Vira reclined on a sandy beach, blushing furiously at the pose she had been talked into and looking to the strange scenery to distract herself. If she didn't think about it very hard, she could almost pretend she was sunbathing at some tidy old world beachfront resort. She had to ignore the sun was actually a series of magical sunlamps, and that the chilly water washing her long tail up and down was basically just a small wave pool, and that the clear blue horizon, cheery boats and busy docks she could see were merely paintings on the walls, but it was pleasant.

Since they solved the case here, Nick and his assistant detective had been invited to stay in Stable 118 and Vira had been quickly dragged off by Mr. Cane to pose for him as promised, a rather relaxing and interesting use of her time so far. It had involved a lot of primping, preening and fawning over his gorgeous model that Virescent mostly enjoyed, feeling a little bashful at his attention and the lurid thoughts the old brain in a jar had plotting out his numerous alicorn inspired works so far.

Though it had resulted in several new outfits from Ms. Polomare on Mr. Cane's expense account with the slightly greedy mare, something Vira hadn't been above taking advantage of given his choices and how seductive he made her look wearing them. She was happy to pay her own hard earned caps for the lovely detective outfit Suri was still tailoring to fit her large frame, but delighted to get so many other outfits she wouldn't necessarily buy for herself.

When she told the old robot about her romantic inclinations towards a certain alicorn stallion dressed like his old comic book character, Mr. Cane had giddily used it as an excuse to dress up his lovely model in skimpy outfits sure to 'drive any buck wild' according to him. The series of snapshots he gave her of each pose to give her intended were not images she wanted anypony else to see, but her heart fluttered thinking of sharing them with the male and modeling all her new clothes for him. Those were all just the prelude however, poses for Mr. Cane's paintings he had started at a manic pace. This one was what he called the 'pin-up picture' though, one he would give her the actual piece he created from, signed by the famous artist himself to his biggest fan back in the Commonwealth.

She did wish this strange, slightly sad room meant to give the upper crust residents of Stable 118 a feeling of being outside under the sun wasn't quite so realistic. The way the warm sand got everywhere would be bad enough, but the skimpiest outfit yet they had acquired from Ms. Polomare just exacerbated the problem. The white swimsuit would be revealingly tight on a normal mare, on Vira it was stretched to the breaking point, even with Suri making several snips that showed off even more of her green fur to get her squeezed into it at all.

The feverish mania Mr. Cane drew with was unnerving too, in the throes of lusty creation with a gorgeous model he kept mentally complimenting as he traced every line and curve. While his feelings were flattering, Vira was having a hard time battling a surge of shyness from being on display like this. Holding herself up on her forelegs behind her out thrust chest, in a half twist that showed off her flank and long legs wasn't exactly comfortable either... let alone with the sand trying its damndest to crawl into every bit of of bathing suit wedged in her ass.

Having already sketched the broad strokes of her curvy body, Mr. Cane had brought out the camera and was growing frustrated trying to get her to put on the right expression. At least she wouldn't have to hold it once he snapped the damn picture, but his directions had gotten more confusing than 'move your leg here' or 'raise your wing', flummoxing the sheltered alicorn currently sticking her lower lip out in an exaggerated pout.

"No, no, no.. not like that dear, you look like a filly being told she can't have a cookie." The artist threw his flexible forelegs up to the heavens, huffing impatiently.

"You said 'pouty' didn't you?"

"Pouty lips yes, but sexy, mature mare pouty, not 'I want', little filly pouty! Come on now, give me ...sultry!" Holding the camera up again, Mr. Cane returned to his vague instruction, groaning at Vira answering with a blank stare.

"Er.... that's happy, right? Sort of happy? Smiling?" Vira flashed a predatory smile, trying to read more than what he was giving and picking out 'hungry look' from his thoughts.

Her sharp fangs extending wasn't what he was looking for though... If the robobrain rolling back and forth in a tantrum still had a mane, he would be tearing it out at this point. "NO! Demure! Warmer, like you have a secret... no don't cover your mouth! Errrgh!"

"Well I'm sorry, I don't understand the things you're talking about. I'm.... still new to all this you know! Can't you just make it up? You're a talented artist Mr. Cane, you don't need me to..." Vira huffed and let her eyes wander back to the open comic book lying nearby, trying to return to her enjoyable reading of Mr. Cane's old works.

A cold metal claw pressed Vira's lips shut, letting Mr. Cane lift his gaze from his treaded hindlegs as he took in a deep breath mentally. "That would be a lie, we want to show this buck the real you, not whatever I made up. We're trying to show off your essence! Communicate how you feel to this cosplayer stallion of yours!"

"I am sure he would be thrilled merely getting the picture signed and drawn in the style of your entertaining comics Mr. Cane.... Ooooooh! How frustrating! You had the Shrouded Stallion redeem the mad Mechnamare and they came so close to kissing, only for him to vanish! Your old comics are most entertaining Mr. Cane, but very unsatisfying when they end before getting to the juicy bits! And he is more than a simple cosplayer, whatever that is... you don't think highly of it." Vira whinnied at the end of another comic adventure floating closed in her magic out of the corner of her eye, arching a disappointed brow to the blue robobrain and trying to change the subject as she unobtrusively floated the next issue from the battered cardboard box nearby.

The robotic creator of the Shrouded Stallion comics of the old world chuckled at her critique and fussed at his model. "It's called romantic tension Vira, you go right up to the line, then draw it out for just the reaction you're giving now. You're reading another of those old things, aren't you? You'll just have to forgive a snarky thought here and there too, or keep that mindreading business to yourself. I've seen plenty of fans at too many conventions who dressed up as my characters, one more is nothing special to me... I... I put all that behind me... A-Anyway, tell me about this buck dear, maybe that will get you to put on the proper expression."

The subject of his old comics and the stallion currently running around the Commonwealth wearing the costume of his creation was the source of a lot of conflicted feelings in Mr. Cane that made Virescent curious. She'd never read the ancient illustrated works before, having no interest in foalish pony works like comic books before becoming infatuated with an old world comics nerd.

Now that she had several issues under her belt, she didn't understand why Mr. Cane was so self deprecating when it came to them. They were pleasant morality stories, the hero depicted plainly the source of a lot of the male alicorn's strange ideas about honor and being a hero. That alone was enough to make her love them, the valiant hero in the comics that showed mercy and spared what had been a misunderstood villain in the Mechanamare, taught the real buck Fast Times lessons in redemption and forgiveness that had spared Vira's own life and made her care for him. Seeing how much of him clearly came from this foalhood influence, Vira didn't like hearing even their creator speaking ill of the old stories.

"I think you would like him Mr. Cane, you obviously taught him many things in these comics of yours, often when reading I even hear his voice speaking the lines. You should be proud your works inspired somepony to try to live up to them, not be so derisive... Do you not like your lovely comics?"

She looked back to the long sigh the robobrain's voicebox gave, curious at the tinge of sadness to his thoughts as slumped to himself in reply. "It does make me happy to hear they did some good Vira, I just haven't thought of those old things in a long time... I convinced myself they were silly and never did anything I hoped for, made quitting hurt less I guess..."

"You quit? But why!? Fast would be very disappointed, not that your other works aren't wonderful as well, but these were definitely not silly."

Her earnest reply seemed to lift his spirits a bit, though he tutted at her leaning up to gasp at him, waving a clawed foreleg at the way her rear jiggled and shifted. "No fidgeting! And... thank you dear, hearing that means a lot. I quit when the Ministry of Image stuck their snouts in too much, wanted me to play up the violence and make more zebra villains... I was an artist, not a propagandist! I refused to go along with it and quit rather than see my creation corrupted like the real one.. Hearing how you talk about him, I guess I got through and did what I hoped for with at least one reader though."

"Oh you certainly did, er... what did you hope for actually? You did teach him to be a hero, to be brave and valiant, forgiving and kind... wonderful and cute..." Vira's heart gave that wonderful fluttery feeling as her words drifted off dreamily, getting lost to her ringing endorsement of the old artists's biggest fan.

Mr. Cane warily whispered for her to continue as he tapped at the camera in his claws, goading her pleasant daydreaming along eagerly. "There we go, stick with that dear... Now think Vira, think about how you feel, what you'd like to do if this stallion of yours was right here. It's just you and him on the beach, alone together... The only two ponies in the world and he only has eyes for you. Now what do you want him to see?"

Closing her eyes and imagining along with Mr. Cane's interesting scenario, Vira sighed and felt her ears go limp, a soft smile curling her muzzle as she went along with the intriguing fantasy. She absently felt Mr. Cane nudging her slowly flaring wings out over an inch, letting her long mane spill over the joint and tugging her tail to follow the curve of her flanks. Her face felt warm and that wonderful flutter kept growing in her chest, the tingle spreading to her belly letting her forget the taught straps of the bathing suit over it.

Her eyes half opened with another long sigh, looking up to the robobrain before her through her thick lashes. When Mr. Cane's camera flashed, they snapped open and shrank to tiny dots, leaving her to shake her head to clear the spots as he gave a victorious snort. "Got it!"

"T-That is not fair! You tricked me Mr. Cane, let me have that picture! Oh I'm sure I must look ridiculous!" Vira gasped and made to lunge at the instant photo whining out from the robot's camera, stymied from snatching it away by his claws shoving her back down into maintaining her pose.

He did let her see it at least, though the image that slowly appeared on the grey film just made her blush brighter. Perhaps not a ridiculous expression on her face, but not a very seemly one either... She did file away what Mr. Cane had been trying to get across as 'sultry' in her mind, cringing at the soft, doe eyed look, the pink cheeks and moist lips... Apparently sultry meant ready to mate as far as she could tell.

"Now, now, this is only for you and your special somepony dear, don't worry, you'll get it back later. You don't look ridiculous either, you look like a mare in love, the most beautiful subject I could hope to paint! Your Shrouded Stallion is a very lucky young buck, I wish you both the best of luck when you're reunited." Mr. Cane nodded smartly and wheeled back to his easel happily, clipping the naughty picture up where he could reference that goofy leer.

Tapping her forehooves together, Vira had to let down the happy old stallion thinking of Vira in a lovely white wedding gown, an image that made her practically glow red for some reason, sending a shiver down her spine as she reticently undermined it. "H-He... he's not mine, l-like that... I mean I do feel... funny about him... but we haven't always gotten along. He saved me and asked me to be better, to find him again as a better pony and... I'm trying. I... I don't know much about love, but I am very curious. He... He made me interested..."

"Oho! Then you're still courting, trying to woo this young buck eh? Then our saucy pin-up is just the thing! That makes me feel better too, if this cosplayer of yours can inspire love in such a wonderful mare, he may understand the real Shroud's virtue better than I did." Mr. Cane laughed back, only adding to Vira's bashfulness as he waved her back into her 'sultry' pose.

What he said did give her a distraction at least, focusing on his mention of a 'real' Shroud, then gulping at the thoughts of ponies and their virtues. "Virtue? Like... his cutie mark?"

Vira's wing automatically moved to cover her blank flank, making Mr. Cane sputter in protest until she uncovered it and raised her wing back to the flared posture of the other. He was kind and reassuring on figuring out her distress, nodding to the bare expanse of forest green flank so prominently displayed. "Easy... Sorry dear, I didn't mean to bring it up that way. The real Shroud didn't have a mark either, because it wasn't a pony... er! Not that you aren't either because you... don't... I'm making a mess of this dear, I only meant to say this buck of yours would get Princess Luna's question right better than I did. Anypony who could capture your heart yourself understands that love is his virtue, not 'justice' like I said."

Having not regained her own mark in all this time since Unity had fallen, the subject made her self conscious, biting her lip being unable to cover her shame. She knew a pony's virtue was tied to their mark, but she had no idea what hers was, what her special talent was, who she was as long as she lacked one. Some of her sisters had gotten their cutie marks back, including the blue one the stallion in question was currently in love with. A slight competitive streak and a healthy dose of fear made her worry she was no match so long as her own flank was bare.

Putting aside those worries, Vira glanced to her current comic and the heroic stallion pictured there, puzzling over some of the strange things Mr. Cane said about his creation and the even stranger thoughts he had. "Real Shroud? What do you mean by that anyway Mr. Cane? Why do you think such scary thoughts when you mention him?"

The old stallion gave a gasp at her expectant look, waving away her brows coming down in a worried frown. "S-Sorry Vira, that psychic business takes some getting used to, I didn't realize you were... I'm still a little spooked from you telling me your Shroud is an alicorn too is all, thinking about old memories. There used to be a real Shrouded Stallion in ancient times you see, that's where the stories came from."

"And this original Shroud was an alicorn too? Like me?" Vira blinked back in surprise, smelling the leathery scent of old books and feeling their brittle pages through the memories of ancient fables Mr. Cane thought of.

Putting aside his brush entirely, Mr. Cane wheeled out from behind his easel with a weary sigh. His clawed forelegs reached out and tilted Vira's chin back up, nudging her legs and wings, then smoothing her mane absently as he spoke. "Not like you, no dear. It was a spirit, something Luna created in the dream realm and could appear in the waking world at her whim. It became corrupted when she became Nightmare Moon though, caused her sister all kinds of problems until she sealed it away. I saw it once you know..."

The strange robot's memories of the old fables gave way to a colder one as his words slowed, making Vira look down again despite his posing and not liking the way his single grey eye drifted off. She heard the clink of chains echoing in his ears, catching glimpses of the weird crystal statue of swirling shadows she had seen from him before, smelling the dank prison it was locked away in and feeling a shiver down her tail.

Vira didn't doubt Mr. Cane had seen ...something... even without digging into the memories hazing his mind. Something she had no real desire to do from the sensations she picked up from him. She could almost see her breath puffing from her muzzle as it was, feeling that deep chill sink into her bones.

"Down... down, down, deep beneath her castle, we actually found him... Locked up tight and with good reason. Still frozen in crystal, but you could.... hear him... in your head... Creepiest damn thing I ever saw, I still dream about it sometimes..." Mr. Cane's words had become a quiet whisper, making Vira concerned by how lost he suddenly seemed.

Giving a forceful cough and flicking her tail snapped him out of it, making the fussy artist yelp at having to readjust his model yet again while she softly nickered. "It sounds unpleasant, nothing like my Fast I assure you. Yet you say something so scary held the virtue of love? From your frustrating comics I would think you were right, he's a pony of justice in your interpretation, the romance never really gets to the good parts... Although I like the idea of love... v-very much... But why is that his virtue? Oh! Do you think it may be Fast's?"

Mr. Cane closed his single eye and radiated the warm sensation of a smile his robotic body couldn't really display in response. "The real Shroud was created out of love Vira, to avenge a star crossed couple. What is justice but feeling love for everycreature dear? Wanting everyone to be treated fairly as you'd expect to be treated? Luna created it out of love for ponykind, and it was shaped by her own dreams of love, a male alicorn right?"

"That's why it was so horrible when it was corrupted and fallen dear. The deepest love can turn to darkest hate. The thing that was left of the real Shrouded Stallion when his love was twisted... Let's just say I'm glad it's your stallion and not the real one. I don't know if it's his virtue since I've never met the buck, but a fan running around dressed up as my Shroud earning your love shows he knows that's what's important. The love of a good mare is the most powerful magic around for a stallion, can let him do impossible things to make her happy, just like you're doing new things and trying to change for him hmm? So let's make him see all the love you feel in this piece, don't be afraid to show it off!"

Giving a sigh and closing her eyes at the old cyborg's encouragement, Vira put on a sheepish smile and tried to follow his advice. She shimmied her flanks and fluffed her wings out to their full span, arching her back and putting more 'sex appeal' as Mr. Cane thought of it into her posing. It wasn't haughty, overblown pride in her own perfection as a child of the Goddess for once, a former position she was beginning to think was behind her shyness.

Putting herself on display was somehow harder now that she wasn't so blindly self assured, but it meant more now too. She was showing off when she doubted herself, hoping the buck she cared for would see a glimmer of the beauty she always unthinkingly assumed she possessed. She didn't know anything about Mr. Cane's real Shrouded Stallion or it having a virtue of love, but she secretly believed her stallion may share it. After all, it was feeling that mysterious pony emotion from him that prompted her to change and grow as a pony. Those warm sensations forming a fuzzy ball in her tummy now urged her on, gave her courage to try new things and make him happy as Mr. Cane said.

Squealing to herself happily at all the ways she pictured giving him the daring picture of herself, Vira nearly shot to the ceiling at the long, low wolf whistle she heard her employer giving from the door. "She's certainly got a lot to show off, doesn't she mac? My, my Vira, here I thought you were posing for artsy pictures, not a spread in Wingboner magazine!"

Vira hit the sky blue painted ceiling and thumped back to the sandy beach, rubbing her head as she squeaked and scampered for cover. The large, striped beach towel she had been lounging on sprang to life in her magic, floating up to inadequately cover herself, supplemented by a wide sun umbrella by the old wooden beach chair she cringed behind.

"N-Nick!? We're not... t-this is... P-Private! Yes, this is private! Not to mention very embarrassing... I-I am not posing to be some lurid centerfold! This is...a g-gift..." Vira sputtered behind her floating cover, peeking out and feeling her blazing cheeks grow even hotter spotting the orange brainbot Plaid Stripes beside Nick at the door.

The idle thought flashing through Nick's mind of reluctant gratitude to his Institute creators for making him 'anatomically correct' just made her glow a brighter red. She didn't mind Plaid rolling her way down to the beach and helping to block her from view, struggling with strange new thoughts that made the mare seeing her like this ok, but not her stallion employer. She used to run around never wearing any clothes at all for Celestia's sake!

Feeling herself flush and stammer for being caught in a compromising position by the synth detective made no sense to her, but she couldn't deny her new feelings either. The knowing wink he shot her before turning around like a gentlecolt just made them worse. "A gift huh? I can guess just the lucky bastard it's for too... Sorry dollface, didn't mean to come peeping or anything, just enjoying the view. It's getting late and Plaid here was asking about you, since you're about the only pony around here that needs to sleep at all she was offering her place to bunk down at."

"I can take care of it from here Detective, you just go on and shoo! Stop your teasing! You look gorgeous Vira, I'm sure your buck will love it. Don't you listen to him. If you're done, you can come sleep in my bed. I never use it anymore, but it was really comfy the last time I did!" Plaid Stripes took over holding up Vira's beach towel to her relief, waving Nick away sternly to his chuckling retreat.

With a questioning look to Mr. Cane whistling to himself innocently at his easel, Vira slinked out from her cover and started struggling with the stretchy bathing suit, fighting her way free and back into her warm sweater. The old artist had enough to finish and saw them off with a cheery wave, allowing Vira to stalk off with his box of comics and continuing his work as his mind slipped into that strange hum it did when he worked.

Interesting as their conversation had been, Vira had had enough trying to puzzle out her own new feelings. Plaid was dealing with plenty of her own as she led Vira down the polished halls of Stable 118 by her hoof too, the undercurrent of worry enough to distract Vira and focus her thoughts on somepony else's concerns.

Plaid Stripes' room was strange... An assortment of odd junk piled high, including ancient bulb ended horns and clothing bizarrely made of spoons. It was as large as all the other resident's rooms Vira had explored while on the case, a smaller side room held a luxurious bed with an eye aching plaid bedspread Vira was eagerly invited to use, along with the wonderful hot shower in Plaid's private bathroom Vira opted for first.

That damn sand had gotten everywhere... and the simple delight of hot water cascading over her was very relaxing, though Plaid hovering at the edge of the water and watching avidly made it harder to enjoy it to the fullest. Not that she necessarily minded or was uncomfortable, even if she didn't fully understand why the cyborg mare seeing was ok, but thoughts of Nick or Longfellow in the same position felt embarrassing.

She was fairly certain it was all related to sex and her new interest in it, since a quick check on Plaid's thoughts informed her that Plaid's 'barn door didn't swing that way', as she kept reminding herself privately. Plaid's reasons for watching so closely were wrapped up with thoughts about how long it had been since she'd been able to enjoy the simple luxury, not mating, so Vira didn't feel ogled or ashamed.

Inviting Plaid to put those dextrous claws to work lathering her tail for her even cheered the robobrain up, stretching her forelegs under the spray to scrub gently as Vira sighed happily. She'd always enjoyed bathing with all her sisters back home after all, doing so with Plaid made her feel more like one of them to Vira, reminding her just how much she had missed her siblings.

Though she did wish the clanking Stable shower was as highly radioactive as Swan's pond back home, being hot was nearly as nice as being radioactive. A hot and radioactive shower would be pure bliss however, something she idly fantasized about as she dried off and put on the tattered old sleeping shirt Plaid laid out for her.

The old Hoofington Reapers jersey would be huge on the smaller Plaid when she still had a pony body, nearly fitting Vira properly when she donned it to Plaid's happy encouragement and assurance it was comfy. Not only was the threadbare garment wonderfully broken in and soft, it still carried a lingering scent of Plaid when she was a normal mare, something Vira breathed in deeply as she was led to Plaid's oversized and overstuffed bed.

She was glad it was such an opulent bed, beyond most clothing not fitting as well as the nice sleeping shirt, almost everything in a normal pony sized world was just too small for the large alicorn to enjoy. Plaid's bed gave her room to stretch out luxuriously, spreading her wide wings under her with a happy sigh.

The robotic mare staring at her longingly was a little distracting though, feeling her thoughts of envy and looking down to her at the foot of the bed curiously, prompting an apologetic bit of chatter. "Oh! S-Sorry Vira, I don't mean to stare so much, it's just... It's been a long time since I got to use that bed or the shower, seeing you do it kinda... m-makes me miss what it felt like..."

The sadness Vira felt made her a little guilty, turning around to flop on her belly and hold her head in her forehooves as she replied kindly. "It's alright Plaid, I don't mind you watching. It's a very comfortable bed, so I can see how you'd miss it. Thank you very much for allowing me to use it."

"No problem Vira, it's the least I could do. We all really owe you for everything you and Nick did here, without you Spoiled might have gotten away with... w-with killing Daddy..." Plaid slumped as their recent case hit her again, feeling a wave of panic realizing she was alone now, that she was in charge completely.

Vira felt a kinship to the odd mare and didn't like the sadness pooling around her. Speaking up softly and stroking her cheek with an outstretched wing, she used her psychic abilities to share the sensations Plaid was lacking as a comfort to her, letting her feel the warm springiness of her bed with Vira's nerves to her surprised gasp, cutting off the depression threatening her friend. "It will be alright Plaid. I'm sorry for your loss, but you will be fine. I can sense how much your father cared for you from your thoughts, he would want you to be brave and keep going. You will continue your plans to contact the outside, won't you?"

Plaid sniffled to herself, wiping her dry single eye with her pink bola and giving a determined nod back. "Y-Yeah, you're right Vira. That psychic stuff is so cool, t-that you know what Daddy was like and all... he definitely would want me to buck up, so I will! We're going to send Pearl out to that Fog Harbor place tomorrow, to this Captain Berry you and Nick told us about, right?"

"Right. She is a nice mare I think you will like Plaid, a fellow leader like you dealing with her own problems. Together the two of you will be able to help each other I think. I liked her anyway, and anything that helps her town also helps my friend Longfellow, so I am hopeful."

"I wish I could go too, w-with you and Nick to introduce me. That Longfellow guy, he's Ocean Breeze's husband? I'd like to ask what happened to her at least, she was always so nice, like you Vira." Plaid spoke wistfully, a tinge of awe at her friend making Vira whinny with pleasure at Plaid's high regard for her.

She also worried for her new friend though, admonishing her gently. "It is very dangerous outside, it's still best to send your robots out to get started Plaid. I'm sure you'll get to visit soon enough, perhaps when we're back in town ourselves and we can all visit Longfellow together. He's a bit grumpy and doesn't go to Fog Harbor often, but still a very kind buck who invited me to return when I wished. We can both ask about his wife, I never got many clear answers from him concerning her."

"Will it be soon? You said you have to go to that scary Church place first, right? You're really brave Vira, I'd be scared to go to those religious nuts from what you told me. I hope we don't run into any of them..." Plaid gave a worried nicker and sidled beside the bed, stroking the bright plaid bedspread nervously.

Virescent only wished she actually was as courageous as Plaid thought she was... The thought of seeking out Fog Harbor's chapter of the Church of Balefire still made her shiver anxiously, flopping her chin to the springy mattress and hiding under her hooves as she groaned. "It may be best you don't.... I do not know, hence we must find them and determine just what kind of religious nuts these are. I'm not looking forward to it myself Plaid, but we have a case to solve for a filly here before I can return to Trotson and... a-and get what I want."

Vira's blushing reply made Plaid giggle uncontrolably, giving her a friendly shove with her claws and answering in a sing song voice. "Ooooooo... you mean the stallion you're after, right? Riiiiight? Lemme see again! Did Mr. Cane tell you all about that comic he dresses up like? I see he let you borrow them, doing your homework? Huh? Huh? Huh?"

Sticking her nose up, Vira floated out her smoky crystalline statue of the male alicorn, letting Plaid look it over again and ignoring her teasing to float up another issue of Mr. Cane's comics in a huff. "T-They are interesting... that's all! I want to finish the story. B-Because Fast likes them, yes... but also because I do too. They are not as silly or simple as I would have thought, m-most enjoyable..."

The thoughts in Plaid's mind were happy and kind, memories of things called 'Slumber Parties' filling her with a sense of nostalgia as they chatted in her room. Vira could still feel that wistful longing towards her lounging on her soft bed, but the meaningless 'girl talk' Nick had taught her about cheered the bubbly mare, so she was willing to go along with it.

Vira didn't need much sleep, though even a powerful alicorn mare like herself did still need rest and she was grateful to do so in such luxury. If Plaid was so entertained just by Vira sleeping in her bed, she had hopes the rest of the residents of Stable 118 would be open to letting the ponies of Fog Harbor do so as well. There was a lot of space down here, beds sitting dusty and unused as the one she currently wrinkled her nose at on shaking out the musty comforter.

They chatted for quite some time like that, discussing Vira's gentle suggestions at helping the harbor ponies and how they could help in return. They also discussed more idle topics, embarrassing ones that made Vira blush to Plaid's delight, informative things about the world outside Plaid knew so little of, meaningless bits of trivia and jokes, old stories and newer ones.

Vira never really had such meandering, enjoyable conversations before. She smiled to the robotic mare absently braiding her mane as they talked, feeling gratitude and a sense of belonging she savored. This was how ponies without the benefit of Unity grew close, became friends... Talking long into the night was less efficient than simply learning it all psychically in an instant, but the slow, warm building of a relationship was quite pleasant as well.

Drifting off to sleep as Plaid tugged the covers up over her wings and kept soothingly brushing her mane into pigtails, Vira reflected on the friends she had made this slow, normal pony way, treasuring each of them. The gruff Longfellow who helped her when she needed it, Nick who gave her a job and a sense of purpose, Sumi who looked to her as a big sister, now Plaid and her robotic neighbors here.

Since opening herself up to it and being willing, Vira had found the magic of friendship and was actually happy. She had collected new friends everywhere she had gone, bucking herself for turning away the company of normal ponies for so long. It made her hopeful for the trip to the Church of Balefire even, if she could make friends with grouchy old hermits, synth detectives and cyborg ponies hiding away in a Stable, maybe she could befriend members of the group she had formerly looked on as pawns to be used and thrown away.

She was going to try anyway...

The detective duo received quite the send off the next morning, helping to prepare Vira for the day ahead and still her nerves. Nearly all of the robotic residents of Stable 118 had a word or two for them in the richly appointed dining area of the Stable, throwing a get together once Vira had woke and groomed her frazzled and pigtailed mane. Grumbling at Nick's snickering when she snorted awake at his prodding still displaying all the results of Plaid's enthusiastic grooming.

The dining room wasn't an area of the Stable that hadn't seen much use in a long time, but now it buzzed with life again, filled with pastel painted robobrains chatting happily. It wasn't the more utilitarian cafeteria Vira knew most Stables boasted, but something much closer to the fancy restaurants of the old world that the pale lilac robot cook Zesty Gourmand had such sharp and severe memories of.

Vira wasn't so sure about the tiny portions and multiple courses of strange food he brought out to her, but ate each artfully arranged course less out of hunger and more for her audience. Just as Plaid had so wistfully watched Vira enjoying her bed, the other residents of the Stable paid inordinate attention to the large alicorn primly eating in front of them.

Since neither they nor Nick needed to eat, Vira was the only living pony around to so jealously observe enjoying the simple pleasures of a biological body. While their interest made her a feel a little on the spot, she made a show of enjoying the fancy fare with loud 'mmm's, savoring the difference in the overall psychic mood of the Stable from when they arrived as much as the food.

When they came here, the main sense Vira got from the collective minds in their crystalline domes was of boredom, a detachment from the world and their own equinity from being isolated and cyborg pony-machine hybrids for so long. Now she felt a new sense of hope and curiosity flowing from all of them, things had changed, things were going to change more, their dull lives had been interrupted by their guests and the future was lying open before them.

Vira and Nick had done that... Vira had helped make things better, a thought that filled her with satisfaction, along with a healthy dose of concern that things would go well for them. If Plaid's hopes worked out and they actually made contact with the refugees in Fog Harbor, they could have more living ponies here to feed their fancy food and watch eat it, to share their unused beds, their safe shelter from the fog, their lives.

While Vira wasn't so sure about feeding the undernourished refugees Zesty's tiny portions, she had real hopes it would work out. These robobrain ponies were lonely and disconnected, making friends with living, breathing wastelanders would surely be good for them. They could help each other, be stronger and happier together. Maybe not in the glory of Unity as her mother would have wished once, but community and friendship were a close second.

After enjoying the makeshift party, Vira made her rounds to the guests she had made friends with busily. Mr. Cane was lost to his work, pausing in his busy painting of a huge portrait of herself to hoof over her much smaller and more private pin-up picture he had already finished, along with all his reference photos... He had also done some obvious digging in his cluttered room, finding a leather bound collection of all his comics for her he signed with renewed pride, tucking her private picture done in the same style between the pages for safe keeping. A rolled up portrait of Nick and Vira together in a daring, comic-cover style image of two gumshoes wearing the uniform topped off these gifts, making Vira marvel how Mr. Cane could draw her in her new clothes so perfectly when she hadn't gotten to model them for him yet.

A stop by Suri Polomare's room to pick up the outfit resulted in a giddy game of dress up with the old seamstress and her actress friend Raspberry Beret. Not only was Vira's very first purchase resized and enchanted by the unicorn fashionista, but Raspberry had dragged in a box of her old props, costumes and makeup. The two of them used those disturbing metal claws on their forehooves to poke and prod in a frenzy, dressing her up in frilly black silk undergarments, squeezing her hindlegs in ancient stockings and garter belts, then covering it all with her lovely detective outfit and moving on to grooming and makeup with Plaid joining in the fun rather than see her to the exit as she came for.

By the time they were done it was getting to be late morning, making Vira flustered at keeping her boss waiting for all their enjoyable silliness. When Suri and Raspberry shoved her over to the large changing mirror on the wall, she had to admit maybe it had been worth the time though, gasping as she took herself in with wonder.

The mare looking back this time wasn't Virescent the dark child of the Goddess, or Virescent the fanatical priestess of the Church of Balefire, it was Junior Detective 3rd Class Vira... A much kinder, happier and brighter version of herself than she had ever seen. Her deep purple hat was cleaned and broken in to set atop her large head stylishly, the wide brim slightly hiding her smoky eyes and their new lilac eyeshadow matching the streak in her silky mane, lending her an alluring, mysterious air.

Her maroon trench coat was resized perfectly, the first time Vira had ever really worn clothes that fit her alicorn body. The long sleeves were poofy around the tight cuffs, the left loosened enough to allow easy access to her pip-buck after Suri saw the issue and adjusted it. Her green wings had room to move easily through the tailored holes in the sides, fluffing and flapping excitedly as Vira trotted in a slow circle to admire it.

She craned her neck back to take in the long tails of her coat swishing around her hindlegs, flicking her tail and frowning at the wobble of her rump sourly. (I do NOT have a big ass...) That minor annoyance was outweighed by the rest of what she saw, lifting the coat aside to admire the sheer black stockings leading to the darling dark violet shoes on her rear hooves clicking on the tiles.

They were a tight fit and a little much... but seeing them on her now, Vira actually enjoyed how they reminded her what her verdant fur used to look like. She had changed... wearing a reminder of that on her hindlegs made her proud of the difference that was so starkly delineated by the frilly garter belt.

The pink neckerchief competed with her floppy sweater collar a little, but it helped puff the bit of silky pink out a bit and the light yellow sweater complimented the maroon coat when she opened it. She wasn't too sure about the rich black holster under there holding a pearl handled 9mm pistol just as Raspberry promised, having no experience with firearms. It did go with the outfit well however, and Longfellow had repeatedly preached having more options than just her horn for defense.

The final piece of a long black cigarette holder made her feel a little silly, but posing with it in front of the mirror, she decided to hang onto the gifted prop anyway. She didn't see herself smoking like Nick, even though her alicorn biology mitigated most of the detrimental health effects such a habit came with, but she liked how it looked on getting a good look. From the memories and thoughts of her three mare friends with her, she enjoyed how it made them all think of Shadow Spade, a fictional detective mare from the old world who was cool, smart, mysterious, demure and sexy according to them.

Rushing up to the gear shaped Stable door to meet Nick and the sendoff of robobrains crowded into the cavern leading out, she was more sure and proud of her new outfit on feeling their reaction when she galloped in out of breath. Nick's jaw dropped nearly to the floor, rubbing his eyes and beaming to his assistant. The strange synth had funny thoughts and ideas, considering a proper trench coat to be a vital piece of equipment for a good detective. Seeing her dressing the part to the hilt made him cheer and stomp his hooves in applause along with the surprised residents of the Stable as they squeezed into the elevator back up.

Before Vira had managed to cram herself backwards into the cramped space, Plaid wheeled forward and wrapped her flexible forelegs around her neck and Nick's, giving a desperate, sniffling hug before the doors had a chance to close. "G-Goodbye detectives! Thanks so much for everything, be careful on your case! A-And come back and see us again before you go? You're both welcome here anytime, so don't be strangers ok? I'm really glad I met you both, I'll miss you too Vira, you're the first new friend I've made in ages! So don't just disappear like Ocean did, I mean I know you want to get back to the mainland for your stallion and all, but..."

"I will return to see you again Plaid, I promise. A-All of you! I'm sure if you treat the harbor ponies half as kindly as you treated us, you will be brimming with new friends in no time, so just don't forget me hmm?" Vira wrapped her wings around the orange brainbot still clinging to her, smiling out to the rest of the strange enclave of old world ponies waving them off wistfully.

"Never! How could I forget meeting a Princess!? See you soon you two, goodbye!" Plaid finally released her captives and let the doors slide shut, waving frantically as Stable 118 disappeared from view.

Vira sniffled as the elevator made its slow way back up to the Cliff's Edge Hotel above, crossing her eyes and willing herself not to cry. She refused to let her recent habit of randomly blubbering ruin the skillfully applied eyeshadow Raspberry had done for her. Not only because it represented a gift from a friend, but because she doubted she could do it again herself despite the compact makeup kit the actress had given her.

"You did a bang up job down there assistant, no getting misty eyed now, detectives have to be hard as nails and I doubt Plaid would want to see you all weepy. Don't worry, it's only professional to follow up on the case, so we'll come back." Nick put a soothing hoof on her back and made her give a shaky laugh at the anxiety tingling off him, crying mares were a soft spot for the old detective and he was secretly not nearly as cool and collected as he seemed at the prospect of her bawling.

"I will be fine Nick, all these feelings are new for me, but mostly enjoyable. Thank you though. I do look forward to returning to check on their progress, but I promise not to... 'pull the old heartstrings by making like Neighagra Falls' and ruin your tough image when you act on such kind and softhearted thoughts concerning my well being." Vira snickered softly as the doors dinged and opened on the hotel lounge, letting in the bright pinkish-grey light of another foggy day.

"Heeey now, what'd I say about listenin in on my noggin' dollface? You can't take away all my cool lines and stoic resolve by reading that mush outta my head. C'mon Junior Detective, we're back on the case! Ugh... guess your way back down may be faster..." Nick waved aside her teasing and trotted out to the cracked and broken windows overlooking the front of the hotel, staring down from his three story perch uncomfortably before gulping back to Vira already fluttering her wings.

"Oh yes, such a hard boiled and fearless detective... afraid of a little thing like flying... It's little more than a hop down Nick, you can close your eyes if it makes you feel better my brave employer." Flapping her way out the widest break in the glass, Vira turned and floated Nick out with a musical giggle covering his yelp, gliding her way down with his four hooves scrambling madly on empty air until they finally made contact with the cracked asphalt again.

"A-Ahem! Yeah, yeah, hilarious sweetheart. Earth ponies belong on the earth, cut me some slack and quit with the comedy routine. Soooo.... which way was it again assistant?" Nick yanked his rumpled blue tie and muttered about getting no respect, blinking up to the light drizzle dripping from the brim of his hat and tapping at his pip-buck.

Vira wasn't as comfortable as he was using the arcano-tech device on her foreleg, but brought her own up and tried to remember all the complicated button presses Sumi had shown her relating to the map function. She had to learn how to do this herself, and Nick was a thoroughly disorganized stallion, no wonder he needed an assistant. The very idea of him actually running a business in Diamond City himself would be ludicrous were it not for thoughts of this Ellie he spoke of sometimes, the mare who actually ran things and paid the bills. Vira actually felt a little nervous when he thought of explaining his new Mare Friday to the mature mare who actually ran the Hearts n' Hooves detective agency, hoping to do as much as possible to prove her worth to the exasperated teal unicorn Nick kept picturing.

It took her a few minutes, but she found what she was looking for well before Nick, glancing around at the drive leading away from the hotel and taking the lead at a light trot. She was surprised and happy to find that once she found the map marker reading 'The Cantrip' and thought about how to find it, a blinking arrow appeared on the compass hovering at the bottom of her vision, pointing out the direction the Church of Balefire could be found.

Unfortunately it didn't take the land or any obstacles into account, indicating which way to go as the pegasus flies. Since flying directly where the arrow indicated was out, both because of her acrophobic boss and the thick fog, along with whatever monsters it hid beyond the Mistgulls she had no interest in drawing the attention of again, Vira kept puzzling over the map in her vision and trying to find an efficient overland course there.

The pip-buck seemed aware of old world maps of the island and displayed the prominent roads, but only updated with wasteland era information once she inspected them for herself apparently. There was no way of telling which routes were intact or safe, so she settled on the most direct path there on the biggest old world roadways, those tended to be the safest paths all these years later.

She cast a dim shield overhead as they walked, fussy about keeping the light drizzle away from her new clothes, makeup and well groomed mane. Not that Vira was one of those dainty mares that couldn't stand to get their hooves dirty at all, but this was the first time she was wearing her new outfit proudly, confident in her appearance and unwilling to lose all the hard work Plaid, Suri and Raspberry had put in helping her.

While they wound their way down the mountain paths nearer the center of the island and made their way to the marshes in the south, Nick chuckled at her newfound fastidiousness as she flapped her way over a massive pothole. "You do look pretty as a picture there Vira. Speaking of... any chance I can get a peek at the ones the artist-bot made for..."

"No."

Ignoring Vira's huff of an answer and her sticking her nose up to hide her light blush, Nick trotted at her side and gave a friendly flank check, taking advantage of her dry rain shield to light a cigarette and whine. "Awwww, come on Junior Detective, I'll promote you up to second class... Just a little peek, you said he made one with me too right? I'm entitled to see that one at least, though I really wanna see how that pin-up turned out..."

Picking up the lewd merriment in his thoughts, Vira primped her wings and moved up to a canter, reluctantly pulling the rolled up poster featuring the two of them from her cracked saddlebags and unfurling it in her magic for him. "You may see that one then, the other is private. It's for Fast, so no peeking for dirty old detectives..."

Nick pouted at not getting to see the swimsuit picture, the memory of catching Vira in the skimpy outfit popping up in his mind to assuage himself with only making her squeak and whinny at him to focus on what he did get to look at. He grumbled at even his thoughts being monitored, but amused himself going over the poster of them back to back with steely guns drawn, nickering to himself happily at the poster.

"Woooo, looks like we got a new ad campaign for the Hearts n' Hooves Detective Agency! You'll bring the cases flying in dollface, sure beats my normal fliers. Have to talk to Piper about making copies, but Ellie will be happy. She's been bitching at me to come up with better marketing for ages, now that we got our own Detective Princess, I'll finally catch a break." Nick's open plotting to plaster her image all over Diamond City made Vira snatch the poster away, grumbling down to the synth at her side bashfully.

"Y-You can't! Er... I suppose you can, but you would really use me in your advertisements Nick? I'm just your assistant, a-and no Princess! You know better than Plaid and the others, d-don't call me that..."

The image of one of her blue sisters turning a furious red and shaking her pale mane in negation popped into Nick's mind, only increasing her annoyance at his laughter. "Your sis didn't like the title either dollface, but she makes a helluva Princess back home. Princess Jade even got her mark for it! Besides, I said Detective Princess, as in Princess of detectives, it's a much smaller and more select kingdom of subjects, lots less stressful. Plus it's good advertising, I can see it now; 'We give your case the royal touch!' or; 'Put a Princess on the case!'. Ellie will love it, and you I'm sure doll, just let me handle telling her about your salary..."

"What is she like? I hear you think of her often, is she your special somepony Nick?"

Vira's inquisitive look turned to a sly smirk on getting the synth to stop laughing with a flustered cough, flipping his wrinkled collar up defensively and sputtering in reply. "Ellie!? My.... n-no way dollface, she's my secretary, holds down the fort back home, always riding my case about charity work and not bringing back the caps. W-Why would I want a dame like that as my... N-Not that she would either, I mean who'd want to hook up with a clattering collection of reject parts like me?"

Fluttering over a rotten tree fallen across the road, Vira snickered into her hoof as Nick clambered over. After all his teasing, turning the tables was quite enjoyable. "Ohhhhh? So you have thought about it? How interesting.... I'd have to meet her to sense how she feels about you, but just from how you've spoken of her I assumed she cares about you a good deal Nick. Why would she care what you look like?"

"Ellie's a good mare, no reason to waste her time on a broken down old synth like me doll. She should find a good buck and have lots of little Ellie's running around, start training up her replacement for me. I'll be around a lot longer than she will anyway, and... and that's for the best. The last dame I got involved with, er.. back when I was more handsome and alive... she got hurt because of me. Don't want to see that happen again, still haven't even gotten justice for her for Celestia's sake. How could I... the way I am now..." Nick's answer took on a sad note, making Vira pause and tilt her head to him curiously.

She didn't mean for her playful teasing to actually make him feel bad, biting her lip at the mistake and trying to think from his perspective, sensing the somber thoughts filtering through his artificial mind. She could actually see the ghost of a pale mare with a curly pink mane in his mind, a pre-war filly dressed in a clean and cute rose dress with a matching, floppy hat. Her sparkling blue eyes were full of love in the painful memory, standing on her hindlegs to lean against the railing overlooking a clean river and the the sparkling towers of Trotson beyond.

This long dead mare competed in Nick's mind with images of the kind and patient blue filly Ellie, the upswept curls of her rich red mane falling into her brown eyes rolling with a smirk. The ghost from the past was taking up that space in his heart, while the thoughts of Ellie were kept at bay with worry and stubborn rejection. The long span of the centuries between them a good part of the cause apparently.

Nick was like her in a way, synths and alicorns both had drastically longer lifespans than normal ponies. Before Vira never really considered it as anything but proof of her mother's perfection, something all ponies should get to enjoy by being lifted up in Unity. Now that there was no hope of that happening and Vira had made friends with a few normal ponies herself, she suddenly had to consider the implications and didn't like what she came up with.

Longfellow was old and often gruffly joked that he wouldn't be around much longer, wanting to live out his remaining years undisturbed on his little plot of land. Vira understood that abstractly, his death was easier to contemplate due to his old age... But it wasn't just him... Even the filly Sumi Ink Vira had befriended would grow old and die, while Vira remained nearly untouched by time.

What had always been just one more perk to her alicorn perfection now felt like a problem waiting to rear its head. She'd just keep going like the robots of the Stable they left behind, like Nick himself and the ghouls still haunting the world after two centuries. Suddenly making friends with normal ponies left her open to feeling the pain of losing them in the future, pain she felt clearly from Nick and his thoughts of his prewar marefriend. The positives she had found made her reluctant to give up in the face of that, but worried nonetheless and empathetic to Nick's quiet thoughts.

"I'm sorry Nick... I didn't mean to pry or inspire painful thoughts. Though Sumi didn't think she could find romance as a synth either, if not for the same reasons. I will tell you the same as I did her however. I may not understand much about love yet, but I don't think it matters what you are, as much as who you are. 'Love is blind', isn't that the saying? Denying feelings because of all the what ifs of the future or memories of the past doesn't seem very wise, or fair if Miss Ellie does feel that way about you too. I'm sure she's a smart mare who's well aware of your differences, isn't she?"

Nick looked back to his assistant's hopeful, sparkling green eyes with a groan, sighing as he tucked the brim of his hat down and kept walking. "You've got a real one track mind there dollface... Maaaaaybe you have a point though. I'll take it under advisement Detective Princess, maybe take her out dancing when we get back. So long as my personal love doctor gets out there and shakes a hoof with us too. Maybe play the field a little yourself eh? Find yourself sone lucky buck for a dance partner?"

"Of course Nick! Consider it a date. One more reason to hurry our investigation along hmm? Though I am uninterested in other stallions, I only wish to find one."

Vira's sigh of an answer brought out a strange species of concern that focused her attention of the synth shuffling to himself, eventually speaking up cautiously. "Oh I know sweetheart, you're pretty clear about that. I was just... errr.... Look doll, as fun as it is teasing you about being a stalker pony, I don't want you actually turning into one. There's lots of fish in the sea you know, don't let Fast blind you to the opportunities eh?"

Sputtering back, Vira felt a little defensive at his careful broaching of the subject, giving a whinny and frowning back. "There are not lots of male alicorns in the sea, there is only one I know of. I don't care about relationships with normal ponies Nick, I care about..."

"About doing what your ma wanted, I know... Your sisters were pretty clear about why they wanted to hire me to find him too, so I get it. I just... You and Fast are both friends dollface, I'm trying to look out for both of you. How do you think he feels having all of your sisters hunting him down with only one thing in mind? And you've been making friends with plenty of normal and not so normal ponies lately, but you still turn your nose up and trying anything more?" Nick answered hesitantly, thinking carefully on is words and slowing their pace down the road.

She could feel how uncomfortable this was making him, read the real concern for her well being in his thoughts and recognized it, but she still didn't like what he was saying. The sting of reverting to talking of not needing normal ponies only planted a very unwelcome seed of doubt too, had she really changed or not? She wasn't an obsessed stalker pony... She wanted the male and nopony else, that was all... What was wrong with that? What business was it of Nick's anyway? Was he trying to weasel out of giving her the means to find him as promised?!

"I appreciate your concern Nick, but I'll thank you to mind your business... I don't only care about my mother's wish, I feel things for Fast I wish to explore with him alone. I don't need other males when I have already found the one I want."

Vira's grumble of a reply made Nick stop entirely, shifting anxiously on his hooves and scratching his neck. Finally he gave a sigh and shrugged. putting a friendly hoof on her shoulder and radiating a feeling of worry mixed with caring that cooled some of her annoyance. "I'm just trying to be a friend Vira. You're a great dame, but you admit yourself you don't know much about romance. I'm not telling you to find some buck to get hitched and settle down with here on beautiful Fog Harbor, but you can be open to playing the field a little before you go home and find Fast."

"Try things out, consider it practice if you want, just don't ignore the possibilities because you're pining after just one stallion who isn't here. Fast won't mind, he wanted you to be a better mare and make friends right? Don't turn away from making a different kind of friend is all I'm saying, I won't bring it up again if you don't want."

Looking down her nose at the sheepish synth, Vira sighed wearily and hung her head, hating that he had a point and the realization she hurt his feelings. Nick truly was just trying to help, it was silly to think he was trying to renege on his promise to help her find the male. Insulting even... She had started this by trying to meddle in his love life, yet got mad when the tables were turned, an undignified response to a friend.

She had considered her lack of experience herself anyway, mentally debating the idea of exploring certain aspects of more intimate relationships with normal bucks. She had even eyed a stallion or two in Fog Harbor when their lustful gazes and thoughts had focused on her, finding herself intrigued at some of the things they thought of. Being open to new experiences wasn't being unfaithful or anything, and she had to admit practice may be useful...

"I'm sorry Nick, thank you for worrying over me, I wouldn't want you to stop when it feels so nice. Perhaps you're right, though I doubt there are many opportunities for... 'a quick fling to paint the town', but I promise to not ignore the possibilities. I'll keep it in mind as... oh my..." Vira's reply withered away as the fog shifted enough to get a good look at the lowlands below the mountainside they had rounded and their destination.

The hills and mountains making up the center of the island sloped their way down to the southern shore, a warren of marshes and smaller islands connected to the main landmass by a series of broken bridges and roadways. Through the pinkish-grey mist, Vira could see the way one rather large hill to their west abruptly ended below their current elevation, spotting the backside of a huge concrete bunker cut into the mountain and dropping precipitously down to a wide bay.

Looking over it from their vantage point, Vira got the impression the bay surrounded by swamps had been dredged and expanded during the war, a forest of half sunken ships and creaking docks helped define the old Equestrian naval base all this time later. The concrete bunker was the obvious terminus, apparently some kind of shielded dry dock for war ships to shelter in. It was surrounded by rusty chain link fences, the stone docks and roads leading up to it littered with post-war additions for the community residing there now.

She only spotted a few green robed cultists roaming about down there, gulping to herself over each patrol or cluster of obvious guards. This chapter of the Church of Balefire inhabited the bunker itself, everything out here seemed to be related to their defense and security, something they looked to take seriously...

Nick's vision must be as sharp as her own, he took a minute to scan the same distant specks before dashing off the winding roadway, ducking into the sickly foliage for a better look without being quite so obvious as the large alicorn still frozen in the middle of the street. With a tinge of worry on looking back to his assistant, the old synth scampered back out and dragged her with him again, pulling out his battered notepad to scribble furiously on.

Discovered Location: The Cantrip blinked in the corner of Vira's eye, just ahead of Nick voicing the same thought. "Looks like we found the place sweetheart. Doesn't exactly scream 'welcome' does it? So... how do we handle this..."

Shaking off the surge of panic she had initially felt, Vira watched the heavily armed ponies marching around down there and furrowed her brow in thought. Officially they were here on the case, here to infiltrate the church and locate the downloaded memories of Nick's strange 'brother' Dima. Not because the weird synth had asked them though, but for Sumi Ink, their client. Unofficially they were after answers period, to find out why the mainland Church was on this small island, what they were up to, whether it posed a danger to the other factions on Fog Harbor, and what exactly Dima was hiding in memories Vira couldn't read out of his head since they had been downloaded here.

Frowning to herself, Vira reluctantly began to strip out of her beautiful new outfit as she replied, focusing on the largest cluster of cultists guarding the bunker below them. "We were asked since they hold my kind in such high regard, so I suppose I must put on the proper appearance and introduce myself, while you remain out of sight..."

Nick knew this part of the plan as well as she did, but didn't seem to like it any more than Vira herself now that they were here. "Ain't right sending my precious little assistant down there on her own dollface, maybe it's better if we're just square with 'em and go down together. Safer if things go south anyway..."

"You heard how they feel about the synths of Acadia Nick, let alone one who looks nearly identical to their leader. They will let me in and trust me, I hope... but they definitely won't if I appear with a protective synthetic gentlecolt at my side. I will be fine, we can remain in contact psychically, so if there is any trouble I will let you know so you may come to my rescue. Nnngh... i-if you could assist me in getting out of these clingy things first?"

Nick bristled and worried over her volunteering herself to go, though his chilly anxiety was somewhat soothed by the chuckle that escaped turning to his frustrated assistant flopping down to a mossy log and fighting with her stockings. She rolled her eyes at him holding his hat to his chest and kneeling to the task reverently, focusing on carefully folding her long maroon coat and tucking it in her saddlebags, while his plastic hooves gently rolled the dark leggings down.

As much as she loved her first purchase and how it made her look, the Church of Balefire would accept a properly vain, haughty and unadorned example of the Goddess' glory much sooner than they would one dressed up as a detective. That meant going in with only her saddlebags and putting on the right act, something she was nervous about regressing into after working so hard to change.

She had to keep in mind it was just an act now, she may pretend to be like she used to be, but she had changed and grown. Her lovely outfit was a symbol of that, but it was true regardless whether she wore it or not. All she had to do was let them believe as they liked, assume her rightful role above them according to their own dogma, snoop around and investigate once they let her in, then find where Dima had hidden these computer memories of his and get back out.

Once she had fought her way free of her sweater and shook the static frizzing her mane off, she packed away her precious clothing and stood to her full height before Nick getting to his hooves, flaring her wings and tossing her mane regally. "Well? Do I look properly great and powerful?"

"You look properly scared and naked... But you always look like my precious assistant to me dollface. I'm still not sure about letting you just stroll on in alone. C'mere a second anyway, we're not taking any chances and I owe you this before you put yourself at risk." Nick shuffled anxiously and gestured for her left foreleg, pulling out a long patch cable from his pip-buck and connecting the two devices to Vira's curious interest.

She heard her pip-buck and his give a chatter of noise to each other, floating green text in her vision zipping by rapidly as Nick tapped at the controls of the arcano-tech device on his hoof. He brought the map up and Vira watched as he ran through several menus she had never messed with, eventually ending at a drop down list of blank spaces that suddenly had two new ones added with a beep.

Staring at the new entries, Vira gasped reading the two names as she puzzled it out. The first entry read simply 'Nick Hearts n' Hooves -- Locator Tag #43820-134', the second he added with a grin was what really got her attention and helped forget most of her fear, the blinking words; 'Fast Times -- Locator Tag #42021-235'. Focusing intently on the male alicorn's name right in front of her eyes, the map suddenly flickered and zoomed out, zipping to the southwest and the mainland, then centering on a blinking arrow in the heart of a fuzzy clump on the western edge of the Commonwealth labeled 'Flutter Forest'.

"T-This is..."

Vira goggled at the map floating in her vision, a jittery, wonderful feeling dawning with her realization. Nick had given her the locator tag thing he had promised, and this was what it really meant. She knew where the male was... right now. She could find him any time she liked, wherever he went...

Now she felt especially bad for doubting him, he gave her this wonderful thing before embarking on the case. When if she truly hadn't changed or really was an obsessed stalker pony, she could just put the mark in her vision ahead of her and fly directly for it. He trusted her...

"Ahem.... I did promise after all dollface. Try to focus on the other tag I gave you for right now though, that's mine see? I know you're not nearly as interested in tracking down old detective bucks right in front of you, but you keep that one up so you can come right back once you're done in there. I'll be laying low, so I don't want you losing track of your backup sweetheart. Not that I don't trust you using that mindreading bit to stay in touch, but we're covering all the bases, right? If you're going in there, I want you safe and sou.... gah!" Nick's stern instructions and cautious planning was interrupted by the big alicorn crushing him in a sniffling hug, making him gasp and wince at a ton of happy filly smothering him.

"Thank you Nick! For your trust and everything else you have done for me! I promise to be careful and find a way to resolve our case here. I must do so to put this to use after all! Eeeeee! I'm so excited! Thank you!!!" Vira did at least let her poor employer go before she crushed him like a tin can in her enthusiasm, dumping him to the mossy ground before her long legs pistoning up and down on the spot.

Nick pulled himself back up to his hooves with a grunt, dusting himself off and righting his hat while watching the big filly engage in a prancing, snorting dance in little circles before him. He was glad to see her mood so vastly improved, though he may have overshot the mark he was aiming for a bit. He wanted to cheer and encourage her, give her something good to focus on when interacting with these Church of Balefire ponies had so clearly been weighing on her mind.

It wouldn't do any good for her to be quite so giddy however, forcing him to cough gruffly as he straightened his sloppy tie. "Ahem! N-No problem doll, just dial it back a little, you look like a filly that got just what she wanted for Hearth's Warming. You were saying haughty and cold was what they were expecting, right?"

Vira shook herself and nodded, calming her shaking legs and half closing her lilac shadowed eyelids, forcibly putting on a blank sneer as she flared her wings and tried to look imposing. She managed to hold that expression for about ten seconds, then her smirk started curling into a wide, genuine smile and her eyes closed in a blissful expression, her legs and wings trembling and her tail flicking back and forth happily. She got what she wanted! By being nice even!!

Opening her eyes to see Nick giving her an unconvinced head tilt, Vira stamped her hoof down and mastered the glee welling up inside her, focusing on the worry she felt crystallizing around her employer. She couldn't help leaning down to plant a wet kiss on his plastic cheek, pulling back and enjoying his flustered sputtering as she gave a determined nod and flared her wings for takeoff.

He did say to try other things... the happiness she felt just made it seem like the most natural thing in the world to express it. Actually... kisses were as nice as hugs had been so far, she'd have to remember to try them out more and idly wondered what one on the lips felt like. She'd seen ponies do that before too and always thought it odd, if not a little unsanitary, now she better understood the allure. Something to explore later, for now, she had a job to do.

Smiling at nick rubbing his cheek furiously and feeling a lot of heat in his synthetic face, Vira gave a firmer nod this time. "I will be convincing, don't worry so much Nick. Thanks to you I'm not so afraid of doing this anymore, so thank you, truly. I will return shortly and remain in touch, wish me luck!"

At that she soared up through the tree cover, climbing into the fog with Nick's yelp of, "Be careful sweetheart!" falling behind her.

Virescent took a long, looping flight around the hardened bunker below her, investigating the swampy area and hopefully obfuscating the direction she came from. She didn't want them following her back trail and finding Nick, plus her graceful course gave her time to get into character before coming in for a landing before the imposing steel doors of the dry dock.

There were a lot of ramshackle, post war additions around the obvious entrance and the marsh had done its best to overgrow the area, making her landing zone cluttered and narrow. She both saw and felt the green robed cultists below noticing her, a reverent sense of awe mixed with suspicion she didn't care for. The gaggle of ponies at the gates were focused on something else however, the swirl of fear, anxiety and religious fervor barely changing when she landed at the rusty gates nearby.

The center of focus was on the stern looking, pale tan pegasus wearing strangely decorated Enclave armor. If the stallion with the short yellow mane and scruffy beard had been part of the Grand Pegasus Enclave military, it looked like it was a long time ago. He clearly wasn't part of the remnants of the vicious group that still plagued Equestria anyway, from what Vira knew they had a habit of keeping to their old traditions, wearing crisp military uniforms and polished power armor.

They definitely didn't decorate their precious technology with the looping yellow and green swirls and patterns Vira made out on this example. Junkyard additions had been made to the menacing suit and the helmet was missing, letting her get a good look at the ...rather handsome stallion... His pale green eyes barely flicked her way, one of them surrounded by a complex tribal pattern of tattoos that matched the style of his armor.

Before him were two decidedly lowly looking acolytes, shivering in fear before him. One looked to Vira pausing at the gates, hesitant to interfere with all the robed onlookers keeping their odd magical energy weapons trained on her approach, along with the two who were the focus of some kind of... trial?

The surge of hope she felt from the scrawny, scarred pony whose bloodshot eyes widened on seeing her made Vira uncomfortable, more so when he put her on the spot with a reverent yelp and shaking hoof pointed her way. "T-There Richter! See! A sign from the Goddess! S-She has sent one of her children to prove our faith!"

A murmur ran through the crowd of robed guards at that, though it was quickly squashed by the power armored buck apparently named Richter stamping his hoof and speaking in a gravelly voice that carried well. "It's Grand Zealot Richter Scale to you, and the arrival of a daughter of the fallen Goddess is not enough to prove your doubtful faith. The High Inquisitor has learned of your blasphemous whispers and treachery, he has pronounced only one of you may return to the fold. Decide which one quickly so I may deal with our guest..."

While Vira's thoughts mirrored the confusion she felt from the dirty yellow buck who had turned to her for salvation, the merciless, cold emotion she felt hardening around the light pink mare beside him barely gave her any warning when she drew a cobbled together magical energy pistol in her mouth and fired without hesitation.

She managed to choke back a cry of shock and pain when the green blast of corrupted magic blasted out, vaporizing the buck arguing for the both of them in a cloud of sparkling green ash that made her pip-buck tick and her skin tingle. The mare holstering the strange weapon made it hard to keep up the act however, speaking in a voice as dead as her emotions, saying simply, "Will that be all, Grand Zealot?"

The armored pegasus Richter raised one of his hooves up in a salute to her mindless devotion, replying. "Very good Sister, you may rejoin the others. I'm certain we won't be hearing any more about making peace with the Harbor Ponies from now on, will we? Now run along, we have an interesting petitioner to attend to..."

Vira gulped as the crowd dispersed at the dismissal, returning to their patrols and mostly disregarding her. She sensed a little remorse and fear from some of them, but the pervading emotion was fear of this 'Grand Zealot' and fervent dedication to avoid a similar fate. Her newly acquired empathy for the poor pile of ash didn't serve her well here however, so she stamped down on all the things she wanted to say as Ripper approached, sticking her nose up in a haughty, disinterested expression and forcing herself to trot directly through the remains to meet him.

"Greetings, Grand Zealot was it? My name is Vir... Virescent, High Priestess of the Church of Balefire in Trotson. I am new to the island and recently discovered our order has spread to this island blessed by the holy glow. I have come to present myself to your... High Inquistor Tectonic I believe? If you could be useful and lead me to him, hurry up." Vira idly shook the ash from her hooves, wearing a genuine grimace of distaste as she spoke in a bored, dismissive tone.

She didn't get the instant submission and reverence she expected however. Richter's thoughts were prickly with suspicion and an undercurrent of fearful memories. She caught a flash of one her sisters in his mind, a terrifying image of a purple alicorn in narrow, cloudy halls lined with advanced technology, a cloudship? Fillydelphia... Richter was with the Enclave on their attack on Redeye's hellish city and had seen her kind destroying his comrades, no wonder he had mixed feelings facing the green alicorn before him.

The dogma of the Church of Balefire rattled off in his mind however, a collection of holy edicts and principles that clearly dictated Vira and her kind were the pinnacle of perfection, blessed by the Goddess and the holy glow of balefire. His sharp, taciturn thoughts might view her -and apparently everycreature- with suspicion, but he had no choice when it came to accepting her. Did he?

The stern frown he gave looking her over made Vira gulp, he knew what she was and still balked... "Greetings child of the Goddess. You wish to petition our church? Then you must do so as an initiate, no matter your rank on the mainland."

Vira's indignant whinny in response was entirely genuine. Not that she wanted to have anything to do with the church she helped found anymore, but she had helped start it. Why should she have to prostrate herself as some lowly initiate? Technically she outranked both this overblown doorpony and his 'High Confessor', a role she and the others in charge had never created.

She couldn't help bristling with anger at being snubbed like this, stamping her hoof and spreading her wings in a display of the mother's glory. "No matter my... Do you know who I am you insignificant pest? I am Lady Virescent, High Priestess and right hoof mare of Lady Evergreen herself! Why should I jump through your piddling hoops! I demand entrance to this citadel, immediately!"

Keeping an open mental connection to Nick watching nearby had the unfortunate effect of letting him feel the wave of frustration and anger baking off her, the synth detective's accented voice tentatively speaking in her mind as she snorted and puffed at the annoying pegasus. (Easy dollface... Play along, don't want to piss off the locals.)

The pegasus barring her way irritatingly spoke on the same lines, not flinching or backing away from her imposing tantrum, merely watching with a bored expression as he replied. "This isn't the mainland. Our chapter is an independent offshoot of that order, therefore any previous rank you may or may not have held makes no difference. Neither does your form for that matter, you could be a sister from the mainland, or you could be one of those naive Followers of the Apocalypse for all we know. Or worse, here for those hateful Harbor Ponies who profane the island and resist the will of the holy glow with their blasphemous technology, or perhaps you're in league with the mechanical demons that provide it for them. "

"All those who wish to enter the house of bale and fog must come as children reborn in the holy glow. If you truly wish to join us and dedicate yourself to our cause, you must take the same initiation all of us have on coming to this blessed island. Do so and I'm sure the High Confessor will be pleased to meet you."

Vira gritted her teeth in frustration at the ultimatum, seething as she focused on Nick hiding nearby and kept him up to date. (They wish me to perform some ridiculous 'initiation' before they will allow me inside Nick... This is not going as I expected, I believe this chapter of my former church has instituted some significant changes.)

(Huh... was afraid of that. Never as easy as you think it'll be. Ok doll, see what they want anyway, we'll figure out where to go from there.) Nick's smooth voice was calming when he replied, helping her compose herself before continuing.

"Very well... What exactly does this initiation entail 'Grand Zealot'... I'm sure it's a trivial matter for one of the Goddess' perfect children. We will consider entertaining your foolish demands." Vira returned to her superior tone like a well worn mask, arching an irritated eyebrow down at the gruff stallion and tapping her hoof impatiently.

In answer, Grand Zealot Richter pointed a foreleg to the north, up to the foggy hoofhills of the mountains taking up the island's center, towards a small cleft between the peaks beneath the floating fog factory overhead. "Not far that way is a holy spring, a site blessed by the Mother of the Fog and the spirit of the holy glow that has sanctified this island. You will travel there, offer a prayer to the glow and drink from the spring."

"That's all? Go take a drink from some brackish spring?" Vira snorted back, shaking her mane and flaring her wings to go and get this over with considering the flash of 'Map Updated' in her vision told her just where to go.

Richter gave a smirk in return, his thoughts smarmy and superior. "The unfaithful who attempt it are poisoned and stricken down by the Mother of the Fog, so it is an effective demonstration of faith. You will be watched to ensure you drink as well, though you will not see the faithful who do so and they will not follow where the spirits take you. Drink from the spring and return here if you're able. If you're truly such a high ranking and important mare in the church as you say you are, you may even be gifted a vision from the island. We shall see if you return."

"Yes, we shall just see then. Hmph!" Vira huffed and glared at the frustrating buck, launching herself into the air after getting the last word and ignoring the dismissal in his thoughts chasing her.

She rose up steadily, making sure she was clearly visible to Nick and banking towards the blinking arrow on the compass at the bottom of her vision. (They wish me to drink from some toxic spring nearby Nick. A test of faith they will be observing from hiding apparently. I am going that way now, but I do not believe it wise to rejoin you with them watching.)

(Damn... Alright sweetheart, you're calling the shots here. I'll lay low and follow at a distance, just take your time and stay where I can see you.) Nick's reply was tense, but the trust he felt for her came through and helped her calm down and get her head out of the character she had so easily fallen back into.

She could do without everypony everywhere she went having some little errand or test for her to perform before she got anywhere, but was confident in passing this one. Drinking from some contaminated puddle was foal's play for her, things toxic enough to kill normal ponies were usually a tasty beverage for her. She'd simply go take a sip, maybe make a show of having some kind of religious revelation, then fly right back and get back to her case. No former Enclave grunt with an overblown title was going to stand in her way.

'Discovered Location- Balefire Spring' blinked in the corner of her eye as Vira landed in a shady hollow in the hoofhills, the burbling of the sluggish spring trickling from the rock face before her competing with the chattering noise of her pip-buck. Not that she needed the device to tell her just how polluted this place was, the tingle of soothing radiation washed over her just standing in front of the ugly spring.

It was a cool and quiet little valley, the shadows of dead trees overhead and the gentle hills worked with the oppressive fog cascading down the mountains around it to isolate the area, lending it an eerie air that even Vira could mistake for a holy site according to the beliefs of her former church.

Her hooves splashed in the pools and puddles surrounding the spring, the rapid clicking of her pip-buck increasing as she approached the rocky spring rising up on the southern wall of the hilly enclosure. It appeared this place was once a favored dumping spot for magical waste, rusty orange barrels were piled high around the spring, obviously arranged and decorated with odd fetishes and talismans in the intervening years.

The spring still bubbled up from the top of the rocks and oozed down their smooth faces, a rainbow colored sludge that betrayed just how far down the contamination must go. It didn't exactly look appetizing, but Vira still didn't see much to worry about. She could just hold her nose and chug it down, radiation and taint were old friends after all.

She paused to look around the silent valley, sensing the watchful minds hiding nearby, but unable to pin down exactly where their thoughts originated. That was a little frustrating, but at least she had her audience for this bothersome little show. She was more sure of where Nick's anxious thoughts were coming from too, a bundle of concern and uncertainty she gave a quick wink towards.

(I'll be fine Nick, this kind of thing cannot hurt me. There are watchers nearby, so stay hidden and allow me to get this unpleasant business out of the way.)

Her reassurance didn't assuage the worry she felt coming from him with his reply, though Nick's kind concern did settle her nerves and make her nicker happily at his answer. (If you say so Vira, even I'd be concerned that stuff would melt what passes for my guts so better you than me. Just... be careful dollface, just take a tiny sip to convince these kooks and we're on our way.)

Mentally nuzzling into the warm feelings directed her way, Vira mustered her courage and fluttered up to the bubbling source of the spring, stretching her graceful neck out and pursing her lips to sip at the sludge. Surprisingly it was rather tasty, a sharp tingle on her tongue that spread along with the chill she felt sliding down her throat, sloshing against her fancy Stable 118 breakfast and turning into a warm ball that made her shiver.

She continued taking several long drinks, smacking her lips when she finally finished with a gasp and drifted back down to the ground. Definitely industrial waste, a hearty flavor mixed with the natural spring water far below her hooves, taking on hints of well aged toxic waste with a slightly mossy undercurrent.

The tingle spread from her tummy slowly, down her legs and twitching tail, up to her head and slowly laid back ears. She could feel a soft smile curling her muzzle as she closed her eyes blissfully, enjoying the wonderful sensations fogging her head and actually making her a little tipsy.

Vira swayed on her hooves as she fluttered her eyelids open, unable to see how her green eyes were mismatched sizes. She gave a cute little hiccup as she looked around blearily, the fog suddenly seemed thicker, a swirling curtain of pinkish grey that obscured everything, even the thoughts of Nick and her observers.

Normally that would make her panic, but somehow having her psychic senses clouded seemed dim and unimportant. The awful fog was even less oppressive and frightening, more of a cottony world of pink fluff Vira staggered through with a giggle, prancing in the puddles and lurching with the occasional misstep. She wasn't even sure what she was so worried about, that spring was quite delightful actually.

All her concerns slipped away and Vira stopped thinking about the Church of Balefire and Nick hiding close by, Stable 118 and her new robobrain friends, the synths of Acadia and Sumi, the harbor ponies of Fog Harbor and Longfellow, the Institute and Trotson, her sisters and even the male... The stress and tension she had been carrying melted away and Vira simply goggled at the curious shadows and shapes flitting through the fog.

Vira spun and stumbled towards the whispering voice of her mother, catching the outline of the psionic projection of her head drifting behind a cleft in the valley. She had no clear thought in her head when she cantered after it, simply devotion to her mother and joy at seeing her again so long after her death. Despite all her growth as a pony, a good part of her still longed for the glory of Unity and the protective, nurturing presence of her mother.

In her current state of mind, she giddily chased after the shadow, stumbling up the mossy hills and down the winding dirt paths. Other wraiths and shadows flitted by her as she galloped off, disappearing into the fog, alone...

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

Lead Tummy-----------
---Being a child of the Goddess has its advantages. Radiation from contaminated food and water is now more efficiently absorbed, providing 50% more benefits to health and mana, while the effects of poisons or toxins you may consume are halved. As an added bonus, you have a wide ranging palette, able to gobble down fancy, four hourshoe restaurant delicacies and stale, 200 year old snack cakes with equal ease.

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

Church of Balefire (Fog Harbor Chapter) -- Shunned
---Infiltrating the Fog Harbor branch of the Church of Balefire turned out to be harder than you expected. While the cultists are currently non-hostile, they're not exactly welcoming either. Until you pass their initiation ritual, you are unable to enter their citadel and viewed with suspicion.