Author's Notes:

No, you aren't reading the title wrong. A day has passed since the last chapter. All will be explained shortly. And I apologize for such a long wait, and I Pinkie Promise to get the next chapter out this month. It's just a combination of both life and laziness that got in the way, that's all. But you know the drill. Comments and feedback are welcomed as ever, and a massive thanks to RuinQueen for allowing me the usage of Winter Breeze here and writing her scene with Nimbus.

Anyways, here's what I believe to be Nimbus' theme by this point in the story.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZDt-O6r7rM

Tenpony Tower: 1700 Hours

Nimbus groaned as he awoke from his slumber, muttering something under his breath as he began tossing the covers off himself. He, to be honest, was a bit of a late sleeper. Or he’d have liked to have been. Out in the wilds, he had never been afforded such luxuries, constantly having to be on the move just so the hungry mutations wouldn’t decide to take a bite out of him or Raiders couldn’t ambush him in his sleep. Now, he’d finally collapsed from the exhaustion of it all and had just snoozed practically the whole day away.

A day and a half had passed since Winter had taken him into Tenpony Tower, and he’d slowly but surely become accustomed to the new regime. However, it didn’t mean everything was all sunshine and rainbows really.

It honestly frightened him to think he was getting lax, and letting his guard down in this tower. Becoming soft, and easy prey as it were. He didn’t trust any of the Enclave outside his doors not even for a moment. Winter maybe, but her troops were another matter. He was one of Stormy Skies’ men, and he always would be in their eyes. If it weren’t for that voice-print lock on the door, he probably would have been murdered in his sleep via a knife to the back.

Quickly changing into his daywear, Nimbus searched the nearby nightstand and then under his pillow in a brief moment of panic realizing he was unarmed. Neither location yielded anything, and Nimbus made a small noise of fear. Of course, there’d be nothing to arm himself with. Winter would have seen to that.

“Well, least I’ve got you… “ Nimbus thought turning to Lovac, the dog sitting loyally at the foot of his bed, eyes turned to the door as if waiting for someone to barge in. Nimbus then grabbed the lamp on the nightstand as soon as he heard a hoof knock on the door. He knew it wasn’t much, but it would do. Taking a position up next to the door so he could easily strike at whoever entered, he called out: “State your name, rank, and intention!”

His breath briefly caught in his throat before Nimbus regained his composure. No, he would not show fear. He wasn’t allowed that luxury. Not here, not in this place.

“Well, that’s a nice way to greet an old friend,” Winter said as she glanced at Nimbus. “Put that thing down before you get yourself hurt.”

“Sorry…” Nimbus muttered. “Can’t be too cautious right now. I’m half expecting one of your men to just knife me in the back every other hour. Small miracle I got as much sleep as I did,” he continued. He swore every time he was near a window, there was an Enclave soldier just waiting behind him for a chance to just give him a little shove. One little shove, that’s all it would take. “...You sure you didn’t slip something to me just to knock me out?”

“Do you really think I would stoop that low?” Winter said as she shot him a look. “You’re either a guest or a prisoner of war depending on how you act. We do have a certain sense of decorum around here.”

“I’m both really,” Nimbus pointed out. “Yes, I’m being treated with more than a sense of hospitality, but there’s only so many places I could go to in this tower without risking a shot in the head. Make no mistake, Winter -old friend or not- if I had any opportunity I would gladly take it to disable Celestia One in any permanent format and be on my way. Much as I treasure spending time with you, every hour that passes with that Megaspell being pointed at the head of the country does nothing to soothe my nerves.” he stated calmly and cooly.

“And you know that it’s not that simple,” Winter replied as she brushed her long mane back. “The day will come when all Megaspells will be dismantled. But until that day, they will serve their uses. You and I both know that this war has already lasted too long, or do you want another Imperial War? With both sides pouring resources and bodies into a perpetual stalemate. At least this way the war will end without further bloodshed.”

“Bah. And you’re hardly doing yourself any favors by scaring the populace like this. What’s to stop one, or two, from gaining a set of balls and striking out, dismantling the Megaspell that sits right beneath our hooves? That’s what I very well intended to do when I came here, what’s to say someone else won’t try?” Nimbus asked as he popped open a flask. It was probably five-o'clock somewhere he reasoned, and anyways he wasn’t nearly sober enough yet to deal with this form of shite. “The Megaspells are hardly the way to win any war. Fear only works for a short time. Sooner or later, the fear will be washed away by something else. Courage. Ponies are tired of the Enclave oppressing them, and no matter how you like to whitewash it ‘Madam’ that’s exactly what you’re doing as of this very moment. You can call it what you will, but what you’re really doing? It’s nothing but putting a collar over a slave. You want ponies who choose to follow because they genuinely believe in a set of ideals, not because they're afraid to be punished if they don't.”

“Tell me, have you ever heard of a pair of ponies named Hayes and Braysoau?” Winter asked curiously with an eyebrow raise.

“I don’t look up the Prench or have ever bothered to do so, so no,” Nimbus replied with a shake of his head refusing to meet Winter’s eyes. “Are you trying to get me to engage in Hoofcratic dialogue? Because if so, please stop. Had enough of that back in certain schools.”

“Well, unfortunately for you, you’re my captive audience unless you want to jump out the window,” Winter chuckled. “Hayes and Braysouau outlined the theory of the state of nature and the social contract. Look at the world around us, we’ve been blown back to the state of nature. The social contract is the solution to that, to band together and restore the rule of law or we’ll be no better than the Raiders or Slavers. I don't like it either at times, but Equestria needs stability, and sometimes the social contract requires extreme measures to enforce. Food, water, medicine, these things can be used to enforce the contract in order to rebuild Equestria. The megaspells are a means to an end that ensures that the war comes to a peaceful end and we can rebuild. We can assert the social contract over the state of nature only if we work together.”

“Okay, so you’re saying sometimes the angels need a sharp sword as well?” Nimbus asked and Winter nodded.

“In a way, I suppose I am… Why?” Winter asked.

“So much for not getting me to engage in any more Hoofcratic dialogue…” Nimbus muttered rubbing his temples. Yep, he was nowhere near drunk enough to handle this right now. “Okay, humor me. Say for instance your men are in enough fear of you not to just jump the gun and take out all threats to your rulership in one swift clean stroke?” he remarked. “Just postulating a theory here. You’re holding a gun to the head of Equestria because that ‘contract’ is not being properly enforced yes? But what about your men? What’s to stop them from just pulling the trigger without your say-so? They’re not sheep, and while it would probably make it easier on all of us if they were, they still have their own thoughts and opinions. Not everypony is as… forward thinking as you are.”

“Control of the Megaspells will only fall under those who believe in my ideas,” Winter said with a sigh as she looked back towards the window and out at the city. “There are a lot more ponies out there that agree with me than you’d think. Take Wind Spirit for instan-”

Nimbus nickered in disgust. “Don’t even go there. Just don’t. Wind Spirit is a coward. The only reason he defected to your side wasn’t because that he agreed with you or anything -Hell, I suspect if given the chance he’d go to whatever side is ‘winning’- but simply because he was terrified to a fault of you. You’ve changed Winter. In some ways good, in some ways bad. How do I know your utmost loyal ponies aren’t simply doing what they do because you’ve scared them dead straight? Because Celestia knows I’m scared of you. Never wanted to be, but yet here I am. So congratulations to you on that front. Whoopee fucking yippee ki yay.” Nimbus retorted.

“Do you have any idea what I’ve done? No, you’re only seeing things from the outside,” Winter told him. Yet another sigh was soon to follow. “After Sunshine and Rainbows, the Enclave was in a state of disarray and chaos as you remember.”

“Well, no shite Forelock!” Nimbus ejaculated with a dangerous edge to his voice. “Of course I remember. I’ve lost family to that madness. Trust me, if anypony wants a sense of stability in his own government it’s me. There’s a reason I threw my lot in with the NCR, at least Regina could keep everyone in line and had actually managed to unite every creature for the first time in Celestia knows how long, even if it’s over their own hatred of us.”

“And I’ve done that and more. If you went to Thunderhead or Coltlumbia or any other city today, things have changed, things have been rebuilt,” Winter returned. “I’ve taken this to the Wasteland below. Nopony is forced to join us. We offer food, water, medicine, and security from the horrors of the Wasteland and ask for little in return other than loyalty.”

“So did Redeye, and look what he turned out to be,” Nimbus retorted. “Oh right, somepony with a massive god complex amongst other things!”

“We are living in extreme times, sometimes extreme measures are needed,” Winter mused and closed her eyes. “I know I’ve done a lot of evil. I’ve likely damned myself many times over at this point. But if it means giving Equestria a chance at rebuilding, then I am willing to make that sacrifice just like… like she did.”

“So, you’re thinking of going and locking yourself up in an SPP tower and becoming a veritable god?” Nimbus asked with a little head tilt. “Sure we shouldn’t get your head checked for any form of messiah complex?”

With his tone, it was impossible to tell if he was joking or not.

Winter paused a moment and then reached into her suit coat as she took something out. It looked like a faded piece of paper. “I’ve seen the worst this world has, and I don’t want anypony to have to live through that kind of thing. I’m not asking you to agree with me or join my side. I just ask you to think about what may need to be done to have this world survive. Even if it means I get remembered as the monster.”

“Monsters come in all shapes and sizes. Some of them are things we are scared of. Some of them are things that look like things they used to be scared of a long time ago. Sometimes monsters are things ponies should be scared of, but they aren't…” Nimbus muttered. “I’m just saying, playing the villain for good reason, and actually becoming the villain is a very, very thin line… I’m just worried you may not recognize it, and when that day comes you may end up crossing it without even realizing it…”

“I’m doing everything I can to make sure I don’t,” Winter replied as she unfolded the paper and stared at it for a moment. “When I was living in a refugee camp I met a stallion who told me something. He told me that sometimes the best route isn’t always the most direct, or the safest.”

“What… what was his name?” Nimbus asked a faint amount of hope in his tone. That stallion, it almost sounded like… He shook his head, no it couldn’t have been.

“That’s not important, he was a traveler descended from ponies that had survived the apocalypse in a city near Stalliongrad by going underground,” Winter said with a shrug. “He gave me this, it’s probably the last one left in the world. Not much use outside of the underground but it always reminded me that sometimes danger lurks where it can seem safe at first glance. And you must do what you can to reach your goal, even if it’s not the most direct route. Guess that’s what I’m doing, walking down that other tunnel.”

“I suppose…” Nimbus muttered. “We all have our separate roads to walk. You, the villain and me the hero -in a sense- opposing you.”

Winter nodded a little and paused a moment when her radio started to go off. “I need to see what this is about, excuse me a moment.”

Nimbus watched Winter take her leave before walking off. He briefly considered following Winter -would that account to stalking he wondered- before considering the better of it. Chances are it’d be a futile effort anyway. He’d probably be shot on sight if he tried to follow. Winter liked him but she didn’t trust him that much.

Winter sighed a little as she rubbed her forehead before walking back. “I’m sorry I have to cut this conversation short. Something has come up that requires my immediate attention, but I want you to have this,” she said as she gave Nimbus the piece of paper. “It won’t do you any good unless you find yourself in the Metro under Marescow but it might remind you not to take things at face value and always look out for danger. Consider it a gift.”

Nimbus took it and gave out a soft whispered: “Thank you.” before taking his leave. He then halted as soon as he was out of sight. No, he couldn’t just let this pass on by. He needed to know what was going on around here. And if possible, take advantage of any opportunities that presented themselves. He had a job to do, and he would be damned if he didn’t at least attempt to carry it out in some fashion.

The question was, how did he go about it? He couldn’t just waltz into the control room. No, he’d be shot on sight. He probably wouldn’t make it within five feet, and that was probably being generous by his line of thinking. No, what he had to do right now was listen and pay attention to anything and everything that was going on around him and then see what he could do with it.

Making his way to the Athenaeum he calmly strode into the room with a group of soldiers posted at every exit. Despite this, Nimbus showed no fear with Lovac at his side. What he needed right now was a leak, someone who was willing to talk about whatever caught Winter’s attention. He knew it was significant enough. And there were very few things that would startle Winter so much.

“Okay Nimbus,” the pegasus thought to himself. “Who would be best willing to talk? And how would you get them to…?”

His eyes trailed off towards a stallion, looking impeccably groomed. Nimbus smirked. This wasn’t going to be big on dignity and Celestia knew Riptalon would probably hate him after this -then again, the griffon already did he suspected- but it had to be done. He waltzed up the stallion pulling him aside.

“So, just saw the President, looking all shocked or something. Probably isn’t my place to ask, but could you at least give me some info on what’s going on around here hmm?” Nimbus asked the stallion tracing a hoof along his jawline. Dark green fur, brown mane, all well looked after. Gay. He had to be. No straight stallion spent that much time looking after themselves. ...Well, okay maybe Jabari did but the poor buck had serious self-esteem issues. Either that or his ‘gaydar’ was broken.

“Severely hoping it isn’t in this instance…” Nimbus thought to himself. “Just do a buck a favor eh?” he requested.

“I… I... “ the stallion stammered out. “Listen, I’m under strict oath not to say a word about anything!” he stammered out. Nimbus smirked and raised an eyebrow. Inwardly, he was gagging about having to resort to such tactics as this as even playing with emotions was one of those things he hated to do but as needs must he supposed.

“And I’m sure a fine buck such as yourself couldn’t be… tempted, right?” Nimbus asked walking around the guard putting a little deliberate sway into his hips making sure the pegasus’ eyes were firmly on his flank.

“Fine, fine! Received news that Madam President went off to a clinic, said something about a very important matter to attend to!” the guard stammered out finally losing his composure. “Just…. Just go, okay?”

“Okay, so in the closet and trying to deny it. Shame about that really, wonder if I could have helped him along.”

“Mmm, fine fine...” Nimbus said wrapping a wing around the guard and pulling him close. Nice cologne, he noted. “Just saying, denial isn’t only a river in Somnambula really… But thanks for the information.”

He walked with that sway still in his hips before turning his head back towards the guard. “Oh, one last thing? What’s your name?”

“R-Razor Wind, why?” the stallion stammered out and Nimbus noted he was trying very hard to avert eyes away from Nimbus’ flank.

“Just sayin’ Razor, may not be the world’s biggest fan of your president, but I do have to give credit where credit is due, very progressive she is. Can’t see any reason why a stallion can’t act on his desires…” Nimbus smirked. “Go on, there’s someone special to you isn’t there?”

“Y...Yeah, guy named Green Leaf. Don’t know if he likes me back, but-”

“Nothing wrong with taking that chance right?” Nimbus remarked. “Never know if you don’t try…”

“Something I myself should take to heart, really…” the stallion then mused to himself before shaking his head and nickering softly as he walked off.

He never did hear the whispered “Thank you…” tossed his direction.

Nimbus knew that the entirety of Tenpony, like a lot of old buildings in its style, was lined with pipes all over sneaking and crawling up through the walls like hydra heads. And if you listened in just the right spot and had a good knowledge of the layout you could pick up any sort of information you desired.

Nimbus had managed to get a map of the layout along the way citing: “Just want to do some sealing up, that’s all. Make sure nobody doesn’t overhear anything they’re not supposed to.” and eventually found the spot. He was a few floors directly above the clinic. Now, he just needed to figure out how not to raise any sort of suspicion.

“Aw, to hell with it. There’s no way to avoid arousing suspicion no matter how I play this. Just going to have to take my chances,” Nimbus thought to himself. “But I’ll have to be smart about this.”

For the next half hour -he presumed it would take Winter some time to get down to the clinic- he watched the patrols staying well out of sight. Eventually, memorizing the movements of the guards he dashed into a nearby hallway knowing he’d have five to ten minutes before the next shift change.

Pressing his ear to the wall, Nimbus listened. This is what he heard.

“Well, this is a surprise,” Winter’s voice echoed up from below. “I must say when I heard that you four were really in this clinic I had no idea what to think.”

“What do you want Winter Breeze?” Cherry’s voice snarled definitely. Nimbus swore quietly. So, they had been caught after all. He could see their chances of taking out Celestia One pretty much evaporating.

“Not very grateful to the pony that's come here to help your friend. We received word from Focus that Scootaloo is in bad shape, so of course, I offered the services of my best doctors... in return for you four remaining in the tower and not causing any further issues. Guards, disarm them.

“Well, I'm a mare of my word, so the four of you will be allowed to live in Tenpony Tower so long as you follow our laws.”

Nimbus quietly pleaded to whatever deity that happened to be listening for Cherry not to do anything stupid and bollocks things up. “Come on girl, just listen to her. For once, she’s not completely lying out of her arse. She does have Scootaloo’s best interests at heart.”

“Why did Focus turn us in? Is he one of your agents?”

Nothing of the sort, he's just a doctor who didn't want to lose a patient, it seems our mutual friend's condition doesn't look good.” Winter explained and Nimbus sighed in relief. Focus. That was good. He’d met the stallion once in his wanderings of Tenpony. A bright sort, and even if he did work for Winter he wasn’t a bad pony. In another time, or something like that Nimbus would probably all too happily call him a friend.

“Why do you care, she's just another Dashite isn't she?” Cherry inquired. Winter sighed again.

“Something you would understand Cherry Blossom, but that is none of your business,” the President returned. “You've been living in the Wasteland for a few months now but you still have a lot to learn about what life is like out here.”

Nimbus then heard the sound of hooves as Lovac growled out a soft warning and the stallion quickly got moving. It wouldn’t do to stand around here for too long. Rounding a corner, Nimbus slammed right into something. Or rather someone. His breath caught in his throat before he let out a sigh of relief as he looked upwards to see Gabby.

“...Oh, by Writer’s Quill…” Nimbus muttered. “It’s just you. Faust above, you nearly gave me a bloody heart attack…”

“About the same kind of heart attack I had when I heard Scootaloo was taken into the clinic after being shot through the lung,” Gabby replied, the griffon ghoul waiting for Nimbus to catch his breath. “So, what do we do now?”

“...In all honesty, I don’t know…” Nimbus muttered.

Manehatten: 1850 Hours

On the streets below, Riptalon and company were inch by inch making their way towards Tenpony through the maze of a concrete jungle that lay before them. Fires burned like the flames of Tartarus all around them, as Stormy Skies and Winter Breeze went to war. Apparently, nobody bothered to care about the possible NCR intrusion anymore, not really. Both Enclaves were more preoccupied with trying to finish the other off. This was either a good thing or a bad thing depending on your perspective of events.

On the upswing, it meant, for the most part, Winter Breeze’s forces wouldn’t notice a massive griffon, an Alicorn and their group just running through the streets as they had more important matters. On the downside, it meant the group had two Enclaves to contend with, and neither took prisoners.

Riptalon was exhausted, sweaty, covered in blood and downright pissed off. As he ducked behind a building, he re-loaded Lawgiver and fired off a shot scything through an Enclave soldier and leaving a bloody mess on the ground in front of him.

“Henri, behind you!” Riptalon barked as the griffon hen whirled around and pulled out a borrowed combat knife and shoved it into the neck of the oncoming attacker. Gurgling for last breaths, the extremist slumped to the street.

“Here, believe this is yours!” Henri shouted, taking a shot with White Rose on a third and final Enclave soldier before tossing the combat knife back to its rightful owner. Riptalon grimaced at the gore upon the knife before sighing. He’d clean it off later.

“If we live through this, remind me to thank Xenith okay?” Riptalon asked. “Seriously, remind me!”

Twilight, as she blasted the doors of an abandoned subway terminal in, looked around her and fought back tears. She remembered what the place was like in her time. Bustling, full of life and possibly the greatest pony-built city in Equestria. Now, it was nothing but a war zone bordering on a smoldering ruin. Nearby, bodies were being moved directly out of the firing zone, and Twilight hoped one day they’d get a proper burial and be with Luna and her friends in paradise. One unicorn stallion, black lay next to a green mare, both suffering varying levels of damage with the black stallion’s face being half melted off. Twilight forced herself to look away, there was nothing she could do for them now. She had to focus on who she could save now.

“Come on Sparkle, don’t tell me you’re not going to keep up!” a voice said in Twilight’s head with her own laughter soon to follow.

“Fizzle, wait up! I… I can’t run as fast as you, you know that right? Favorite play or not, I’m trying not to get lost in the crowds here!” Twilight’s own voice responded in kind. Memories of happier times.

“Suit yourself, but I don’t intend to miss Hinny of the Hills unlike yourself!”

Fighting back tears as she remembered the day she’d took Fizzlepop here to experience some pony culture -a year or two before the war broke out- she shouted for everyone to follow her into the tunnels. She knew, like the monorail above them the subway if you knew it correctly led directly to Tenpony. Given the strategic importance of Tenpony, the builders had decided to place it directly above one stopping point on the main line. They knew if a war -Writer’s Quill forbidding- was to ever break out then another escape route would be needed. Twilight knew Winter Breeze and probably Stormy Skies knew this as well but more likely given the battle going on above they probably wouldn’t have made it that far into the tunnels and even if they had the groups would be sparse and easily dealt with. Certainly better than the chaos going on above at any rate.

Suddenly, as everyone filed into the tunnels Twilight heard the sound of powerful flapping wings and looked upwards What she saw next made her eyes widen in horror. Directly above them, the former Princess of Friendship saw the massive armored form of Tornado making a beeline right for them eyes alight with burning rage. Tornado reared her head back and fired a beam of magic right for the building above them, and sent it crashing all down on top of the group. Twilight blacked out and soon found herself in a daze as she wandered through what looked like a pure white version of Canterlot Castle. There was almost a minimalistic style to its design, with very few things being given any real sort of great detail. It was almost like a dream in some aspects, or it was… No, it couldn’t be. Could it?

Her side hurt, and she was limping although Twilight didn’t quite know why. In front of her was Tempest, looking as young as the day she’d left Twilight.

“Well, don’t tell me this is all it takes to do you in?” Tempest remarked with a quizzically raised eyebrow.

“Fizz… Fizzle?” Twilight whispered reaching out to touch her former love’s face.

“Don’t you die on me yet Twilight. You’ve still got things to do!” Tempest/Fizzlepop barked out in that old tone of hers. The stern take no shit from anypony enforcer.

“What things?” Twilight whispered. “You’ve seen Equestria, I failed it… I failed my friends, my family… My kingdom as the Princess of Friendship… Honestly, I-”

“Shut up! Come now,” Tempest said taking a softer tone. “Just open up your eyes, just a little now. You’ve still got a job to do, to protect your new friends right?” she asked stroking Twilight’s face with a hoof. “So get to it!”

“But… But I don’t know if I can…”

“Can what?” Tempest asked. “Do your job? Protect ponies with all your power?”

Twilight nodded. “But…”

“No buts! Don't let your pain define you, let it refine you. Make you into a new Twilight, suited for this new era. Don’t lose yourself, and I mean never lose sight of yourself but become the Twilight I know you can be. You remember that old poem?
For a star to be born,
there is one thing that must happen:
a gaseous nebula must collapse.
So collapse.
Crumble
This is not your destruction.
This is your birth. This is your rebirth Twilight.”

Fighting back more tears, Twilight nodded and whispered: “Thank you… Fizzle.”

“Always happy to help… Now… Twilight! Get up on me, now girl okay?”

Tempest’s voice faded out and was replaced with another voice frantically trying to shake her away.

“Twilight! Get up on me, now girl okay?” a male voice asked and Twilight’s eyes slowly fluttered open. The whole area around her was a daze, sounds muffled as she slowly returned to the waking world. A blazing red mane.

“F-Fizzle…?” Twilight whispered. “T-That you?”

Twilight’s vision slowly began to clear and her hopes were dashed when she looked upwards to see a male unicorn with flaming red hair, and a red cross as his cutie mark.

“Sorry, wish I was,” the stallion said. “To be honest, not sure I even know who this Fizzlepop pony you were mumbling about even is. But again, get up on me, now girl okay? We gotta get moving.”

Twilight looked to her side and wished she hadn’t. Part of her front foreleg was nearly crushed by rubble and a rebar had been driven into her side. Not deep enough to penetrate vital organs, but it still hurt like Hell. Cotton lay dead nearby, another poor soul ground up by the war machine. Another rebar, driven right through his skull.

“...Life Bloom?” Twilight asked as a vague memory came to the forefront. “But… But I thought you were with…?”

“Madam Winter?” the now named stallion answered before nodding. “Yes, that may be true, yes, but I also damn well took an oath to help anybody no matter the allegiance. Focus says that’ll probably be the death of me one day…” Life trailed off before chuckling with a fond smile. “What does he know anyways? Now, brace yourself… This is going to hurt…”

Twilight did so, before she let out a scream as the rebar was slowly pulled out of her side inch by inch. Blood spattered Life Blood’s face, but Twilight’s healing abilities slowly took over and the wound slowly closed little by little.

The shouting of voices slowly became audible, and the barking of Lawgiver filled the terminal. Another shot, and a shout of “Motherfucker! Come here, you little bastards!”

Riptalon, of course. Twilight sighed in relief.

“Sorry to get you up and moving so quickly -believe me, it goes against every wish I would have- but I doubt Stormy’s troops would care who we are. I assume you can fly?” Life Bloom asked.

“Y-Yeah…” Twilight said as she slowly levitated herself up in the air before Life Bloom fired a blast of magic opening up a long unused catacomb.

“Good, now this way everyone!” Life shouted before rushing down the corridor with Twilight behind him and Henri and Riptalon bringing up the rear before Henri threw down a smoke grenade to cover their exit. “Can’t stay here for long to help, this is only an astral projection of sorts, drawn here by Twilight’s magic. My flesh body is still back in Tenpony’s clinic operating on Scootaloo. Writer’s Quill, Focus must be worried sick!”

Twilight’s breath briefly caught in her throat. Scootaloo, in danger? Her wings flapped harder rushing past Jabari nearly knocking the young stallion off-balance.

“Woah girl, you’re not going to help her by flying head on through this maze,” Life Bloom stated. “Let me lead the way. There’s an elevator up into Tenpony’s lower levels just up ahead.”

“So, if you’re with Winter, why are you helping us escape and not taking us directly to her?” Riptalon had to ponder. “Hell, why should we even trust you?”

“Celestia One, actually. Believe it or not I don’t like seeing it in the hooves of Winter -or anyone else for that matter- as much as you lot do,” Life Bloom replied. “So, I’m going to help you shut it down.”

“Wait, didn’t you help fire Celestia One with Littlepip all those years back?” Henri asked flying alongside Twilight.

“Yes, that may be true, but I saw what was left after the shot. Nobody should have that power, nobody…” Life Bloom trailed off. “Now, soon as we round this corner, I’d suggest you stop and make camp for the night. You’re going to need the rest…”

Tenpony Tower: 1200 Hours

“Hello Manehattan, this is your President speaking once more. As a nation, we stand at the crossroads of history. One path will lead us back to chaos and corruption, and the other will bring us to a bright future that we can all enjoy without fear of the horrors of the Wasteland that was once a great nation. As your President, it is my duty to lead us all down that path, but it is filled with danger and ponies that would rather see us all fail than succeed. My dear Equestria, we are waiting for our chance as a nation to take our future back from those that would use it for their own power. I am a mare of my word after all, and I will ensure that every one of you is able to live happy lives. Just yesterday, we helped secure part of that future, we will not allow the forces of corruption to plunge us back into anarchy. This is President Winter Breeze, signing off.”

Nimbus groaned to himself. Another day in paradise, he thought to himself with no small amount of sarcasm. The sooner this job was over with, the better. For a moment, he briefly considered joining up with his old friend completely before shaking the thought away. No, Winter had to be stopped. She had the best of intentions, that was for sure, but she was going too far. Hopefully, Scootaloo would be able to deliver the killing blow to Winter that he failed at. He’d heard she was up and about -the gossip always found a way to make its way even up here- thanks to the life-saving work of Life Bloom and his partner. Now she just needed to disable Celestia One.

“Easier said than done really…” Nimbus mused. But he intended to help the mare on her quest no matter what. “I’m truly sorry Winter, I truly am... “ Nimbus thought with a small tear dripping from one of his eyes. “But I have to stop you.”

Finally making up his mind, Nimbus grabbed the nearest Enclave soldier and pulled him out of sight in a split second before bringing his hooves down on top of his head. It wouldn’t kill the soldier -Nimbus would have been foolish to think otherwise- thanks to all that armor but it was enough to knock him unconscious. Removing the soldier’s armor Nimbus grabbed his Novasurge as well. He swore when he saw it was out of charge. Apparently, this one had been on his way to remedy that. Nimbus would have to make do and hope his disguise was enough. Making his way down towards the weapons locker, -a renovated bar of all things!- Nimbus’ eyes narrowed under his helmet when he saw that Wind Spirit was in charge of handling everything. This could be an issue. Wind was a medic, meaning he knew every point on the body and just where to strike.

“Bloody Hell…” Nimbus muttered to himself before he turned to Lovac. “Get him out of here, boy. I have some things I need to recover.”

Lovac began barking up a storm at Wind Spirit trying to sound as if something was wrong. Presumably something like a soldier that had fallen down a flight of stairs or something. Nimbus didn’t know, but whatever it was Wind Spirit’s eyes were soon to widen and he ran out of the room. Nimbus smirked and he took his chance grabbing a certain pistol Gabby had lended him. It would have to do for now, no sense in arousing more suspicion than needed. His other weapons would have to wait.

Another day in the tower passed. Nimbus knew he’d have to make his move soon, and while repairing a leaky sprinkler in one of the hallways, his keen eyes noticed hoofsteps going through a puddle of water below him.

“Keep on going you lot,” Nimbus commented and a short sharp gasp escaped them. “Relax, nobody’s around but me. Guessing if stealth cloaks are in use then the time to strike is now right?”

“Y-Yeah,” Cherry whispered. “How do we know we can trust you though?”

“Oh Cherry, how many stallions do you know in this tower that bear a Trottingham accent?” Nimbus remarked, and another short sharp gasp of realization escaped her. “Now go on, I’ll create a distraction… somehow. You just get that Megaspell offline okay? Winter has to be stopped.”

The hoofsteps galloped off down the hallways and Nimbus took another corridor. While he ran, he noted some Enclave soldiers whispering as they looked outside. In the skies above, storm clouds were beginning to form far more rapidly than was natural. A lightning bolt struck, and shot down one of Stormy Skies’ Vertibucks and a chorus of cheers rang out. The words “Littlepip” and “The Lightbringer” were tossed around. Nimbus watched the rapidly forming clouds and shrugged to himself. Better late than never, he supposed.

Rushing back towards the weapons lockers, he found himself face to face with Wind Spirit. The stallion aimed a kick at his face sending him crashing into the floor.

“Well, guess the jig’s up…” Nimbus muttered as he recovered and engaged in a short fistfight with Wind managing to score a powerful right cross to the traitor sending him staggering backwards. Nimbus then yelped as Wind pulled out a Novasurge of his own, and Nimbus just barely ducked behind a storage crate as an orange beam whizzed over his head.

“Knew it was you,” Wind Spirit said as he engaged a stealthbuck and began patrolling the room. His voice and the sound of his footsteps were the only way of keeping track of his position. Nimbus heard the firing of the rifle and saw, and leaped to the left just before he could be incinerated by the shot. “When I saw that pistol go missing, I knew it was you. Just didn’t have any way to prove it. Everyone else told me I was being paranoid, that someone else just took it or I misplaced it. But I knew it was you!”

Another shot dodged, and another scorch mark left in the wall.

“That’s it, keep him talking…” Nimbus thought. “Only way you’re going to make it out of this.”

“So, guess you’ve fully turned yourself over to the Enclave then!” Nimbus snarled in disgust running behind another storage crate. He flipped himself behind the bar top and fired off several shots in Wind Spirit’s direction. A sharp shout of pain and the stealthbuck gave out as one shot nicked it by pure luck. Nimbus smirked. Now things were a lot less lopsided.

Nimbus ran out from behind the bar top and back to some storage crates as two more shots fired. He fired off some shots of his own, but they missed as Wind took his place behind cover of his own.

“I had to, it’s the winning side! Winter will save-”

“Equestria?” Nimbus snapped even as somewhere outside, flak guns began to start up once more. Whether it was from Stormy’s forces attacking the tower or something else, Nimbus wasn’t sure. “That’s how you justify your own cowardice? Remember a certain oath? I will abstain from all intentional wrong-doing and harm? Isn’t that how it goes? Funny way of showing it!”

Wind Spirit screamed out in rage and fired a barrage of shots towards Nimbus that flew over his head.

“DON’T YOU EVER RECITE THAT OATH TO ME! YOU DON’T HAVE THE RIGHT!” Wind screamed.

“Neither do you…” Nimbus sneered.

Then, as he peeked out from behind a crate Nimbus saw his chance as Wind tried to fire in rage and fury only to find his rifle had jammed. Nimbus extended his powerful wings and tackled the stallion to the ground crushing his skull with his front hooves. Blood and brain matter covered the floor. As Nimbus went over to the weapons locker and grabbed Songbird he shot the former NCR member a look of complete and utter disgust.

“I really hate traitors. If you're going to sell out, at least do it for some other reason rather than cowardice.” Nimbus stated before he tossed his empty magazine aside.

Nimbus ran through the halls only to find himself in the midst of chaos as Enclave Soldiers made a break for the landing pads. Outside, NCR and Ranger aligned Vertibucks flew overhead taking out as many enemy aircraft -Winter and Stormy Skies aligned alike- as they could.

Then, he felt magic wrapping around him and Nimbus was held in place by lavender shackles and he heard the sound of a shotgun cocking.

“Well, took you long enough,” Nimbus commented. “So, I assume there’s a trail of bodies in your wake and you’re rightfully pissed off at me eh Riptalon?”

“Shut up. You’re coming with me to face trial. Regina doesn’t take too kindly to traitors,” Riptalon snarled depriving Nimbus of his weaponry. The stallion groaned. And just when he’d reclaimed those as well!

“Woah, woah,” Jabari stated. “Aren’t we being a little rash here? You saw how Winter and Nimbus interacted. I’d have been more surprised if Nimbus wasn’t swayed to her side!”

“Not helping my case here mate…” Nimbus thought.

“Look, all I’m trying to say is, it was an honest mistake on Nimbus’ part. You know how charismatic Winter can be,” Jabari continued. “And besides, I don’t see Target or Gabby around, do you?”

“He’s right you know,” Twilight commented unshackling Nimbus and tossing his rifle back to him. “Besides, we’re going to need all the bodies we can throw at this if we’re going to reclaim Manehatten.”

Riptalon let out a scream of frustration before lowering his rifle. “Alright, but don’t think you’re forgiven. Not even for a moment understand?”

“Quite. Now come on, we’ve got to buy Cherry and company some time, let them free the hostages!” Nimbus barked taking command of the situation at once.

Feeding back into the Athenaeum, the group held the line stopping any Enclave forces in their tracks. Any that managed to slip by the wall of spellfire and bullets, Jabari and Riptalon quickly cut down with sword and shotgun. While this happened, a welcome reprieve came.

“Hello Equestria, this is DJ Pon3 broadcasting over the airwaves once more,” Xiraia said with the energy she had become known for. “That's right fillies and gentlecolts, I'm back and better than ever thanks to a very special mare and her friends who came to my aid here in Tenpony Tower, my hat's off to you.”

“On your left!” Gabby’s voice shouted before she slammed a powerful Hellhound claw clutching fist into the skull of an Enclave soldier smashing through the armor and blood spraying everywhere.

“Now my little ponies, you're probably all wondering about what's going on and why I've decided to address you like this for the first time,” Xiraia continued. “I wish I could tell you that the Enclave was lying about DJ Pon3, but for 200 years we've been keeping you entertained and informed under a lie, that is true. With Winter Breeze exposing our secret though, there's no real point in hiding it anymore. I know you good ponies out there will understand, but sometimes there are truths that are best kept secret. But from now on my little ponies, I'll keep on broadcasting and fighting the good fight with you with my own voice, you have my promise of that. But the war isn't over yet, the Enclave are on the run here in Manehattan and the time has come to drive them out of our city. They come here with their promises of making our world better, to make Equestria as great as it once was, but what about those methods they employ? Is that the future you want to leave for your children? I know I don't, we will make the future bright again, but we don't need the Enclave and their methods of terror to do so. This is Xiraia, signing off.”

Nimbus smirked. This was exactly what was needed as a morale booster. Xiraia was back on the air where she belonged and the Enclave was on the run. Feeling a new energy fill him, he took out several more soldiers. The storm outside continued to broil angrily. However… it looked almost unnatural as lightning flashed in the angry skies. Lights flickered inside the storm clouds, almost as if something was being shot. Twilight’s eyes widened and she whispered: “No… It couldn't be… Could it?”

“Now where’s…?” Henri trailed off, shooting down another soldier with Black and White Rose and paying Twilight’s ramblings no mind.. Her eyes then widened as she saw Target and another mare -Apple Tart- using the chaos to climb into a Vertibuck. Target shot them a sad look before Henri sighed. The mare had made her choice. So be it.

Riptalon raised his rifle, but Henri forced it back down. “Let her go. It’s the least we can do for her, as friends.”

Riptalon gave her a look of shock before his eyes widened even further as a massive form burst through the clouds. A glowing blue symbol that looked almost like twin horns erupted from the broiling storm. Pasted on the side of an old airship -an airship, not a cloudship- the bow carved a path through the skies, the purple and black monstrosity sending shudders down Nimbus’ spine. His eyes widened in realization as to why this ship had shown up. Of course! With Xiriara back on the airwaves, that meant Celestia One had been disabled as well! And from the looks on everyone else’s faces, they realized this as well.

“The Shadowbolts…” Henri murmured even as Target’s Vertibuck took to the skies going practically unnoticed in all the chaos around them. Twilight’s comment was something different, however.

“You came and saved us again… Fizzle…” Twilight whispered before wiping away her tears as she gazed upon the magnificent airship. At one time, she would have feared such a thing, but now…? It looked like the most glorious sight in the world.

Eventually, more reinforcements would arrive. Nomad City and the Typhon would arrive to finally drive any remaining Enclave out of the city and while it would later be learned Winter escaped once more with the help of Tornado one thing was certain. The battle for Manehatten was finally over.