"You'll knock ‘em dead out there, Sweetie," my host said as he looked over the last details of Sweetie Belle's long, flowing, black and gold dress.

The mare was particularly shimmering, even in the low backstage light she was as radiant as a goddess. Each turn of her head was accompanied by a faint chime of jewels and rainbows of reflected light beamed from the gems braided into her mane and tail. I imagined it would have been hard for a dragon's hoard to gleam more than she did, yet no number of gemstones could have rivaled her beauty in the eyes of my host.

That made it incredibly hard not to think about how attractive she really was. Particularly when his attention sometimes became a little more focused on her butt than her face. She was the kind of mare stallions would chase after for sure, the celebrity crush young colts would hang posters of on their bedroom walls and drool over.

Goddesses, if anypony ever made a sex clone... or robot... Damn it, brain! Even so, the odd time she did notice my host gawking, the looks she offered seemed far more whimsical than offended. Oh, so at least one stallion gets a pass, how about mares then?

"Eyes are up here, Fleetie," she purred, tapping her cheek with a forehoof even as she wiggled her rump.

Damn thing sounds like a windchime!

I felt blood rush to my host's cheeks as well as a few other places and was once again thankful for the sky guard armor concealing it, even if he didn't have the helmet this time. Even so, it didn't feel like his eyes could go any wider as he stammered, words catching in his throat as he choked and took a step back. All the while, Sweetie Belle giggled, offering a rather sultry smile as she tapped his chest.

“Got your tongue again?" she cooed before planting a light kiss on his cheek. "Shame, I so could have gotten my cutie mark in making you speechless if I didn't have it already."

"Wait... What would that cutie mark even look like?" my host, Fleetie, as she'd identified, finally responded, glancing to see that ever so playful smile on his gorgeous marefriend's face.

"Humm..." Sweetie tapped her chin. "I imagine just like you look right now, you're just the right shade of red, even my sister would be impressed."

Okay, this mare does not deserve to be so teasing, where is the hot, sweaty, and grumpy mare from last time? At least then she was sexy in a way that didn't make me feel like a bug!

"Just imagine that on my butt," she chirped, wiggling her rear with a jingle as she giggled. "Scoots and Apple Bloom would be so jealous!"

"Well, maybe Apple Bloom, not sure about Scootaloo yet," my host offered in response as he nuzzled her cheek. "You know how she feels about most ponies nowadays."

"What, all grumpy and stuck with work? Yeah, I know... After this tour, she’s asked me to go all around Equestria again. Public relations, honestly that part of the job sucks," she huffed, the erotic undertone all but evaporated.

Her coltfriend offered a small smile, nuzzling again.

"I know, I'd rather you do what you love to do too. But I'll be there every step of the way with you," he offered, and at that, it was her turn to blush.

"Hey, you'll mess up my mane if you keep doing that," she giggled, shoving him away gently, before pressing a hoof to her muzzle with a gasp. "Oh Celestia, I sounded way too much like Rarity right then!"

My host shrugged.

"Well, you are dressed like her again, after all." The hoof that ruffled his mane a second later said that he was really in for it if he even suggested such a thing again.

Seriously, how can such an adorable action feel so threatening, unless the kind of treat is the kind, they'll both enjoy... Damn it, brain!

As I battled my hormones, my host rolled his eyes, and for some reason, I felt that it was at least partially my fault, even all these decades later.

"Just because I wear fancy dresses doesn't make me a carbon copy of my sister. The last gala I saw her attend was ages ago anyway," Sweetie declared, then sighed, head drooping a little. "I know for a fact she's not out there either."

She gestured towards the giant red curtain separating us from the stage and what sounded like hundreds of ponies taking their seats. Then the lighting below the divider's edge shifted as somepony took center stage and started to talk to the hushed crowd, announcing the night's entertainment.

"I... I'm sure she'll be listening to it on the radio if she's not, right?" Fleetie suggested as he stepped up beside the weary-looking mare. "But I thought she and Fluttershy both bought tickets?"

"Fleet Wing, you're on the security detail, I think you would know if two ministry mares were out there," Sweetie responded, glancing up at him before nodding to the curtain again.

Fleet Wing, so that's his name? I noted as the stallion in question sighed and tried to be reassuring. Goddesses, that feeling, he really does love her, it's so filling... I didn't feel like that with Cherry, is my love for her still just a lie then, is it really just lust?

"I know, I'm sorry... You know if I could pick her up from whatever dumb meeting she's in and make her sit there, I would," Fleet Wing stated, stomping a forehoof. "I'd move mountains for it if I had to."

Despite herself, Sweetie Belle cracked a smile and lifted her head.

"If I didn't have so much lipstick on, I'd kiss that dumb face of yours so much," she purred, pressing a forehoof to the tip of his muzzle.

"And now with tonight's opening act, with her brand-new song, Sweetie Belle!" Came the voice from beyond the curtain.

"Who says I'd mind a few little kisses?" my host responded, but Sweetie rolled her eyes and playfully shoved him away.

"Well, there is always the after show, my trailer's empty, remember?" she cooed, wiggling her rump again.

Once again that heat returned to all the right places of my host's body as she waved him off stage and the curtain broke to bathe her in a brilliant blue glow. Her dark dress blended into the shadows, her coat a ghostly white as all the gems wound into her mane began to shimmer like a cloak of starlight. I imagined it would make even the princess of the night jealous and was somewhat worried my host would be too captivated by her to actually do his job. Moments later, the light narrowed, until one lone pillar of pale blue illuminated the gleaming mare as she stepped up to a microphone. The beat began, the rhythm flowing, and then she started to sing.

As if looking at her body wasn't distracting enough! Both I and my host thought almost in unison as the most beautiful sounds I'd ever heard drifted into his ears.

"Hush now quiet now, it's time to lay your sleepy head," she began, dizzying my host as he started to swoon.

Seriously, how can anypony have lost this...? This is the kind of thing they gave up, This kind of entertainment is what they destroyed? I thought bitterly.

Eyes closed, Sweetie Belle lifted her head, body flowing beautifully in rhythm with the music as her radiant voice filled the room with its audible glow. Sure enough, her horn lit up, lime-green magic synchronizing with orbs of light lining the stage as a constellation of magnificent stars grew like vines in the darkness above her. The image of a crescent moon shimmered into view; the shape of a dancing filly rather similar to the singing mare pirouetting upon the curve. Seconds later, Sweetie Belle's eyes opened, twinkling like the stars hanging over her as she took a breath and smiled.

Goddesses, those eyes are so beautiful.

I couldn't tell if those thoughts were Fleet Wing's or my own as my host started tapping a forehoof in beat with the music and his mare friend peered over the awestruck crowd.

"Hush now, quiet now, it's time to go to bed," she soothed, before the beat changed and the song picked up the pace. "Driftin' off to sleep! Exciting day behind you! Driftin' off to sleep! Let the joy of dreamland find you!"

I'd no idea a lullaby could be so catchy. I thought as the most genuine love I'd ever felt flooded my host's chest.
He breathed it in like a miasma and part of me wondered if this was how Vertigo felt around me whenever I looked at Cherry.

Silly bug pony, no wonder he has an orb like this. It's like a damn fix for him! I recognized, a little bitter that he probably used this beautiful memory that way.

Fleet Wing, at least, seemed to love Sweetie Belle wholeheartedly, making me all too aware that my love for Cherry didn't feel anywhere near this strong.

Maybe I'm just fooling myself, or it's just new hormones talking? Is it just lust? How long will it be until I can next have sex while knocked up anyway?

Ideas spun in the back of my mind while I was overwhelmed by my host's passion. To say I was envious of the feeling would have been an understatement. What I wouldn't have given to hear Sweetie Belle sing first-hoof, memories couldn't do a sound like her voice justice in the slightest.

Still, for all his distraction, Fleet Wing was far, far more alert than I was.

Goddesses, is that some sixth sense he has? His ears swiveled as an oddly familiar sensation came over him.

It was like looking into a photo to see somepony you recognized after years apart, yet there was nopony around save for stagehands and pompous-looking directors. Nevertheless, he stopped tapping his forehoof and glanced back over his shoulder. There was a clatter as a mare carrying a bunch of stage equipment fell, and in a flash, he darted over.

"Are you okay, miss?" he asked like the perfect gentlecolt.

And here I thought Vertigo had been hot last night.

The peach, earth pony mare glanced up at him, looking a little uncertain. "I–I... Sorry, I should really be more careful," she stammered.

Fleet Wing shrugged, offering her a hoof and helping her up. "Ah, I'm sure you have a lot on your hooves, I wouldn't worry," he responded, picking up a speaker with his wing. "You're not hurt, are you?"

She shook her head.

"No, no, I'm fine," she assured, dusting herself off with a forehoof. "Thanks for asking though, erm..."

"Fleet Wing, Equestrian Sky Guard," he concluded, making a mock salute with his wing.

She giggled, lifting the fallen equipment onto her back and taking the speaker from him.

"Sweetie Belle's coltfriend right?" she asked, and I felt that heat return to his cheeks as he nodded. "Hehe, yeah word kinda gets around backstage, don't worry though, my lips are sealed, anything for Sweetie."

"That's something we can both agree on, at least," he chuckled as she straightened herself.

"Well, I better get back to work, nice to meet you, Fleet Wing," she offered and he nodded watching her as she trotted off behind a wall of props.

Beyond the curtain, the crowd erupted into cheers as Sweetie Bell's performance concluded. Yet Fleet Wing still had the odd sensation prickling in his mind. It had slipped my attention while he'd been talking to the amber mare, but it was like somepony was watching him, only he knew exactly who.

"This is all quite the performance, I'm impressed," came the voice of a stallion, and Fleet Wing slowly turned to see a dark-brown buck, dressed in a long trench coat emerge from the gloom between two-stage backgrounds.

"I see your performance has gotten no more subtle," my host responded, eyeing the stranger up and down before trotting towards him.

The mysterious stallion smirked and nodded to the open stage.

"Oh, I don't mean to imply it was the performance out there." The stranger waved a forehoof at Fleet Wing. "What you just did with that pony... Haha, quite the bluff."

Fleet Wing frowned.

"Did you ever think to consider that it wasn't a bluff, hum?" he questioned, and the stranger rolled his eyes.

"What, you're saying you actually care about them? Here I thought you were sapping that mare out there for every last drop you could get," he joked, but the moment the words left his muzzle one of Fleet Wing's forehooves struck him right in the nose.

"What do you want, Electra?" my host grumbled bluntly, rubbing the offending forehoof on his chest.

That green goo coming from his nose, is that... Blood? My thoughts laughed with realization as the stranger staggered back to his hooves, scowling at my host. Damn, these two are Changelings!

"You better hope that was part of the act too, I could have you exiled," The stranger, Electra I assumed, hissed as he wiped his bleeding muzzle.

Fleet Wing, or whoever he really was, scoffed.

"I still outclass you, remember. Besides, right now exile doesn't seem so bad, I wouldn't have to deal with your dumb face every five minutes," he countered.

"Oh yeah, because you could totally survive without the hive mind, remember the queen's orders, Spiracle," Electra spat, and my host, Spiracle, I assumed, growled.

"Don't use that name while I'm on infiltration, bug brain!" he hissed, but Elytra shrugged.

"Didn't stop you from using my name... Now, you wanna know why I'm here, or not?" he countered and Spiracle let out another low grumble.

"If it gets you out of my face faster, go right ahead," he declared, and Electra cleared his throat.

"Her royal highness, Queen Chrysalis, requests a report. Any opportunities presented by the ponies and their war must be exploited, after all," he declared, and Spiracle shook his head.

"Now, of all times?" he hissed under his breath, stopping a forehoof as Electra grinned in anticipation.

"Well... You know you can't turn down a royal command, say goodbye to your pony friends, little Fleetie."

At least I could sympathize with my host's rage as he shot Electra a very dangerous look.

The offending changeling frowned, taking a step back as Spiracle lifted himself and glared daggers at the disguised bug.

"You can tell the queen that I'm not done, she put me up to this and she trusts me... We're going on a tour of Equestria's stables soon, after that, Chrysalis will have her report," he declared matter-of-factly.

"That's Queen Chrysalis, remember your place," Electra swiftly added, prompting another glare from my host.

"And you remember yours, messenger drone. Now run along back to the hive. Wouldn't want this big bad world to eat you up." It was Elytra's turn to scowl at that, but he crept back and vanished into the shadows nevertheless, eyes flashing green.

"I have a feeling we'll see each other again very soon, infiltrator," he warned as he went.

"Forever would be too soon at this rate," Spiracle responded, before turning tail to the drone and marching away, only to almost step right into his beautiful marefriend as she came off stage.

Oh wow, did performing like that always make a mare look so worn out... Nice smell. Both I and Fleet Wing thought in unison as Sweetie took a step back in surprise.

"Oh, there you are... So what did you think?" she asked, beaming at him like some kind of school filly after their parents' unrivaled admiration.

It felt like he admired her more than I thought possible for a pony, then again, he wasn't a pony.

Is this just all part of his trick too? Does he really care about her or is he really just digging for love?

Hitting Electra in the face for talking down about her certainly disputed that, but was it all just an act like the stranger had suggested?

"Perfect, as always, Sweetie," Fleet Wing chuckled, ears perking as his marefriend giggled.

Her cuteness was short-lived, however; as she looked back with a coy smirk.

"So, the show's over... Wanna head over to my place?" she asked, eyes lidded.

"S–sure thing, Sweetie." He nodded; half distracted as he glanced to the darkness Electra had skulked into.

"Hey, everything okay, Fleetie?" Sweetie called.

Oh, goddesses, does the idea of lying to somepony so sweet and beautiful always feel so bad!? I thought as I felt his emotions conflict, loyalties clashing yet masked by an expertly manufactured chuckle.

"Oh, everything's fine, Sweetie, I'm fine..." he began, then paused, nuzzling her cheek. "And your place sounds so wonderful."

I came out of the memory to find myself on a mattress... again. Just like yesterday. Damn, why are the days becoming so crushing?

I flopped my head back against the dusty pillow as I levitated the orb back into the velvet case that I'd taken from the safe.

So the stallion I've seen with Sweetie Belle was actually a changeling? For some reason that made my mane crawl far more than I thought it would.

How could anypony really ever know a creature like that and trust them? Sweetie Belle had loved him, that love had felt real and genuine, and he'd felt like he loved her too. But how did a creature that feeds on love feel love?

That's like ‘feeling’ Radigator kebab, or some iguana on a stick, right? I wondered, noting that it didn't really make much sense. Maybe it's like you are what you eat. Vertigo said he'd loved somepony once too?

Vertigo? The name rattled through my mind. How can I ever trust that stallion really? He's not even a real stallion and I was ready to buck him last night for Celestia's sake!

If one of his kind was willing to manipulate the love of a mare like Sweetie Belle all those decades ago, then why was it any different now? I really had to wonder if he'd simply saved Binary to scrounge off her love for machines, though I'd no real idea if it worked that way.

Regardless, I sighed, rolling over in the bed and looking to the black case as the metal frame creaked.

I have my magic back, why am I moping again? Oh yeah, because I'm really afraid some deceptive bug knows love better than I do! I thought, yet was it really any fault of Vertigo or his kind that I'd just really messed up my chances with the mare I cared about most?

Chances, don't joke, Dragonfire. You have no chance and you know you don't want one with her. My mind scolded as my tummy gave a twitch and I pressed a forehoof to it, feeling groggy.

It was at least good to get my barding off again, though it kinda felt like my armor was getting tight in some places. I was going to have to make size modifications soon, maybe now? I needed something to get my mind off of Cherry.

Just don't think about her, it's better that way. My mind went on, yet threw images of her cute smile and humble determination into the mix.

"Urg, we've only been together for two weeks, what's with me?" I hissed, grabbing the pillow and throwing it to the foot of the bed.

I sat up, a shrill gasp escaping me as my stomach gave a sharp pinch and I looked around for a bucket, just in case. I reflexively pressed a forehoof to my muzzle, that horrible feeling I was going to throw up sitting on my mind like a wet blanket, yet minutes went by and there was nothing. Then my thoughts went right back to Cherry, her pretty eyes, adorable giggle, round flanks.

"Stupid, brain, stupid!" I cursed, smacking my forehead several times.

My body responded with another twinge in my grumbling belly and just like that, I really needed the bucket again.

"Goddesses, how was I envious of pregnant mares for so long?" I groaned as I lifted my head from the metal rim, hot bile burning my throat. "Why does having a foal in me make everything I eat want to come out again!?"

I wondered just how much I should have asked Sky and Flare before their sister's death, maybe that would have cleared some things up. I considered asking Binary, yet I suspected her expertise was with technology, not biology. Overseer was out of the question, no matter what he claimed. I'd no idea if what he said about his loss of information was true, but I trusted him about as much as I did Vertigo. Still, I was far more worried about what I'd do alone in a room with the former. The way I'd smash Overseer would be far different to how I'd probably end up smashing Vertigo.

Urg, is thinking about his stupid butt bad now too? I wondered, considering the fact that it could literally be any kind of butt if I wanted. What does that make me? The ultimate tail chaser?

I thumped my head on the rim of the bucket, before the stench of the hot mess inside drove me back up onto the bed. Part of me wondered if I'd even have a chance with a buck like him? Trust may not be on the table, but a mutual understanding. How much love did sex give him, and who would I rather have sex with most in the world?

What about sex with an alicorn, can he do that?

I pulled the pillow back onto my midsection and sighed. I needed to get up, get my mind out of the gutter, and find something to occupy my thoughts before I just lingered here in self-pity forever.

Is this what pregnant emotions feel like? So mixed? I wanna buck the ponies I hate one minute and rip their heads off the next?

"You know, keep this up and we'll have to have a serious talk, little guy," I declared, patting my tummy, getting a harsh cramp in return. "Okay, okay, please don't make me throw up again… I'm sorry."

I needed more distractions. I glanced to my left to see the grey wall, huffed then shifted right to see the open safe and terminal sat atop it next to my bed.

Right, nothing good to focus on here anymore. The lack of weight on my foreleg was a painful reminder of my absent Pipbuck as I sat up. Nevertheless, I recalled the recordings that had been present on the room's terminal when I'd accessed it.

Weight's all shifted to your belly, Dragonfire... Shut up, brain! I scowled at my thoughts as I rolled onto the floor and placed down all four hooves, using my magic to access the terminal once again.

Scrolling right down I found one post-war recording from several years ago and selected it.

Well, I've gone into their privacy this much. I thought, yet as I activated the recording, I concluded the last pony who deserved privacy was Vertigo. His kind literally lives to break that sacred rule.

"Yes, good, this thing's working. Looks like that mainframe reboot accessed every subsystem. Strike, you still got it, Binary!" Came the buzzing voice of the earth pony mare I'd met hours ago.

Judging by the subtle differences in her tone and the date, however, I assume she was far younger. The shrill sounds in her voice gave it away, she couldn't have been any older than a teenager when recording this.

"I can't believe how much stuff there is in here, I heard about the SPP before, but it seems like the Ministry of Awesome's not so useless after all. Special ops files, secret mission logs..." There was a foalish squee before the mare went on. "Oooo, Rainbow Dash was up to so much stuff, airship development, specialist weapons!"

"Ugh, mother would have killed to get hold of this place... Shame that none of the outside search parties ever came out this far." There was a dry sigh, a sniff, then she seemed to perk up suddenly. "Chin up, Binary..." There came the sound of typing hooves. "And here Vertigo said I'd be wasting my time here. Does he want to keep me safe or not? There's no danger here, all these robots too, we could make a frickin' army."

I felt a chill run down my spine at the mention of that.

Surely, she means the robots she still has outside, not the warehouse? I took a seat on the bed, steadying myself as some static sounded and Binary went on.

"Just one step closer to retaking home, I'll get it back mother, I promise. I'm pretty sure Barron left those monsters in charge, I saw his sky tank leave again a few weeks ago, so now would be the perfect time to strike. I need to be ready, to be able to get around without Vertigo." The clang of a hoof on a metal grated floor rang out. "So what if I'm only fourteen, he can't treat me like a foal... He's not even like normal ponies. Ugh, if only I had some data on Changelings, I could make him listen to me!"

Her words trailed off as she sighed once more, the light sound of fur dragging on metal as I could only assume she slumped down against the terminal.

"I can't let him listen to this; he'll think I'm weak again ... I can't... I can't let him... I can’t ask him to... look like you again, mom..."

The sudden shift to hopelessness in her tone sent a shudder through my heart, then things fell into place and it wasn't hard to imagine what Vertigo had done for her once.

But was that out of care or just hunger? I thought, sympathizing with what it was like to lose a mother as I imagined what Vertigo could do.

Can I ask him to do that for me...? To be able to see her again? I hit my face with a forehoof as my stomach gave a twitch. No, that was years ago, I've moved on!

"I won't let you down, not you, not Gadget... I'll avenge you both, I swear. Whoever those ponies are, they won't get away with what they did to us. I just got to think carefully, gather resources, I have a base, technology... Maybe it's time to work on those prosthetics you suggested... Yes!"

For some reason I didn't think Binary was the best pony to mess with, she seemed kind of chatty. Was she insane? I honestly didn’t know. But she was shrewd and smart, and that felt dangerous. She could betray us. Then again, would I have been any less eager to avenge my mother?

A sigh from the recording, and my attention returned to it.

"I should delete this; Vertigo needs to think that I'm strong. I wish he really was you, mother... I think... I think I'll leave this with you."

Her voice died and the recording stopped, leaving silence, save for the metallic creaking of the structure around me.

Lost her family? Am I a magnet for crazies? Can I be gathering the most depressed ponies in the wasteland, or something?

Even so, I could truly understand Binary's plight, and, unlike Vertigo, I felt like I could at least trust her. Or at least her rage towards the Transcendent. No way that mare was going to stop until that group of fanatics was gone.

At that, I threw the pillow back in front of me and pressed my face into it, butt in the air as I groaned.

Now I need another way to distract myself!

Like a corrupt dealer dishing out wishes, the wasteland reacted, just in the way that it knew I'd hate most. There was a dry cough from the door, and I hinged one eye open to see a long shadow cast over the room.

"So, is this the room of violating privacy, or what?" Vertigo asked, one forehoof crossed over his chest. "Nice view, by the way." He motioned to my raised plot and I sank to the bed, throwing a cover over it.

"Glad you think so... Enjoying the taste?" I retorted, sitting up to glare at him.

He smirked.

"Oh, I imagine you taste divine, kinda got a peppermint-flavored look to you, the hot spicy kind. But no, that's not how Changelings work," he elaborated.

Funny, that's what stallions have told me before and... No, brain! My next breath escaped as a low growl as he trotted in.

"You're the last pony who deserves privacy. I know what you are now, you just live to spy on ponies," I snapped, and he sighed.

"That's not how it works either. I never tried to hurt anypony... Not in a long time," he admitted, meeting my glare with a solemn look.

"So you admit that you did," I pressed, imagining those emerald green eyes and black chitin under the mask of the indigo blue stallion I'd come to recognize. "Because, from what I've seen you only pretend to care for your own gain."

"At first, yes. I was raised the same as any other changeling. We didn't see ponies as anything other than food, sure." He shrugged. "But I met somepony who taught me differently, I’ve seen things differently ever since."

I crossed my forelegs, still looking at him like he was trash, yet he didn't even seem to care as he added.

"Think what you want, Dragonfire. I know what's true."

He moved over to the open safe and pushed it closed, took one look at the memory orb case, then back at me.

"Why are you here, shouldn't you be up helping Binary or something?" I asked, suddenly wanting to be far more alone than I'd been a second ago.

Well, maybe with Cherry too, but otherwise alone.

"I was, but saw Cherry going up there and decided to come find out what's up... Also, Binary told me to give you this." He magically reached into his saddlebags and pulled out a Pipbuck.

I noticed instantly that it wasn't the one I'd come in with, so no Overseer, I assumed.

Damn, if they've broken mom's Pipbuck there's going to be trouble.

This new one looked a little sleeker than mine, however; more akin to the one Binary had been wearing. I took the thing in my magic and rotated it, noting the well-kept state of it as well as the more modern-looking design. 'Gadget' the word was marked on the side of the device, beside the blue-tinted screen.

"The thing was her little sister's, consider yourself lucky," he told me, moving over to one of the room's shelves. "She's going to be busy with that program of yours for a while, so it convinced her to let you have a replacement."

So Overseer is the one who wants me to have a Pipbuck?

That really didn't sit well with me. Yet as far as I could tell, as I put the thing on and the heads-up display flickered into my vision, I could see no evidence of the program's corruption.

So, he still wants me alive? Kinda odd for a mission he can't remember. I thought as I turned my foreleg, getting used to the sleeker fit of the Pipbuck. At least it works better than moms ever did. Plus, I still get my E.F.S and S.A.T.S.

That latter bit at least felt better, I was getting too used to those to lose them.

"I see you found Rarity then, I kinda hoped you might," Vertigo, observed picking up the mare statuette and nodding to my horn.

I shrugged.

"Gave me my magic back, yeah." I didn't admit how glad I was for that, not wishing to be any more in his debt.

Nevertheless, he smiled as he set the thing back down on the shelf.

"Yeah, well the thing only works once per figure, so don't get used to it," he told me before moving back to the door.

"And you only have the one?" I inquired, and he glanced back over his shoulder.

"They don't exactly grow on trees, Dragonfire," he retorted, and I knew I really should have recalled what Cherry told me about them.

Grr, why am I thinking about her so hard... I just don't want her to hate me! My thoughts went on, wondering if I should go and see her, or just leave it for now. I hate love, I need distractions, damn it!

Meanwhile, Vertigo cocked his head, peering at me. Part of me wondered if he could feel the emotional conflict inside me. The look on his face at least suggested he knew more than just his eyes were telling him. I guess. I must have tasted disgusting to him then, or something.

So much for peppermint. I thought as I sighed. Then noted the full saddlebags at his flanks, as well as the holstered weapons and the helmet strapped to his side.

"Hey, you going somewhere?" I asked, and he paused before he could trot out.

"Yeah, Binary got some info on a place nearby from your new friend. Fort Sandstone, was going to check it out," he confirmed, and just like that, I levitated over my barding.

"Good, I need a walk. Plus, you and I have to talk," I declared, and for once, he looked very unsure.

"You sure about that? I don't care for what that program says about you, but personally, I don't think a mare in your condition should be..." I shut him up with a look that made it clear if he finished that sentence, he'd see what happened when a pony messed with a grumpy, expectant mare.

"Overseer is not my mother and neither are you. I'm a grown mare, I can take care of myself," I assured, starting to slip on my barding.

"I don't doubt that. But I'm a grown stallion and a lot older than you, and despite what you think, I do give a damn, you know?" he countered.

I huffed. How did I even know that the care he apparently had was real? He could just care about feeding off my love for Cherry for all I knew.

"You're not even a pony... You want to stop me, stop me," I challenged, slipping the barding up to my waist with my magic.

Then it caught.

"Oh come on, you can still fit, you stupid thing!"

Vertigo pressed a forehoof to his face and I swore I could have killed him.

"Just breathe in," he suggested, and before I knew it, his horn flared, pulling the barding up over my midsection.

Taken off guard I fell to the floor, growling.

"You rip this thing and you fix it, smart-flank!"

He rolled his eyes as he looked down at me, while I glared daggers at him.

"No offense, but you're going to need to modify it anyway, you know that, right?"

What, yes of course I do... I've just been thinking about it... I... My ears drooped as I sighed. First Cherry, now this embarrassment!

"This is going to be a long night, isn't it?" Of course, of all ponies, Vertigo would be the only one to just nod in smug agreement. "Fucking great."

For once, it actually felt good to be out in the nighttime chill of the desert when there was not a storm raining down on me. I'd seldom been to this north-eastern area of the dustbowl, where the flat sands and cacti-strewn landscapes were replaced by rocky cliffs and rugged, red canyons. There were even a few ruins out here between the mesas, the only sign that ponies had even been to this area before, lonely roads that snaked through the sands like cracked riverbeds of asphalt.

Wagons sat like rusting corpses, sand piling up on their corroded flanks as the wind howled between the cliffs. Bones hung from windows like wind chimes or lay strewn across the dirt, flesh long since picked away by the elements and scavengers. In the distance, I could make out firelight, the closest thing to stars in the inky blackness of the far-off hills. Vertigo was swift to point many out, even as I noted every glint in the dark, no matter how distant. A fire was a sure sign of pony habitation, and that usually meant raiders out here. Or worse.

"So, you usually wander around out here all alone?" I asked Vertigo as the pair of us trotted down a solitary highway. "This was Ranger territory, last I heard?"

"You live out here, you know that you can avoid trouble when you want to," he countered with a wink.

Goddesses, I wish he'd just put his stupid helmet on! My mind screamed, yet in my desire not to think about Cherry, I wasn't opposed to continually checking him out. Head to tail, he's handsome... I hate it! He must make himself like that just to mess with me!

"Yeah, but I can't just look like anypony, and I don't go about avoiding danger by just strolling down the middle of a road like this," I retorted, casually kicking a rusty can into one of the wagons with a forehoof.

There was a clatter from within, and I raised the rifles I'd pried off of my battle saddle just in time to see a mangy pair of dogs take off running into the dark. Moments later, a growl escaped my muzzle as I heard Vertigo chuckle.

"What's so funny?" I grumbled.

"So jumpy... You know you really didn't have to come out here, right?" he asked, motioning to my ready weapons.

"I do what I want, thanks," I huffed, holstering the guns. "What in Equestria makes you so sure about everything anyway?"

He grinned.

Oh, for Luna's sake, I'm going to shove that helmet on so hard if he keeps looking at me like that!

Even so, he pressed a hoof to his chest.

"Silly, pony." He motioned to me with the same forehoof. "I tasted them, animals are pretty weak, but you can pick up on them if you look."

I raised an eyebrow behind my visor.

"That's disgusting, should just go around licking dirt while you're at it," I countered, and once again, I was on the verge of bucking his dumb, smiling face in as he added.

"Oh, I know there's some dirt on you I'd lick, little peppermint."

I marched right up to him, glaring as our muzzles were barely inches apart.

"You call me that again, bugger, and I'll swat you like a fly, got it?" I hissed, but he didn't even flinch.

"So, we going to kiss now, or what?" I felt the air in my helmet heat up as I blushed and drew back.

Damn it, is it all just a joke to him? Or food, he's just trying to drain every scrap of emotion from me!? A twinge in my gut reminded me that, in my state, it must be so much easier for him.

My mind felt like it was on fire with these stupid hormones. One minute I wanted to buck him in one way, and the next, buck the shit out of him in another!

Stupid love bugs and their stupid good looks! I should have just gone after Cherry, making up with her has to be less awkward!

The shudder that then ran through me, made it clear that mending my relationship with the pink mare was going to be a little harder than just talking, however.

Either way, I shook my head, ears still burning as I looked back at Vertigo. He was staring off into the distance behind me, ears tall and eyes fixed. I stepped right into his line of sight, frowning behind my visor.

"Is that it, nothing else witty to add?" I inquired before he could catch me off guard again.

He cocked his head, then shoved me aside with a forehoof so he could peer down the highway again.

The nerve of this stallion, am I just supposed to be ignored now?

"Shush, you want the whole desert to hear you?" he muttered, glancing at me as his ears twitched and he sniffed the air.

"Oh, like you have cared so much about subtleness before," I spat, yet as I looked to where his attention was directed, I saw the unmistakable glow of a light streaming through the broken carriage windows ahead.

"Somepony's coming," he warned, as I peered forward. "Shut your lamp off."

Begrudgingly, I did as instructed, and sure enough, four red bars entered the range of my new E.F.S, marching slowly towards us.

"So, what? You apparently know everything there is to know, super-stallion, what now?" I asked as he glanced around.

"Hide, in there." He pointed a forehoof to a long carriage, before darting over.

Seriously, he's hiding? It was the exact opposite of what I was expecting.

Nevertheless, I followed, trying my best not to ogle his butt too much as he crouched between the warped wagon seats in front of me.

"So remind me again why we're hiding in here?" I questioned as I moved in beside him, almost cowering under the seat like somepony's lost luggage.

He rolled his eyes.

"Were you not the pony who was just telling me how to survive out here?" he asked, and despite myself, I felt a small flutter of satisfaction. "Now, shush, we have some stuff they'd be really interested in if we're caught, and with you here, I can't just fly out."

Okay, and there's my satisfaction gone. I inwardly huffed. Stupid Vertigo, why not just be some great, all-powerful alicorn and fly around all the time then?

Yet as I watched the red bars on my E.F.S draw closer and saw the headlight outside break through the shattered windows overhead, I remained silent. Then came the heavy clunk of hoofsteps on cracked asphalt, and the mechanized whirring of movement.

I know that sound. Power armor! Oh, this really is shaping up to be another great night.

"Spread out, not every blip here can be Radroaches, they don't have lights," came the gravelly voice of a helmeted Steel Ranger as the metallic hoofsteps came to a halt right outside the carriage.

They have E.F.S in those suits too! I thought in sudden alarm. Damn, I never thought I'd have been so happy for there to be so many Radroaches everywhere.

The light passed over again, and my mane stood on end as the sound of a hydraulic-assisted hoof bucking in a carriage door was followed by the heavy sounds of them searching the area.

"This area is restricted, scavengers, come out now, offer up your contraband and you will be free to leave," boomed another augmented voice, that of a mare I could guess from the tone.

I looked to my left as the light passed over the entrance of the wagon, drawing my weapon. If they came in here, I'd be ready, this was not my first time dealing with ponies like them, I knew the weak points in power armor.

Yeah, but dealing with a whole squad of trained Steel Rangers, are you seriously going to take your chances like this, Dragonfire? You're not just fighting for yourself anymore.

A little flutter in my belly was all too much of a reminder as I bit back my thoughts. That was when I felt a hoof tap my shoulder, and glanced to see Vertigo shushing me again.

What, I didn't even make a sound? I thought, cocking my head.

Yet having regained my attention, the stallion rolled over and motioned to the rear door of the carriage with a forehoof. Outside there was the sound of another carriage getting bucked in, then the clunk of a metallic hoof on our carriage's steps. I ducked my head, as the light came in along with the heavily armored head of the Steel Ranger. Like my own helmet on Stampede, the hulking mass of metal pipes and arcane technology clunked and whirred as the pony inside surveyed the gloom.

I made out the few red bars nearby on my E.F.S, seeing exactly what he was, and as his head passed over to the far side, I kicked out a hind hoof at a moldy, old suitcase. Just as my targeting spell suggested, a pair of radroaches scurried out and made right for the door. The ranger's eyes fixed on them instantly, squashing one with a heavy hoof before drawing back out to catch the other.

"What is it, knight?" came the voice of the mare who'd called out first, their leader I assumed.

"Nothing, Star Paladin, just bugs, ma'am," the knight responded, withdrawing from the wagon door.

There was a groan from the Star Paladin, like the grinding of gears through her helmet as she spoke again.

"A waste of time, spread out, and keep looking!"

The sound of their hooves stomping away met my perked ears, as did the smash of another wagon as they searched elsewhere. I glanced at Vertigo, only to realize I'd unknowingly pressed a forehoof to his lips to shush him.

"Nice move," he offered, brushing my limb away as he crept out into the carriage's central aisle.

Damn it, why did that make me blush? I thought, folding back my burning ears as I crept toward the rear door after him. Hahaha, I know what rear door you're looking at right now... Shut up, brain

Vertigo's horn lit up as he pressed his back to the door and magically pulled the thing open. I winced along with him as dust was shaken off the creaking mass of metal. Yet one look back and it was clear we still hadn't attracted any more attention.

Damn, I hope they can't distinguish between all the random bars and the ones that move with purpose? I thought as Vertigo gently swung the door open.

Of course, that was when it fell off its decrepit hinges with a loud clunk.

Oh, fuck you, wasteland!

Vertigo jumped from the door, rolling onto all four hooves. I followed, sliding down the bank of sand that had built up at the rear of the carriage as four distinct bars in my E.F.S all shifted back towards the rusting vehicle. The light swiveled to illuminate the wreckage behind me, casting long, spiked shadows across the broken asphalt as I ducked down with Vertigo.

"What was that? I thought you said it was clear?" the lead paladin asked as I glimpsed one of the armored ponies moving back between two wagons.

"Literal metalheads, not too bright, are they?" Vertigo joked as he dropped down and crept toward the roadside.

For once I couldn't disagree with him, it was almost comical how oblivious they were. If it weren't for their huge guns, I'd have called out loud to offer a fighting chance. That, and my mind was still far too fixated on Vertigo's rear only inches from my muzzle.

Wonder what he tastes like... He can be a 'she' if he wants, right? Maybe I can get back at him for his peppermint comment?

My wayward thoughts almost saw me march right into the stallion's hanches as he paused. I took a small step back, flashes of Cherry's kiss in my mind as I imagined it was her flank I'd almost bumped.

Goddesses, am I really that into him? Or am I only imagining her because I'm loyal? I wondered, right as I was partly lit up by a beam of light. Okay, really, fuck you, wasteland!

"Run, damn it!" I declared, shoving Vertigo forward as I took off.

The ranger yelled out some warning about stopping and complying. Yet with no such compliance, she was swift to turn the wagon we'd been hiding in into a blasted hunk of scrap with a shot from what I could only guess was a grenade machine gun. There was a clunk as the thing reloaded, then a whoosh as it sent another barrage flying toward us. Shrapnel clattered against my scaled armor as wagons were blasted apart. Vertigo had his head low, levitating on his helmet as the pair of us dove for the barricade at the edge of the highway.

"Of course, they'd find us... Just my luck," the disguised changeling declared as he leaped over the rusted metal.

"Yeah well, we wouldn't be in this mess if you weren't trying to show off!" I retorted, jumping after him.

The stretch sent a bolt of pain through my body, and a sharp cramp in my gut forced me to fold in on myself, legs catching the barricade and knocking me off balance. I hit the dusty floor with a thud, sand, and rocks scattering around me as another set of explosions sent a cascade of rubble and metal shrapnel over my head. I pressed my forehooves to my helmet as fire lapped the brim of the shattered barricade, before I peeked up, just in time to see another volley of grenades.

Great, looks like more of them have taken notice! My mind screamed, scorning me for even being out here as I glanced up at several explosives that were most certainly going to kill me. Guess Cherry won't have to be awkward anymore... I'm so sorry.

"Move your dumb tail, you idiot!" called Vertigo, before I felt the sensation of magic wrap around me, and I was yanked away.

Next thing I knew I was galloping on air, an array of explosions lighting up the night behind me as fire washed over the sand.

"What did I say about levitating me around!?"

I couldn’t blame him for failing to acknowledge my foalish squirming as I kicked and wiggled, gut-churning and threatening to make me retch once again. Moments later, I heard the clunk of metal hooves as three power armored ponies marched through the flames like metal demons, leveling their array of heavy weapons at the indigo stallion. He bowed his head, a layer of over glow forming around his horn.

What is he...? I realized what he was doing, and my eyes popped wide.

"Wait... Getting blown up or not, don't you dare..."

The sensation of floating was lost, replaced by what felt like sliding down a long tunnel of sleek metal. Seconds later it was like trying to squeeze through an impossibly small hole, my body stretching as I went. Yet in as brief a flash as the sensation had started it stopped, popping me out like the cork from a champagne bottle as I staggered.

Is it just me or does my mane smell singed? I wondered, before, in an instant, my thoughts went right to my foal.

I looked back over my shoulder, eyeing the slightly pudgy mass in my midsection.

No, no, no... Not the foal... Anything but... There was a light flutter and I felt my anxiety spike, before washing away, the spark of life was still there.

"What was that about showing off?" Vertigo coughed as he staggered to his hooves, swaying as dust fell from his singed armor.

"What kind of stunt was that? Do you have any idea what you could have just cost me!?" I screamed, marching up to him and taking him by the shoulders.

Visor to visor. I was certain we were glaring right into each other's eyes.

"You said it yourself, you have no idea what that can do to us... My damn foal, you lunatic!"

"Yeah, but at least it's better than what they'd do to it with those guns. I warned you about coming out here," he retorted, gesturing behind us.

No, he does not get to be so smug about this, I can take care of myself! With a huff, I let him go, stomping off a few steps ahead and kicking sand.

"I'd have made sure we'd not been caught in the first place... Is my life just a joke to you?" I asked, turning to him sharply.

"You live as long as I can and everything's a joke... Like somepony up there is just messing with you," he countered, nodding up to the cloudy sky.

I snorted, yet at that, sounds drifted up from the roadside, and both our ears perked up.

"Damn, teleporter... Spread out, find them. Don't shoot to kill, anypony that can do that is valuable!"

"Looks like I have some new fans," Vertigo mused as he peered over the small ridge of rock we'd materialized upon, and looked down the mound of sand below as the rangers fanned out from the road.

I took one look at my E.F.S, spying that we were now two very obvious and exposed red bars in the middle of the cliffside. At that, I yanked him back with my magic seconds before a grenade struck the base of our rocky perch. The whole cliffside shook, sandstone boulders thundering down around us as rivers of gravel gave way and poured downwards toward the power armored ponies.

"They're bigger fans of you than I am right now. That's for sure," I growled as I steadied myself. "I'm getting sick of saving your flank too."

"Damn it, I said don’t shoot to kill!" yelled the gruff mare I'd identified as the Star Paladin.

"Two targets, two o'clock, on the ridge!" called another of the rangers, the sounds of their advancing hooves becoming audible.

"Any more bright ideas?" I asked Vertigo as he steadied himself too.

"I have one more trick up my sleeve," he responded, looking up at the cliff face. "The sub-complex should back into these cliffs, if we can..." He tapped his chin and I rolled my eyes.

Master of strategy, how attractive. I mentally remarked as he stomped a forehoof.

"Any time now, Vertigo," I pressed, and he finally nodded towards one of the many narrow gorges marring the orange cliffside.

"Perfect, we just need to get them all in one confined space, catch them all out at once. That'll work." He glanced at me, and I knew under that helmet, he had to be smiling. "Follow me, we'll give them a surprise!"

"Oh, of course, we will. If they don't blow us up first!" I called as he took off into a tight canyon between two gnarled cliffs, leaving me little choice but to bolt after him.

I found the crevice he’d disappeared into the shadows of was just wide enough for us both to fit side by side as I caught up, panting.

Goddesses, was I always this desperate for breath before, or is it just a pregnant thing?

Nevertheless, I struggled to turn, blindly leveling my weapon to aim behind me as the flashing of headlamps heralded the sound of metal hooves approaching. Meanwhile, Vertigo took a step forward, nudging my gun down as he levitated a grenade from his saddlebags and rested it on his back.

"You may want to take a step back," he warned as the first of the power armored ponies appeared in the narrow space.

"Stop right there, or I'll blow you to bits, savages," rumbled the voice of the Star Paladin.

She was a lot larger than the others, with armor and canon to match. All of it marked by the cobalt-blue stripe many of the rangers in the southwest boasted.

"Wait a minute, I've seen you before." She looked right at Vertigo as the stallion lifted a forehoof in surrender.

"Okay, you got me, guys... So, how about a prize?" he asked as two more rangers appeared behind their leader.

His magic flared and I glimpsed the blue band around the grenade seconds before he tossed it over his head and it landed amidst the armored trio. I imagined their eyes going quite wide behind those visors as I ducked along with Vertigo, the crackling blue flash that followed lighting up the canyon. Lightning lanced outwards, spider webbing over their armor, causing the arcane attire to pop and fizzle, before the shock faded and they all went still. Next came a low whine, the distinct sound of something in their suits powering down as Vertigo rose to his hooves and regarded the three.

"Dummies, gets you every time," he joked, peering into the Star Paladin's visor.

"If you think that's going to stop us, then think again," she rumbled from within her armor, muffled voice gruff even without the active augmentations.

Seconds later, there was a whoosh, then a boom as another grenade arched overhead and the canyon path behind us exploded.

"You only got three of them, feather brain!" I called as I darted deeper into the mountain, the stone walls around us starting to crumble.

Rocks clattered down as orange dust filled the air and I faintly heard another whoosh as a second volley of grenades was sent over us. I skidded to a halt moments before a large boulder slammed down in front of me.

"So much for not trying to kill us!" Vertigo called as he galloped to my side and we worked our way around the fallen stone.

"Can't exactly order boulders around, you dunce!" I snapped, skidding left to avoid a deluge of rocks the size of my head. "You didn't tell me they were friends of yours!"

He chuckled, leaping over a fallen rock and rolling to his hooves.

Damn, I wish I could still move like that without a world of indigestion.

"So I may have slipped up and let them see my base armor once or twice before, makes things more interesting," he confessed as we reached a narrow slit at the end of the canyon, leading into what looked like a cave.

Underground again? Where did that get you last time? My mind questioned as I hesitantly looked between the cave and the rockslide coming down around us.

"You and I have totally different ideas of interesting!" I snapped, jumping aside as a rock twice my size came thudding down where I'd just been standing.

There was another whoosh, then a thud as the cliff directly above us exploded, and a whole wall of stone came sliding down. I looked up, paling at the sight.

Is going underground again really so bad? Going to be buried either way! Regardless, Vertigo wasn't willing to give me a choice.

"I'm not waiting for ladies first," he called, darting ahead before his magic yanked me into the gloom and the rocks came down where I'd been paralyzed.

Looking back, I had just enough time to see the thick cloud of dust lit up by the headlamp of another ranger before the thundering deluge of sandstone boulders piled up and cut off the outside. Sealing me in darkness, tangled with Vertigo yet again.

"Do you just live to spread chaos and piss me off?" I hissed, not so graciously standing on his stomach as I staggered to my hooves.

The stallion let out a breath, wincing as he clenched his gut.

Ha, doesn't feel so nice to have stomach pains out here, does it!?

"The first part maybe... But I'm not trying to piss you off, it's just too easy to get under your skin," he wheezed, magically pulling off his helmet and taking a deep breath.

More like under my tail... That wouldn't be so bad though...I mentally berated the directions my thoughts had taken as Vertigo's snide remarks were cut off by a fit of coughing. Humm, his dumb suffering is kinda cute... Damn it, stop it!

I shook the idea from my mind, thwacking the side of my helmet before turning my headlamp on once again and surveying the cave around us. For a moment, I was terrified we'd just sealed ourselves in a tiny space behind the canyon, yet panning the light over, I made out it was far larger than I'd anticipated. Smooth walls of red sandstone surrounded me, and a floor of loose sand reflected the pale light, forming a ghostly river leading deeper into the cavern. Small clusters of glowing green fungus clung to the walls and the odd stalactite hung from above.

Given that some of the hanging features were now laying on the floor, I guess the ranger's bombardment had shaken this place right down to its core. That was only proved more so as I glanced back, and the whole cavern shook, a muffled boom emanating from outside.

"That's not going to keep them out long with guns like that," Vertigo informed me as he heaved himself to his hooves.

"You got that right, so how about we stop sitting here waiting for them?" I asked, looking down the tunnel. "Where's this go, brainiac?"

He slipped his helmet back on as the cave shook again, trails of dust trickling down upon us.

"If I'm right; Fort Sandstone backs into these cliffs, I've flown over a few times. These tunnels must lead somewhere," he elaborated.

Perfect escape route for any prisoner wishing to get out, sure. So why are we trying to get in again? I thought, scowling.

"Flying sounds great, you do that without being shot down, how?" I asked, and he looked back over his shoulder, tapping his eye lenses.

"At night, changelings see better in the dark, we grow up in underground hives," he explained, then swished his tail, wiggling his rear. "Plus, I like doing most of my dirty work in the dark too."

My ears burned once again, helmet heating up as that urge to buck his smug face in came back.

I'll buck him right now if it gets him to shut up... Either way of bucking is fine!

"Fine, in that case, feel free to lead the way," I offered, swinging my headlight away and gesturing to the pitch-black tunnel.

I could almost sense his eyes roll at that, but nevertheless, he led on

Anything to look at his butt, that's the only reason he's in front, right?

"You know, keep hitting your head like that and ponies will start thinking you’re weird," he suggested, as I beat my thoughts into submission once again.

"Me, the weird one?" I pressed a hoof to my chest, almost tripping. "You are the one who's some strange bug pony. What else about changelings don't I know?" I snapped as he steadied my walk with a nudge of his rear.

Urg, why does he have to be so sweet sometimes... And his flanks... So, firm, damn it! I thought as my companion shrugged.

"I don't know, you tell me?" he countered, and I grumbled as he added. "What do you wanna know?"

I felt all of the spinning thoughts regarding him rush to arrange themselves at the forefront of my mind.

I can ask him what he can do, who he can turn into. Just like Binary suggested in the recording... No, I already concluded that's wrong!

"Well, for one, you said you're a guy... But what about mares..." I twirled a forehoof in the air. "Parts, do you have those? What happens if one of you ends up like me?" I asked, gesturing to my midsection.

"Well, we're not ponies for one, we can't have foals with stallions." He chuckled.

Oh pony feathers, why does he know how to make me feel like an idiot!? From now on it was pretty safe to assume my helmet was never coming off while he was around, the heat in my cheeks was too much.

Even so, the smugness radiating from him could have been enough to spend my Pipbuck on a clicking spree as he seemed to wait for my permission to continue. My ears folded back and I nodded once, kicking a small mound of sand with a forehoof.

"I guess that makes sense. Now, do you wanna tell me how you can have a wagon and a garage at the same time, or are you just here to smirk?" I muttered, and once again, he laughed.

"I can't have both at once, change them on demand, sure. But if you want the honest truth, my reproductive organs never change. They're pretty much pointless, really. Only a hive's queen can lay eggs," he elaborated, and I cocked my head, ears perking.

It would be a lie if I didn't say there'd been a few times I'd wondered what it would be like not to be stuck with estrus every now and then. Sometimes my biology was insufferable.

"Technically, we're neither mare's nor stallions, like I said. Some Changelings prefer to identify as females, some the opposite. I had a few brood siblings who didn't care either way."

He let out a long breath at that, and once again I was caught wondering if that care he seemingly had for his fellow changelings was genuine.

Can they feed off each other, that would mean they can feel love, right? I thought as he continued.

"When we take on a form, our insides stay the same. They can condense, take a lot of pressure if we shrink or grow." He gestured back to his rear. "Everything is internal back there, we usually use mind magic to give a host the impression of either a mare or stallion, changelings are very good at mind and memory spells."

"Great, we fuck now and I'll know it's fake," I sighed, and he chuckled.

"Some things are better left forgotten, right?" he asked, and I shrugged.

"Maybe, but don't even think about rummaging in my mind to try and take that memory out, got it?" I warned.

He pressed a hoof to his chest.

Goddesses, I wish I could be so graceful, does getting knocked up really make it so hard to walk, how about in a few weeks? My ears folded again as my companion added.

"To be genuine for a second, I won't go into anypony's head unless they ask. I made a promise about that," he assured me, and my attention spiked.

"A promise to who?" I asked, but he looked ahead, neglecting to answer for a few long moments.

"Somepony who was worth keeping promises for," he stated, and once again, my eyes fell on his butt as he walked.

Damn it, the thing's like a magnet. Is this a weird changeling thing too? I thought, guessing it was kinda easier to think about knowing what lay between those flanks was fake. Wait, is that really a good thing, he's still handsome?

Still, the way he spoke about it made it sound as if it was a touchy subject. Therefore, I didn't press, no matter how curious I was about him, his magic, and the memory orbs he'd had back at the tower.

He can't actually be Fleet Wing, can he?

"So you all come from the same pony... Changeling, then?" I asked, part of me kinda warmed by the idea of so many brothers and sisters. So what if I have a soft spot for siblings?

"The queen, yeah, she chooses one warrior or infiltrator every cycle to sire a brood. So we have siblings and brood-siblings. Your brood is your unit, family, kinda... Though I lost that a long time ago," he confirmed, glancing away down a narrow side passage.

I looked too, noting that a red bar I'd been tracing was a radroach as it scurried across the light of my lamp.

"So you were an infiltrator, right?" I went on.

"Right, for the badlands hive, served my queen-mother, Chrysalis. Though, I've not been back there in a long time, last I heard the Changedlings overran the place anyway. If any hives were still there, they'd either be dead or have retreated into the nexus," he explained as the cave around us started to widen, another pair of Radroaches scattering from my light.

"The Nexus? Is that one of those things you tell me about, and then have to kill me?" I pressed with a small laugh.

He at least shared my chuckle.

"Hardly any point in keeping the secrets of a dead empire. Nexus was the capital of the Changeling Under Empire, yes. Home of the Queen council, but that was a long time ago, before the war even," he told me, and the idea of a whole empire of bug ponies lurking under ponykind’s hooves sent my mane crawling.

Damn, imagine if they were all like Vertigo, irritating and handsome. I shook my head, ready to dig deeper into the history of his kind, yet before I could my hooves hit something other than soft sand.

There was a rattling clunk as we stepped out onto a squat platform of rusted metal at the end of the passage, where the cave widened out into a large, underground chamber. The sandy floor dropped out from under us, forming a small bank at the edge, while the metal frame led down a set of old stairs to the floor below. More patches of growing green fungus clustered around stalactites that dotted the cavern, while a dull, red hue lingered.

Opposite, the natural subterranean formation was marred by a large metal box suspended on steel stilts. Several crimson bulbs dotted its flanks and windows were cut into its rusting metal face; glass shattered in several places. It all suggested we'd stumbled on the edge of some kind of underground pre-war installation.

Great, because it's always so much better to get into these kinds of places through the back doors. Then I get to see all the messed-up monsters in the basement first on the tour! My thoughts grumbled as Vertigo took a step forward.

"What do we have here?" the stallion muttered, a forehoof on his chin. "There must really be some parts of the complex connected to these caves?" he added, seemingly more to himself than me as I trotted up next to him.

"Looks like whatever it is, it's seen better days," I offered, nodding to a particular part of the structure that seemed to have collapsed, the cave having fallen in around it.

Yeah, underground, it's not like that can happen to you at any moment down here. My mind warned as Vertigo trotted down the stairs towards the opposite structure.

"This doesn't look like corrosion," he observed, nudging aside a fallen rock, before looking at some rust on the metal wall. "Doesn't look recent either, must have happened when the place was bombed."

At his observations, I cocked my head, vaguely recalling something I'd read about Fort Sand Stone somewhere.

"What do you mean? Saying this place was blown up before everything else?"

Vertigo nodded as he took a step up onto the pile and started to levitate rocks aside.

"Yeah, I remember it, a week or two before the war the prison went into lockdown, then somepony apparently detonated a bomb inside. They never finished the investigation though."

I looked to one side, noticing several mounds of scrap metal and what appeared to be dry branches, along with bracken and small rocks. Vertigo lugged a rock my way, and I turned my gaze back to him sharply.

"Sorry," he said swiftly, before pulling away another stone and revealing a way into the metal room. "Goddesses only know what they were up to down here. I heard reports of prisoners going missing even before the bombing."

I zoned out of his explanation as he tried to squeeze through, yet finding the passage was still too small he resumed digging. The mounds sitting in the shadow of the collapsed pile captivated my attention, however, and I paused, levitating some of the dry vegetation aside before removing a scrap metal plate. Then the sense of unease in me was proved right as a cold dread ran through my veins.

Damn it, I knew those mounds looked familiar! What do I know about caves in the desert!? Nestled within each cluster of junk was a dozen or so pale eggs, each soft and reptilian in nature.

"Rattle tails," I uttered under my breath, eyes darting to the shadows as I gently set the metal back down.

My E.F.S was dark, surly that meant no reason to worry, yet the cold talons of anxiety didn't release me from their grip.

"Vertigo," I hissed through gritted teeth, glancing back at the busily burrowing buck.

His butt in the air and face in the hole, it was hard not to get distracted.

No, Dragonfire, think about rutting the bug later. Right now make sure you don't end up minced meat!

"Vertigo!" I hissed again, as loud as I dared as I drew my rifle once more and sidled up to him, daring to nudge his rump with the butt of my weapon. "Vertigo, get your head out here now, or so help me..."

There was a dry pop and puff of dust as the stallion appeared, helmet marred by orange sediment. Yet he cocked his head, looking puzzled.

"What is it?" He began to ask, before I pressed a hoof to his helmet's mouthpiece and nodded back behind me.

He glanced at the half a dozen nests, then at me, nodding once.

"Be quiet, they find us near the nest and we're in for it," I warned, taking a step back.

Vertigo followed, then just like that, the whole rock pile gave way. There was a rumble, a small trickle of rock to start, before the whole wall came crashing down with a thick cloud of dust. I darted aside, Vertigo following my lead as the pair of us fell limply to the sand. Stones clattered down around me once again, thudding against my helmet before finally, the rocky deluge came to a stop and I dared look up, E.F.S flickering in my vision.

So much for being quiet, you're screwed. My mind chirped as I searched for red bars in my vision. Damn it, what's with this thing? It's supposed to tell me where bad things are, right?

I looked right as a fit of coughing erupted next to me.

"Okay, getting a little sick of falling rocks today," Vertigo wheezed, rolling onto his back and looking up at the newly-formed pile of boulders.

Like a river, the stream of stones had flown right under the metallic stilts of the structure, knocking several out and forcing the whole thing to lean away from the wall, groaning metallically. The dusty haze cleared just enough for me to see that the rockslide had also pooled in the center of the chamber, crushing the nests.

I felt blood seep from my face and my ears pressed flat as I heaved my laser rifle out from under a mound of sand while Vertigo sat up, shaking dust from his helmet. Then his ears stood tall as he looked to where he'd been digging just a second ago.

"Look, it's not all that bad, we can get through now. Don't even have to teleport you again." I scowled at him as he pointed to the door, but right then it seemed my growing frustration was the least of his worries.

The best I caught was a glimmer in the corner of my eye. I knew a stealth field when I saw one, I'd fought plenty of stealth buck wielding ponies. I magically shifted my rifle, yet what materialized and clamped its jaws around Vertigo's outstretched leg was not a pony.

The twisted amalgamation of reptilian and canine had wicked, yellow eyes, each narrowed like the slitted spheres of a snake. Its mangy body was a patchwork of green scales and balding, pale skin. Scars dotted its hide, ears torn and ragged. That didn't detract from its sharp teeth, however; as it rattled its signature tail. That tail was the first thing I grabbed as Vertigo yelped. The creature's incessant rattling cut off as I yanked it away, small fountains of green blood shooting from the punctures its snake-like fangs had made in my friend's armor.

Hissing as it thrashed and kicked in my magical grip the Rattle-tail was met with a buck to the face from Vertigo before I tossed it to the floor and aimed my weapon. Once again, I was overjoyed to have my magic back as I blasted the thing into a bloody spray. No matter what ponies had fused them with back before the war, they were no match for a good blaster!

Of course, that hope was short-lived, and I could almost hear the wasteland cackle as the bloody spray struck several more invisible bodies, picking them out like crimson ghosts in the gloom. Their cover broken, the remaining Rattle-tails materialized, hissing and snapping their serpentine jaws. I had just enough time to turn to Vertigo as he groggily rose to his hooves.

"Damn it, you had to go wake the neighborhood, didn't you!?" I snapped, yet before he could shoot back with a witty remark, I shoved him toward the newly-opened hole in the wall. "Get in there, if there's a locked door, by Celestia you better open it!"

He looked at me as if in a daze, before shaking his head and nodding.

"I–I'm on it!"

Sting levitated beside him as he scrambled up into the metal chamber. A howl of pain resonating out from behind me as the makeshift weapon proved just as effective against the mutated beasts as it was against anything else. Meanwhile, I was stuck dealing with the small hoard of angry mutants in front of me, and one creature's head exploded into gore as another lunged.

Damn it, the rate of disintegration with this thing is a joke! I inwardly growled as the beams failed to vaporize another Rattle-tail and I was forced to swing the gun to bat it aside.

The beast fell back with a yelp as I backed right up into what appeared to be some kind of control room. A counter of dials, switches, and flickering lights lay before the cracked windows, as if somepony had once thought it was necessary to monitor something in the small cavern outside.

Stupid ponies and their stupid experiments! I mentally growled, kicking one Rattle-tail aside and blasting it as another scurried along the control panel and latched onto my foreleg with its jaws.

I winced, expecting two pricks of pain, yet the creature simply chewed on one of my dragon scales before ripping it off and falling back. As if thinking the lucky beast had managed to rip away flesh, the others all descended on the same spot, fighting as two more tried to flank me.

"Damn it, that's mine... Do you know how much that's worth!?" I called, yet before I could reach for the lost scale one of the creatures pushed forward, knocking me aside.

I felt my insides lurch again, and I fought hard not to throw up in my helmet as my stomach churned. The crafty Rattle-tail righted itself, hissing as it spun to face me, fangs flashing. I kicked out, stomach twisting as I smacked it right in the face. It gave a pained hiss, but before I could fire to finish it off Vertigo called out.

"Dragonfire, get in here!"

My head whipped around to see the buck lying slumped against the inner wall of a doorway to my left. I didn't even hesitate as I leaped up and bolted for the corridor, smacking a Rattle-tail aside with my magic as I reached the door, seconds before one of the creatures lunged at me from behind. I fell into the gloomy corridor beside Vertigo with a clunk, yet my pursuer wasn't so lucky as the door came down, shearing its head clean off with a bloody pop. I looked to see blood stain my barding, the limp head sitting between my splayed rear legs, tongue lulling, and eyes bulged.

Blood and spread legs, so this is what it's going to feel like in the end? My mind proposed as I reflexively kicked the decapitated head away and collected myself. No, it's not going to be like that... I wasn't... Nothing like that's going to come out of me!

I took a deep breath as panic gripped me, and without thought ripped off my helmet to keep up with the higher load my lungs demanded. All the while I pressed a forehoof to my stomach as it churned. I imagined a healthy, happy foal, a colt... Just like my brother. This would be no different, it couldn't be.

"D-Dragonfire..." Rasped an odd voice that sounded only half like Vertigo's.

I looked back to see a frail flickering of green fire as my companion's form slowly burn back into that strange, black, chitinous body. Armor shifting back to that odd, guard-like appearance as it had done in Binary's tower.

Vertigo coughed, his base voice reverberating as he looked at me sheepishly with those cloudy, blue eyes. My ears folded back as I peered at him, no way did he look in a good state. Then he winced, fangs flashing as he forced a weak smile.

"One more thing about changelings..." He coughed again, tattered ears folding back. "We're not immune to venom."

---

Footnote: Level up

New perk added: Hit the Deck (rank one) - You’ve really been hit by far too many explosions, it’s time to consider a new career? +35 Damage Threshold against explosives.

Next Chapter: Chapter Twenty-Five: Fort Sandstone Estimated time remaining: 45 Minutes