Alguacil had several ponies whom I did not recognize in a flurry of activity in front of us. I recognized Hot Cross Buns by a workbench, pounding away at some metal. I could see part of his left wing was missing, cut off somewhere past the mid-joint. Wow, what could do that to a pegasus wing? Any thought of looking after him was put on hold by three zebras along with Chifundo stepping between us. Was that a dragon? A teenage dragon?

“Hello, little angel, we thank you.” The zebra took a bow at my hooves. I stared at her, completely taken aback and lost. My tail tugged on a rope, and I looked back to see that at some point a rope had been tied around Black Hawk, keeping her wings secured to her body while my tail was holding the other end.

“Alright, everypony listen up. We need to take a moment and bury the dead. Move the bodies into that cellar,” I pointed my braced leg over at a building with a set of steel doors leading into the earth. A twinge of pain echoed into my shoulder from forcing the movement. Nyota grabbed the leg to support it back into his grip. I looked to the pink-striped zebra, “Can you perform last rights for all them?”

Chifundo looked at me, dumbfounded. “Sunrise, this I can commit, but are you certain we have time to permit?”
“Make time,” I replied, while Quick Stitch began organizing the lot of them together. I leaned on Nyota heavily as I tried to put weight on my injured hoof, and he refused to let me walk on my own. I grumbled in his direction, and he met my gaze with a stare that would dominate Princess Celestia herself into submission. I lowered my head, knowing I couldn't win this argument. At least it doesn’t hurt as much.

“Nyota help me over to the shed. Black Hawk, stay with us.” Slowly, we made our way over to the shed and I took a piece of old wood. Corners passed me a knife and I smiled at her. “Thank you, Corners. Go see what else you can scavenge, especially on the roof. See if they got anything stowed up there.”

Pink giggled, but I stared her down to stop her from speaking. There was no need to talk, just the exchange of raw emotion was enough to quiet the pink pony. I started carving into a hunk of old wood from a building. “Just stay close to me, and make sure your former prisoners don't get any ideas.” In front of us, beyond earshot, bodies began to be dragged down into the cellar. It might not have been much, but it would be a final resting place. Everypony deserves some final place to rest. I pushed back the loathing accusations of murderer floating in the back of my mind. We can take time to grieve later, just get this done and keep yourself together, here Sunrise. You have to.

Chifundo continued speaking in a language I did not understand, while I started my work into the near petrified wood. “Black Hawk, what were their names?” My voice was cold and emotionless, it took the effort of a titan to talk right now and if I let even an iota of emotion through, the damn would break.

The mare made a whinny of surprise and stepped up beside me, while my tail tighten the grip on the rope, in case she tried to jerk away from me. Nyota followed her every movement, not letting down his guard, even if she was cooperative and tied up. “I don't understand, what do you mean, names?”

“Your squad, what were their names? If I'm gonna bury them, I want to know,” my reply was even colder, despite tears that ran down my cheeks as I fought away the pain in my leg. I felt Nyota's familiar hoof against my mane, trying to provide some comfort. He knew that my voice was well beyond it's normal happy go lucky way of speaking. None of us deserved what just happened. I have to make it right. Even if nothing will ever make it right. Nyota's grip intensified when my hoof flexed as I stumbled to stay on my hooves while working the blade into the support beam with my mouth.

I felt a cut against my cheek and winced when I lost control of the crude knife. I didn't let Nyota touch it and resumed working as much as I could waiting on Black Hawk's answer. The knife may have only cut the surface but I could feel that twinge of pain as real as if it had just cut me into my heart and ripped a piece out. Tears started to drip down as I relied on the comfort of Nyota and Pink to keep my emotions pushed back.

“Just put Pegasi soldiers of the 'Grand Pegasi Enclave'. I don’t want their names listed,” Black Hawk turned away and I could see tears in her own eyes. I nodded, and assumed it was some security protocol. My mouth worked through the tears until I was done. Tears had dried against my cheeks and slowly stopped, the work becoming my focus instead of the act of dwelling upon the guilt. It was like some weight was lifted from my shoulders and I could breath easily. I wasn't sure how long it took, because my PipBuck was currently being held away by the nicest zebra I'd ever met. He really is nice and cute, maybe I should say something.

Pink leaned in with big, starry eyes, and a long silent cheer on her lips, waiting for me to finish the thought as I traded the knife for a piece of chalk. Slowly, I drew the sunrise and a little pony angel with a small shotgun across the gravemarker. The hooves of this angel were clasped together, praying for the souls of the fallen. Then I took out another piece and highlighted the words I'd written. Every single movement felt like an anchor pressed into my soul and demanded that it's own pound of my psychic be drawn out.

Where did I learn to write something like that? Why? Have I done this before? My thoughts were interrupted by my injured foreleg moving to be draped over Nyota's back as he started to push under me. “Hey! Hold up. Earth pony not on ground.” These were the only clumsy words I could manage to get out as I was lifted and hefted up. A few panicked horse noises later, my ribs were supporting me in a rather undignified position.

Black Hawk snickered as I found myself being laid across Nyota's back like a fresh hunter's kill. I looked at Black Hawk, eye-to-eye now, with our breath rolling over each other's snout. My expression was of indignation and disbelief, but the pegasus just grinned broadly. She could burst out into laughter, my tail yanked on the rope interrupting her instantly. She almost lost her balance and fell over. I grinned at her, now with a mutual understanding of who would be laughing in the end.

“Little angel, we need to show you something!” The zebra mare that had spoken to me before came forward. I raised an eyebrow and looked at the zebra, very confused.

“You know me? How? The radio? I'm very confused. Who are you?” The questions came faster than anypony had the ability to process and were only stopped by a zebra hoof in my mouth. Ya know, her hooves taste different, but I can distinctly tell the difference between zebra and other pony hooves now. Great, I can identify breed of pony by hoof taste. What's next, identify their tracks by taste?

“I am Serves-Many-Lords,” she replied, and nodded to make sure I would remain quiet. Then, the zebra removed her hoof from my mouth. “Every zebra knows of the small green mare. You are the angel with a shotgun, who has traveled the wastes and defended our kind in times of great need.”

I laid on Nyota's back, staring at the zebra like she was a huge, pink elephant. I looked at Nyota for an answer, and he looked at me and shrugged a shoulder into my rib. She didn't have a whole lot of distinctive features from the other zebras, save for the fact that she was the only mare. All three had their right flank branded in place of their glyph marks; The same lightning bolt with a cloud brand that Hot Cross Buns bore.

Serves-Many-Lords approached Nyota and gave a bow of respect, “Please, can you follow us? We have something to show the little green angel.”

Nyota shifted his shoulder to get a response from me. I took my good leg and stroked his mohawk mane, “I see no reason not to trust them. They stopped attacking us and are showing some sort of reverence? I don't wanna say ‘friendship’ yet, but we have trusted them this far.”

"Alright Sunrise, just be aware I'll throw you from my back so I can fight if she proves untrustworthy." Nyota replied and I stroked his mane with my good leg while holding the brace away from his flank so it wouldn't bang off of it. It was so strange using another pony as a mount but I got why he was doing this.

I motioned Serves-Many-Lords to lead on, as the three zebras took us into a building that had a damaged radar dish sticking out of its roof.

Within the building were the remains of what had once been an Equestrian military listening post. The roof was caved in, along with several computers that had been destroyed by debris and gunfire. Desks and chairs were in various states of destruction or ransacking. There was a Ministry of Wartime Technology poster plastered onto the wall, torn and faded. All of that wasn’t what drew my undivided attention.

The symbol I had been drawing—a sunrise with a pony angel holding a shotgun—was on the wall. It was made of chalk covered in gunpowder and wonderglue to preserve the drawing. It was my hoofwork, for certain; that or an incredibly good copy. There was no memory that came forward, no explanation, nothing. Just every indication that I had been in this place and felt compelled to mark it.

Nyota turned his head and looked at me. It was clear from his facial expression that he expected some sort of revelation. All I could do was shake my head and look at him in shock. The other zebras took a look at the symbol then gave me a bow. Black Hawk stared at the symbol, then looked at me, then the zebras. “Is there some religious thing going on here with you tribal savages?”

This brought a swift dash at Black Hawk from one of the silent zebra stallions, but Nyota raised a hoof and that stopped him mid-move. It looked similar to the Fallen Caesar style of combat, but without him completing the attack there was no certainty to how he would fight. "Black Hawk, I have about as much explanation as you do right now."

Pink, I'd like some sort of explanation right now!

“Well, if that were the case, you would think it would be that simple. Sunrise, do you think this is the first time you've been out of that stable?” Pink’s voice came out of the zebra who had just tried to attack Black Hawk and all of us stared at him stunned.

“Pink is that—” I started to say, but didn't get far.

“Me! Yes, it is. Hi, Sunrise!” Nyota let out a distressed whinny and staggered back a step. I placed a hoof against his mane and softly pressed forward to steady him. “You've been out more than once, silly! The memories are somewhere inside that memory-orb-rewritten mind of yours.” The Pink possessed stallion stood on her hind legs and made a noogie motion against his head. “You just gotta find them!” Black Hawk's jaw slacked to the ground, while we tried to take in what was happening.

“Pink,” I stated to get this creature's attention. Serves-Many-Lords and the other zebra both took up positions like they were going to attack at any second.

The high pitched mare's bizarre voice continued, “We just have to jog the memories loose.” She bounced up and down like a coiled spring towards us. Nyota took a step away and kept her at a distance. “Then all those events you keep dreaming of will make sense, and thennn we—”

“Pink!” I shouted finally, and Nyota winced since my mouth was right next to his ear. Every pony else in the room stopped what they were doing and looked at me. Even Pink ceased her hopping.

“Yes, something wrong?” the possessed stallion replied with a giggle that would only be fit coming from a school filly.

“Pink, ask permission before you possess somepony!” How bucking freaky must it be for him? He suddenly isn't in control of his own body, nor is he even hearing anything close to his voice when he speaks? I'd be about ready to flip right out or need a good psychiatrist. My thoughts raced and I tried to piece it together wanting to understand exactly what was going on. I understood what Pink was now, she wasn't a figment of my imagination. She was something else that I had yet to fully grasp.

“Oh, it's fine, Sunrise. He is perfectly okay with it!” Pink was so enthusiastic that her reply was infectious, in a twisted way. Like you wanted to smile and nod. I shook my head to regain control of my morals and senses.

“Pink, ask permission, NOW!” Each word snorted with a second of pause as my anger at Pink became more heated. The stallion gave me an indignant grimace, and then suddenly looked very lost. His confusion amplified by the second till he nearly fell over, staggering around like he had just been put through a bladeless blender for an hour.

“Who, what, where... oh, great pink spirit who terrifies me to the core, what can I help you with?” The change in his voice was jarring. Even if it was what I had expected him to sound like, it still hit the sense as something unnatural had just occurred.

Good to know that Chifundo isn't special in that regard. Another zebra talking to the air. “You wish to use me as a vessel? Of course it's fine.” He suddenly snapped to, loosing his dizzy spell and his voice changed radically back to Pink’s.

“Oh, see, Sunrise? I told you it was fine! Besides zebra stallions are particularly fun!”

I glared at the Pink-possessed zebra with eyes that promised murder. Pink stopped giggling and stood at attention in reaction to my stare, even giving me an Equestrian Army salute. Serves-Many-Lords and her unnamed friend both dropped their guard, finally relaxing. Instead, they wore broad smiles across their lips and started to clop their hooves in jubilation.

I leaned in close to Nyota’s ear, “Does any of this make sense to you at all?” Nyota turned his head and slowly shook it side to side. I looked at Black Hawk, whose jaw was dropped to the floor. If not for the last week or so, I’d be you right now Black Hawk. Then, I turned back to the Pink-possessed zebra.

“Oh, Sunrise! You old kidder! I promise, you’ve had a whole lot more experiences out here in the wasteland than you can even fathom! Now, I've got to get back into your head.” Pink paused and her host made a face like she’d eaten a terrible tasting cake. “And I can only tolerate stallion bodies for so long!” Just like that, Pink was back on my HUD, and she started doing cartwheels along the individual compass degree indicators. She even moved up and down with the difference in 1, 5, and 10 degree lines.

“Sunrise! Get up here! I got something to show you!” I have never been more thankful in all my days to hear Corners' voice. I looked at Nyota as the celebratory cheers of zebras surrounded us; he didn't show signs of moving yet. Great, is he lost in the same level of crazy? Time to snap him out of it. My rear hooves nudged into his sides, and he snapped to me with a look of utmost reprisal.

“What? If you are seriously going to insist I lean on you and that you carry me around, did you not expect me to say giddy up?” I teased him, only to get a snort of zebra rage in return, before my zebra steed started to walk in the direction of Corners' call. My tail tugged along Black Hawk as a flurry of activity resumed near the prison. Ponies and that teenage dragon—Just where had a teenage dragon come from? I was always taught not to mess with dragons. To them we are crunchy and taste good with ketchup—were working busily to repair armor, make weapons, and Hot Cross Buns was fashioning something that looked like a wing.

“Sunrise, hurry up, you have to see this!” Nyota followed the sound of Sugarcube's voice, up the stairs of a building that lacked two walls. As we emerged onto what was left of the roof we were greeted by quite the sight. A large oval-shaped craft with two wings, each with propeller engines at the tips of the wings. A vertibuck. It wasn't in operational shape, but it was still mostly intact.

“Did you know this was here?” My eyes were on Black Hawk.

“Well, yeah, but it doesn't work. We were using it for parts for our main transport,” Black Hawk stopped and looked at me with a confused expression. My eyes were going over it, looking at the vehicle for everything on it that might work.

I looked at my PipBuck under the file I made from the Ranger Station two nights ago. 'Tank Parts'. “Does that Vertibuck have a class 1, 2, or 3 spell matrix, and does it still work?” I asked, looking at the pegasus.

“I'm not really sure, but, I mean, we could check?” The pegasus was genuinely offering. I was surprised she was being helpful but I wasn't about to turn down work that could distract me. As I slid off Nyota's back, —to a combination of my relief and his annoyance—he caught my chest before my forehooves could hit the ground and lowered me the rest of the way.

With the help of my tail later, the pegasus was untied, and I backed away slowly to see how she would react. Her wings unfurled and stretched out as she arched her back and pressed her hooves out. With a couple of flaps of her wings, the pegasus rolled her neck and let out a groan. “That feel better. Come on, give me a hand with this.”

Corners popped out her machine guns, and there was a click as the safety was removed. Nyota gave me a questioning look, while I looked back at him and nudged Black Hawk’s flank, almost falling out of Nyota's grasp in the process. “You know, you gave me a brace. I think I can walk on it.” All I got was a snort full of hot zebra breath and a glare. Right, whether I like it or not, if I want to do things, it’s my his way or I can sit in the corner.

Black Hawk had climbed up inside the vertibuck passenger compartment and removed a panel. “Come on, give me a hoof with this.” I trotted over—and by that I mean had Nyota hold my right foreleg while the rest of me moved forward. “I need a magical fission cell or a core to test it out.” I shook my head and leaned onto Nyota as I reached out and grabbed my PipBuck connector port. I offered it to the Pegasus.

“Oh, come on, that's cheating,” she moaned and took the connector to her mouth before clicking it into place. This was truly an awkward position: medical brace extended leg, trying to crane my neck to view the PipBuck screen, all while attempting to operate the device with my other hoof. I felt two hooves under me, pressed against the stubbornite chest plate in my armored duster and holding me up, and I was grateful for them. How does Nyota balance on his two rear hooves without help or support?

The screen tested the spell-matrix, and it came back with readings I needed, 'Vertibuck Operating Matrix 1187-62-2.' That last two was what I needed to know: it was class two, so it could be reprogrammed to operate the sand scorcher systems. “Yep, exactly what we need. Corners, can you take this spell-matrix section out intact?” I asked, and the little mare saluted inside her box at me like she had suddenly signed up for the Equestrian Military.

“Thank you, Corners for being a good pony,” I said, and she slowly eased her way out of the box. Box Pone slid her way up to me and wrapped her hooves around my chest. There was a soft awkward hug between us while I was still attached to the vertibuck and held up by Nyota. In spite of that, it was the best feeling I'd had all day. Finally, my leg gave a shot of pain and I had to pull away from Corners with a yelp. She winced and reared back like I had become lava and was about to explode all over her.

I smiled and looked at Black Hawk. “Unplug me, we got what we need.” A wing reached up and there was a click before the connector was pulled. We headed back towards the large group of rescued ponies along with Quick Stitch and Alguacil.

Quick Stitch had Hot Cross Buns on a table, working on his wing. The pegasus had a leather-wrapped piece of scrap metal in his mouth and was screaming out in agony into the bit, as his teeth ground into the leather.

Quick Stitch's horn was glowing and he was clearly working some sort of spell upon the pegasus and causing him a great deal of torment. The olive stallion's brow was furrowed harshly, while sweat dripped from his mane. The magical spark on his horn glowed brightly but was held steady as the intense surgery proceeded.

Chifundo stopped us and kept us all at a distance. Every pony here was armed with combat knives and improvised pipe rifles, and salvaged recon armor adorned their hides as well. The unicorn sisters were standing by Quick Stitch, using a rag to clean his brow and while another kept Hot Cross Buns pinned down. I looked away, wincing at the surgery that was transpiring.

I looked away and bit my lip, the sounds of tortured surgery enough to cause the pain in my leg to surge up; any amount of med-x pumped into me earlier was doing no good. Quick Stitch may have mended the leg but it certainly wasn't fully healed. That, combined with the memories of 9's attacks on my body, was all too much.

I've killed ponies today! I've gone to rescue other ponies and taken dozens of lives! And now I have to listen to this, this—

A hoof against my mane brought me back into the waking world before my memory could fully take shape and drag me into a trance. Nyota had me pressed to his chest, and though I was smaller than him, he still had to hold my head down to keep me there. I whimpered when a cry of dismay pushed the bit from Hot Cross's mouth. It was the final scream before the activity behind us died down. The glow of Quick Stitch's horn shot up brightly for just the briefest of seconds before it dimmed out completely.

Nyota shushed me and held me tight, “I've got you, Sunny, don't worry. They are helping him and it's over.” I pulled away from Nyota and turned back to see the group approaching me. Chifundo on my left, Quick Stitch walking right up the center, and Hot Cross Buns on the right, with extra space as he flapped his wings and winced. Slowly, he took flight for just the briefest of moments, and then let himself back to the ground. His left wing was a full quarter made of metal and wires.
“You, made a cyberwing in just a few minutes? Since we let you out?” I questioned, and then looked at my PipBuck. It had been almost an hour and a half since we had started to gather the salvage and scavenge everything. How long had I let Nyota hold me? I looked at the swirl-striped zebra, who just blushed and looked away like he knew something I did not.

“Not a full cyberwing, it's just a crude metal replacement.” Hot Cross Buns explained. "But I can't go back to her broken."

“Yes, nothing like this,” the taller dragon stepped up to us while he spoke. He was covered in scars across his gray scales and yellow scaled belly. He was about a head taller than a pony and walked upon his hind legs. That, however was a stark contrast to his left arm, which was made of robotic parts. Unlike the crude metal folds that I imagined were extremely painful, and lack any electronics to support them, this claw was a true marvel of the old world.

Jackal had tanned leather for his scales with a set of ruby red ones running down his spine sticking out as spiked plates. His blue eyes were filled with hurt and pain of things long since passed. His left claw was completely cybernetic, all the way from the elbow down. By ‘baby dragon’, I think we all meant more like a, ‘teenage dragon’, now that I was close enough to see him face to face. He flexed his claw and then resumed speaking, “At least he can get airborne again, but I wouldn't trust Hot Cross to outrun any pegasi anytime soon. Now, are we ready to go?” This dragon creature was impatient, and Hot Cross placed a wing over his chest.

“Down, Jackal. These are our rescuers.” Once Jackal backed down, Hot Cross turned back to us. “Besides, the Enclave will take time to assess and try to determine what happened before they send any more teams down.” He pointed around and we could hear the squawking of radios asking for a report, but none was coming. Nyota kept me propped up while we spoke, and my stomach started to twist at the thought of what could be powerful enough to shear off a dragon's leg or a pegasus wing.

“Oh, Sunrise! You're always so squeamish! No matter how many ponies you blow up. I love how pure you remain.” Pink teased while laying across her belly with forehooves propping up her chin while rear hooves swayed in the air. She appeared to be the size of a mare, and the other ponies even seemed to step around or avoid directly touching her. If they could not hear or see her, they certainly sensed her. She shrank back down before my eyes and pulled out a lawn chair to watch my actions from the bottom right of my HUD.
Pink I swear you have lost your marbles. While I want an explanation whatever you mean by that keep it! I'll figure it out later when I have time to digest it. I was trying to hide just how much her words stung. I wanted to cry out in agony right then and there, burst into tears and curl up in a ball. I had just killed ponies, ghouls, and whatever those demon things were. None of which sat well with me.

Hot Cross looked at me like he was expecting something, and then gave a bow, “I'm glad you showed up when you did, thank you all for rescuing us.”

I held up a hoof and shook my head. “We were sent here, by Sparrow.”

“She...she hasn't given up on me? You mean she knows you are here looking for me?” He bit his hoof and looked around nervously as he started to pace, “She really waited all this time?” He paused and flexed his newly repaired wing. “I, I thank you Quick Stitch. I couldn't go back to her broken.”

Chifundo piped up and stepped between us, “She has been waiting so long, in hopes that were not permanently gone.”

How? Right now, I wanna know how you manage to rhyme without a second thought!

“Please, we are here to make certain that you end up in Silver Fang Shanty,” Chifundo offered him a hoof and a delighted smile.

“Jackal and I were convinced we were not going to get out. We didn’t expect some escort was going to show up and save us. It's been months, she still held out hope?” Hot Cross looked at us, stunned, as the dragon walked from behind him and tugged his wing.

“Thank you, whoever you are. I just hope you don't turn out to be more bad ponies,” The dragon almost snorted at us and his words cut only slightly less because we were there to save them. Though, with the volume of dead, I didn’t feel like a hero.

“I'm Wandering Sunrise.” I pressed my good forehoof to my chest and then motioned to the ponies around me. “These are my friends, who you already met. And yes, we are here to save you all and get you back to someplace safe.”

I looked at Black Hawk. “You are supposed to make sure they buy the story that we are raiders, and all these ponies are dead. Unless you don't think that will work and you'd rather stick with us?”

Black Hawk rubbed her hoof against the opposite foreleg and looked away with an embarrassed blush. The mare hesitated and then slowly turned back to look at me, “I don't think it will work. They are likely to just interrogate me and kill me.” She pushed her wings out and growled threateningly at me, “You should have just let me die!”

Alguacil approached us and pushed the pegasus away from me with a talon, then growled at me as he lowered down to look in my eyes. He looked like he might draw his pistol and shoot us both right then and there. He hesitated and my tail started to reach for the shotgun in the holster; I stopped it. Pink, this is my friend, I’m not shooting him! Even if he shoots me first. There has to be a better way and we both need to hear this. "You hear that Sunrise? You should have let her die! You've given her a fate worse than death and you gotta live with that!"

His words made me flinch. Nyota and Quick Stitch stepped between us and I didn't respond. I hadn't considered that some ponies would consider saving them a fate worse than just letting them die. I felt the tears starting to well up when Pink touched my cheek, "No Sunrise, not yet. Keep it together a little longer okay? We have to get safe first."

I returned to looking at Alguacil, holding back my tears of agony and just gave him a nod. He was right but I couldn't say a word right now, not without breaking down and losing myself to my own self-loathing. We kept staring each other down for what felt like hours till the noise of Corners dropping the spell matrix out gained my attention.

Alguacil's glare shifted off of me, and he stomped off in a huff to investigate the noise. Great, he's pissed at us saving her as much as he would be for us killing her. My head got light as the adrenaline left my body and I staggered into the arms of two familiar zebras. “Come on, let's get going, it will be well past nightfall before we return and when those radios stop squawking, none of us want to be here.” Nyota declared set me back onto my own hooves.

Nyota turned and presented his flank as Quick Stitch and Chifundo hefted me up onto his back, and within just a few minutes I felt something, the way his body moved it reminded me of being close to a pony and dancing.

This memory? Was after the Stable-Tec hospital, dad wouldn't let me out of his sight for nearly a whole month. We're at the gala?

I was surrounded by dozens of high society mares and stallions. My mane was stiff with hairspray, but done up to cascade just right over my shoulder. This dress covered my bare flank; if no pony knew me, they would say I looked like a fine, young, court-able mare. This dress was made of a sweet black veneer, infused with magic so that the pattern on it moved and shifted with my mood. That pattern currently was a detailed expression of rainbows, mixed with a slow-orbiting sun emitting the rainbow down from my shoulder to the hem at my rear hoof.

My mother had designed it, while some shop called Rarity's Boutique had made it here in Canterlot. I knew she was a ministry mare, but I doubted Rarity herself had worked on it. Something about all this made me uneasy; my father, here, a mechanic and engineer among these royal ponies and nobles? A slow waltz was played by a live band, and I looked to see Octavia leading them by her double bass. Of course some famous pony would be playing, wouldn't she? My thoughts were broken by a hoof extended to me, sweet gentle silver hoof and I looked up to see a stallion in military dress uniform.

A pegasus like my father, but with a scar running from his eye down to his chin in a crescent hoof shape. He was smiling at me expectantly while his suit didn't completely cover his flanks just halfway down in the dark blue of the wonderbolts. He had a curly white mane and tail mixed with his silver coating, and the initial S.Z. inscribed on his wonderbolt insignia to his left side. His cutie mark was that of a solid white-gold bow firing a platinum arrow, with the wind kicking up in white dust rings around it.

“Hello there, little mare, you must be Sunrise. Would you like to dance?” His voice was older than my father, or perhaps war-weary in comparison. I hesitated and then took his hoof as he dragged me gently forward.

Hoof-in-hoof we moved. he led, and I felt like I might stumble repeatedly, only to barely gain my footing at the last moment. Compared to this pegasus I was possibly the least graceful looking dancer on the floor. I looked up at him and blushed, the soft pink burning in my cheeks as I glanced away from him, “Did my dad put you up to asking me to dance?”

He gave me a mockingly wounded look, and then hung his head near mine, “Yes he did, but I thought I shouldn't take it easy on you.” We took another few steps and my rear legs were getting the hang of his complex movements before I was span around and brought into a backwards dip, supported by one of his hooves and his wing. My vision fell on the crowd around us. In all my stumbling, I hadn't realized we had slowly been given quite a wide berth on the dance floor, complete with onlookers. “Might I add, you are indeed a pegasus's daughter with how well you move. At least, more graceful than any earth pony I've ever met.”

I blushed once more as he used that hoof and wing to ease me back to all fours. A few ponies starting giving us a half-hearted clapping of their hooves. This was all interrupted by some pony's protests on stage and a microphone blaring out. Everypony turned their attention to the stage, and Octavia was standing there at the microphone to the horrified look of the band with her.

“Everypony, may I have your attention,” she began in an accented very educated way of speaking. “Mares and gentlecolts, this war has gone on long enough. Stallions like Silver Zoom of the Wonderbolts come back to us scarred and permanently damaged, while many ponies don't come back at all. Even with the loss of Big Macintosh, that doesn't give us the right to continue the brutality of bloodshed!”

Canterlot guards were rushing the stage now. I heard a set of hooves stomping into the room with heavy jeweled horseshoes. Princess Celestia herself moved into view and I stared at her in awe, I couldn't look away even as Octavia's voice sped up. “We must sue for peace! This has to stop! We have to avoid—” the microphone was cut off and silenced as the ponies around let out distressed gossip and murmurs.

When Celestia stomped her hoof, the whole room went silent and she turned her gaze onto Silver Zoom, who was standing next to me. I could see the cracks in the hardened marble floor under where she stomped. A deep sense of guilt filled me that any pony had dared anger an Alicorn much less something as beautiful as Celestia. “Now listen here, Silver Zoom, do you have any involvement or knowledge of this?” She demanded, turning her vision upon us. She looked at both of us sternly and stomped a hoof clad in gold armor.

“Your majesty,” Silver Zoom took a low bow and stepped just one hoof step in front of me. I saw my father being held back by the guards, while Octavia was being escorted off the stage by the security forces in their golden armor. “I knew she was going to do something, but nothing like—”

I felt a push, like some force had moved or compelled me to move. My body moved on it's own; I stepped between him and Princess Celestia, looking at her determinedly. There was a collective gasp from everypony around as my father dropped his jaw in disbelief. Princess Celestia looked down over her muzzle at me, staring a hole into my violet eyes with her own. I began to shake and quiver as she gazed down at me. There was a long, pregnant pause, and I felt like I might be smote into ash by an alicorn at any moment. Then, finally, her gaze softened.

“You, little mare, we're going to have a talk later. Silver Zoom, I suggest you recommend your musicians more carefully in the future.” Her voice was a commanding one, one that felt like if I disobeyed I'd be breaking some sacred oath. Celestia paused and looked back at me, turning her head slightly, “Your father is Rainbowrise, isn't he? Come along, I believe you should talk to some pony.”

Guard surrounded the two of us, and I was shoved next to Princess Celestia, “Do you want her detained, Ma'am?” one of the royal guards offered, and she laughed.

“Heavens, no, gather her father and have him wait outside my chambers. She is to come with me. A certain pony needs to meet this one.” Like that, we were led out of the dance hall by a dozen armed guards. I felt like I was going to a prison for having violated a high law against treason. Celestia refused to let me talk and the guards kept my hooves exactly in step with her's. A bright light hit my eyes and shattered the memory back to the waking world, no matter how much my mind wanted to hang onto this memory. A bright light hit us as we stepped out of the castle gathering hall and I was brought back to the current world.

The spotlight shined onto my face as Nyota was nudging my face with his nose. “Come on, Sunrise, they need to see you to let us in.” I groaned out in protest. The memory, dream, whatever you call it, was one I didn't want to leave. The light hurt my eyes to even get them open.

I really hope I get to fully remember that when I sleep tonight. I slid down Nyota's flank and onto the ground, he caught me by the injured leg. I stifled a scream by biting into my lip, while Nyota slowly let me down rather than the quick impact the other three hooves had done. I looked at him and smiled wearily. “I'll be giving you that answer later.” He looked at me and blushed as he pulled away just enough that the spotlight shined back onto my face.

“Hey, open up. We're back.” I looked at my PipBuck and saw it was after 8pm. It was well after dark now when the drawbridge dropped and a certain mare came charging right out. She ran past us in a blur and tackled Chifundo into the concrete, rolling him across the dirty drawbridge, and the sloppy noises of them making out filled our ears. I looked at Nyota, who looked a combination of sickly pale and mortally embarrassed at the same time. We didn't know what to do or how to proceed, until Alguacil came up and poked at Picline with a claw.

“Okay, you two, get a room inside where we don't have to watch this,” he ordered, and then snorted at them while crossing the bridge. Within a few minutes we were inside, and I separated from my companions, going right up to the inn. Chifundo and Picline were already making enough noise to cause any pony to be embarrassed.

Seriously! I didn't know Chifundo could sound so feminine and sexually aroused at the same time! Good Goddesses, please, any pony shut them up! My cheeks burned while we heard the noises of the two of them till the mare at the counter got a silencing talisman onto the door handle of their room. The mare that ran the inn pulled up a checklist and looked at me.

“Is your friend paying for the silencing talisman, or are you?” She demanded, tapping a hoof against a clipboard that looked like it was from before I went into the Stable. I pulled out a bag of caps and counted twenty out for the talisman, and then another one hundred onto the desk.

“I need two rooms with locks, one for myself and one for another mare who will come in here later; black armor, pegasus, blue coat. Ask if she is Black Hawk,” I requested, and she gave me a key labeled with a big '2'. She took a few notes and gave me a second key with another big red '3' on the cooper-gold metal. I took them both, and saw the deep blood stains over my white hoof tips. The events of the day came rushing back as I hung my head, walking for the doorway with a red two on the dull steel key.

The work of the day and travel had worn at me, and now I was reminded I had seen something truly beautiful in the past. Well before I had done anything to hurt any pony. Now, I winced as I laid my sleeping bag in the corner and curled up inside it, still wearing my armor. I only kicked off my helmet and bounced it across the room as I lay there. I looked at my hooves; they were still stained in blood.

There were four beds in the room. It was the same one we'd slept in last time, except now I was alone, curled up in the corner and staring at my blood stained hooves. I couldn't look away. I felt like I'd been punched in the gut a dozen times. My whole life since I woke up seemed to have been leading to the point I'd kill a pony. Molerats, a sentry bot, Spring Bronco's death, killing the feral ghouls bothering Waffles, the scorpions, the raiders I tried to get to surrender and then throwing a land mine right at a pegasus. What were you thinking? It was a land mine! He was wearing virtually no armor compared to you! Neither of them were! You murdered those ponies! And PINK! You traitor! I wasn't supposed to—

“Sunrise, I know you were not supposed to kill other ponies. I knew if I told you they would probably die from it, you wouldn't have done it. But seriously, Sunrise, I had to get you through that. They were shooting at you, they would have killed you without a second thought!” Pink was screaming at me to shout me down and keep me silent.

I listened to Pink yell and shout me down, countering every argument I had, until I just started to sob and then outright bawl like a foal who needed a nap. I wailed and cried out in emotional agony while, Pink realized at some point she’d gone too far and started to stroke my mane with my tail. My mouth moved with the words of exactly how I felt, "I murdered those ponies. I'm not better than a raider." I felt like my world was crashing down, as the feeling crept into my mind that I would never be able to reclaim my life. I had done something unforgivable and the blood stains on my coat would never be washed away.

I had no idea how long I'd been like that, but the sobbing turned to a dull sniffle and the tears eventually dried up when I had no more. That didn't stop me from trying to keep crying, the sound of pathetic dry sniffles echoed through the room. I felt so tiny, so insignificant. I wanted to never get up from that floor; I wanted to replace those bodies in the cellar we left in Las Pegasus; I wanted them to live and me to be gone.

Level Progress - 12% of the Way to Level 7

Fan Art of the week: We have a plushie now!