrow.

“N-no it's just.” I flushed. “Sorry.” I turned and bolted out of the bathroom, closing the door behind me.

The slam caused Nibble to stir. She tossed back and forth a few time before jutting upright. “I get the shower!” She wiped sleep from her eyes and glared at me. “It's mine.”

“Gale’s almost done.” I opened the door to leave the room.

“What about you?” she asked. “You okay?”

“Fine. I just need a walk.”

I found my way to one of Tenpony’s shopping areas, receiving constant glares from any Tenpony resident I passed. No doubt I appeared out of place in their world, but I had heavier things on my mind than their disapproving eyes. Mainly the scene of the massacre that still forced its way into my thoughts. I needed to turn my mind off for awhile.

I reached the far end of the shopping area, the walk only took a few minutes normally but in my trance it could burn half an hour. I enhanced my hearing as the world dissolved into basic shapes and colors. The focus of my hearing drifted around until locking onto a familiar sounding conversation.

“Damn that fiery redhead,” a stallions voice grumbled, “since she aired my dirty laundry Self-Centered is going to win for sure. If I could just figure out how she knew.”

“You never kept a record right?” a female voice this time. “She must have been there when it happened”

“That’s impossible, somepony would have seen her there-”

All too soon I came to a stop as my head collided with a wall at the other end of the mall. I rubbed the sore spot as I processed the information. Impossible. I had been trotting.

I refocused into my trance again, this time enhancing my vision. I moved at a normal pace and could avoid other ponies as we crossed paths. I attempted to pick up my pace but I couldn’t put any strength behind it. I left my focus as my mind raced. Incredible! I could suddenly perceive things in my trance and react to them. Before this I would have walked off a cliff before realizing it, which would still be true if I focused on my hearing, but still! I also seemed to be more physically capable. I slipped in and out a few more times to test my new limitations.

“Ardent?” I heard Clover’s voice from behind me. I spun to see him with a scrawny orange unicorn. The unicorn wore thick glasses and had a dorky look about him. His cutie mark being an image of a radio tower.

“So you’re Ardent.” the unicorn said in a nasally voice. He stepped up to shake my hoof.

“This is Broadcast,” Clover introduced, “DJ Pon3...’s assistant.”

“It’s great to finally meet Elpis’ famous barmaid.”

My jaw clenched. I knew of the phrase, “Don’t shoot the messenger,” but DJ Pon3 had now made my most hated nickname known to complete strangers. Normally the name made me defiant but knowing somepony was spreading the name made me snap. “So as the assistant to DJ Pon3 I am sure you can give him a message for me.” I pushed his hoof down.

Broadcast gulped and stepped back. “I- I suppose.”

“Good.” I stepped forward forcing him back again. “Please inform him to stop using that nickname immediately or I will stuff a water talisman down his throat and watch him drown from the inside!” I didn’t exactly know how a water talisman worked but based on Broadcast’s reaction my threat seemed possible.

“Settle down there killer.” Clover almost chuckled and he put a wing between us. “Sorry about that he’s normally more… docile.”

“Is there a problem here!” I turned to see Aegis with two other guards.

Broadcast pushed his glasses closer to his head and straightened himself. “Not at all Captain Aegis.” He waved them by. “Please continue on.” Aegis’s cheek twitched as she hesitantly continued with her route.

“I will be sure to pass on your complaint. I should really get back though.” Broadcast gave a slight bow and left.

“Let's get the others.” Clover returned to his commanding voice. “We have a mission.”

While Clover went over the mission details, I enjoyed a hot shower, in clean water, for the first time in my life. I had already gotten a summary on the way back to the room. Tenpony suffered from an energy shortage. The cables syphoning electricity from nearby buildings stopped working a few days ago. They had guards posted but they hadn’t heard back from them since the shortage, they think ghouls may have made their way in and damaged the cables or generator. However, all those details seemed irrelevant as my perception of a shower being wasteful changed dramatically. The steam surrounding me, relaxing every muscle. To be able to take my time scrubbing with a flowery selection of soaps, and not worry about the radiation. If I had to pay for this experience I would go broke.

We traveled across the Luna Line, similar to the Celestia Line just leading to different areas. With the combination of unicorn and pegasus power we landed on top of the building said to house the generator. For all our vertical travel Gale and Nibble carried each other and took turns lifting Mangle, when she wasn’t doing insane jumps across life threatening heights, while Clover carried me. I wanted to thank him or apologize for my fear of levitation but he never appeared upset by it and his silence was what kept my own.

On the roof a partially shattered glass dome made for a decent view inside. The building's architecture seemed designed around the glass dome since on a sunny day the whole building would be illuminated by the sun. There were no obstacles from the ceiling all the way down to the ground floor, insane given the fifteen story drop. It vented out the rancid scent of decaying flesh that ghouls emanated. I held onto my nose, the smell had become overwhelming.

“Now that's a ghoul problem.” Gale whistled.

I focused on the black floor of the lobby. My eyes widened as the floor wriggled. I activated my EFS and a red bar filled along the compass.

“This is going to cost a lot of ammo,” Clover sighed.

“Or!” Mangle activated her power hooves. “No ammo at all.”

“You up for that?”

Mangle tensed up as a smile spread across her face.

“You just took a bath,” Nibble groaned.

“I can take another when we get back,” Mangle said, and with no other warning, leapt into the building.

My heart stopped seeing the little white mare descend into the ocean of mindless zombie ponies. Just before she landed I heard the hiss of her power hooves as it turned the ghouls under her into a blackened paste. Without hesitation she launched herself forward bucking and punching every ghoul in her path.

“According to Broadcast the device they are using to siphon power, is on the fourth floor,” Clover said somehow unimpressed with the display below him. “Let's get down there.”

Clover flew up and grabbed a hold of me as Nibble and Gale floated each other.

“You're in for a treat Ardent,” Clover said as we descended. “I doubt many have seen the true potential of an earth pony.”

“True potential?” I repeated trying to focus on what Clover said, but found it impossible with the scene playing out right below me.

The ghouls finally caught on they were being attacked. I could only see hints of white and blonde as the horde surrounded her, but using her size as an advantage she stayed low, weaving underneath countless legs. Each blow she managed to land with this hit and run tactic was followed by the sound of cracking bones and a ghoul being launched away.

She came to a halt as a ghoul caught a mouthful of her tail and in a moment she became buried under a pile of feral ghouls.

I panicked. “Clover she-”

A primal yell, that could be easily mistaken for a Manticore’s roar, came from below. In a display of raw strength Mangle broke free, sending half a dozen of the mindless monsters flying. One collided with the glass balcony on the second level, it shattered aside from a long slender piece that skewered the ghoul.

Clover sat me down as we reached the fourth floor. “There it is.” Clover pointed to a console on the opposite side. I walked close to the balcony given the view of the action below.

Mangle had changed tactics, instead of staying low she kept to the air. She stepped on top of the ghouls, activating her power hooves, breaking their back or skull, and propelling her to a different position. The horde broke apart trying to locate her rapidly changing position.

Mangle seemed to be doing great against the overwhelming odds, but above the horde I could see her clearly. Her coat had turned grey from sweat, her breaths were heavy and almost steaming. She had bloodied bite marks everywhere the armor didn't cover, and there were still an insane amount of ghouls.

I tensed up realizing Clover had been talking to me. Nibble and him somehow ignored the epic scene below, only Gale kept an eye on Mangle.

“For unicorns it's the magical overglow, pegasi have a sonic boom. Each ability represents the trait of that race,” Clover finished.

“What’s the trait of an earth pony?” I asked, hoping he had not already covered it.

“You would have to ask.” Clover smirked. “Strength.” He gestured his head back to the battle.

The scene brought me to a halt. Mangle’s body must have been burning up, her sweat evaporated as it formed, making it appear as if she had a magical aura surrounding her. I had worried she would become exhausted as the battle raged on but the opposite appeared to be true. Mangle moved faster and hit harder. With her new strength she held her ground and swung into oncoming attackers. Each swing she connected no longer broke bones but tore through the ghouls. The ground around her evolved into a field of thick black ghoul blood and body parts. She ripped apart each target turning them into piles of mangled flesh.

“She’s almost done.” Gale joined me, leaning on the railing to get a better look. “She loves a flashy finish.”

The last of the ghouls rushed in all at once. Mangle let out another guttural yell as her attacks became a blur, turning each ghoul in range into black mist.

Mangle used her power hooves to launch herself into the air. What remained of the ghouls conjoined directly below her. She aimed herself at them, power hooves first, and descended like a missle. When she landed the whole building shook. A wave of gore expanded all the way up to the second level of the building as she obliterated the tile floor, creating a crater in the center of the lobby. Mangle rested in the center of it, injured, blood drenched, and with the widest smile.

“And she’s useless again,” Gale teased.

“It was worth it.” I leaned over the rail. “That was amazing!”

Mangle pumped her hoof in the air and let it drop.

“Ardent go get her,” Clover ordered. “Gale what do you make of this?” Clover nudged a corpse lying next to the generator, the stallion's throat had been cut.

I split off from the others and made my way down the stairs. The last two levels ruining my hygiene but giving me the wonderful excuse of being at least second in line for a shower. When I reached Mangle she had already passed out. I hoisted her over my back, only straining when her power hooves added their weight. The damn things probably weighed as much as she did.

“Fixed!” I heard Nibble yell. The generator on the fourth floor sprang to life. A line of lights trailing the fourth floor flickered on one by one. When the lights reached a set of double doors opposite of the generator they opened, and a new horde of ghouls sprang from it. A trap? The mindless creatures flooded the level closing in on Clover and the others.

I took a step out of the crater only to have the floor crack under me. The crack spread and the ground gave way. I reached out in time to catch a stable part of remaining tiles, my legs dangling into a darkness without sight of a lower level, and that's when I felt Mangle slid from my back. Shit! I let go with one hoof and caught her, the sudden shift in weight caused the tile I clung onto to tilt and shift out of place.

“Ardent!” I heard Nibble yell. She leaned over the ledge and starred in horror.

“Nibble!” Clover yelled in frustration as he fired into the massive horde of ghouls surrounding them. “Fall in line.”

Nibble hesitated as her attention kept shifting between the oncoming horde and me. My hoof started to slide on the tile and I dipped a little deeper into the nothing below me.

Shit, I'm only distracting Nibble like this. I glanced down. Can't be that deep. In an all too hasty decisionI loosened my grasp. I slid down until seeing a loose piece of tile fall. I watched as it fell out of sight and tried to listen for when it hit the bottom, but heard nothing. I tightened my grip on the edge of the tile. Are you kidding me, what architect thought it would be a good idea to build a place on top of an endless pit? I stared back up at Nibble.

The look on my face ended her indecision. Her horn shined a brilliant purple as it encased every ghoul in sight, and then the color of her magic changed. Its hue darkened and mixed with tints of black, her eyes becoming invaded by the same colors. The ghouls let out a harmonious cry as their skin clung together. The horde melding into a single wriggling mass of flesh. The necromancer's spell.

The tile dislodged, sending Mangle and I plummeting into the darkness.

Footnote: No Level Up.