Doctor Turner was starting to get antsy. The Rainbooms were finally awake and here he was, stuck in a testing room while the other doctors conducted the initial interviews, as he had been for most of the night. He was well aware that the circumstances were almost entirely his own fault, but that didn’t make it any easier to swallow.

Still, I hope they’ll be able to smooth over the incident at Project Purity. After all, it was hardly our fault that that jumped-up meathead couldn’t manage a peaceful discussion without screwing it up.

Heaving a sigh, Turner looked over at the observation monitor for the hundredth time. It was connected to a camera set up in the next room over; a lead-lined and blast-proof room designed for containing malfunctioning nuclear warheads while they were fixed. Inside the room, on a table directly in front of the camera, an experiment had been set up to test the radiation being emitted by the Rainbooms’ necklaces; their so-called ‘magic’. Specifically, they were testing the radiation’s passive effect on living beings.

A recently found and reprogrammed Protectron allowed Turner to manipulate the equipment without exposing himself to any unnecessary risk.

The experiment itself was quite simple. A small cage containing a single un-mutated rat had been placed in the middle of a table. One of the Rainbooms’ necklaces, Rarity’s to be precise, had been placed next to it and the X-51 Signal Detector Thingy, newly christened as the SDT-1, had been placed on the other side of the cage. A complex array of sensors surrounded the set-up transferring the readings from the SDT-1 to Turner’s computer, while at the same time measuring every conceivable scrap of data the scientists had been able to think of.

Thus far the experiment had been a total bust. The SDT-1 was measuring a low dosage of unique radiation; a dosage several orders of magnitude higher than that emitted by the Rainbooms themselves, but still negligible compared to the size of the reading from when they first arrived. On top of that, what little radiation that was being emitted was having no visible effect whatsoever on the rat. Aside from the typical symptoms of boredom, the little rodent was perfectly fine.

“You really should be more grateful,” Turner huffed. “Most of the rats we breed for experiments like this end up either mutated or dying a horrible painful death. Not you though. No, you get to just scurry around your cage, minding your own bloody business, don’t you, you little turd?” He shifted in his seat and glanced at the clock, “Oh, balls to it.”

Reaching into a pocket, Turner pulled out a small voice recorder, “This is Doctor Timothy Turner. Current time is... eight-ten, date is the same as last recording, plus one. Inter-dimensional Radiation Experiment RG-01 has been running for four hours with no visible change in either test subject. Terminating experiment now and removing biological sample for a more thorough examination.” He typed a command into the nearby console and stuffed the recorder back in his pocket as the Protectron got to work packing away the necklace.

A few short minutes later the necklace was safely back in its box and both it and the rat had been removed to an adjacent room. A quick check with the SDT-1 showed only trace amounts of residual energy where the pendant part of the necklace had sat on the table. Satisfied, Turner ordered the Protectron to place the SDT-1 back on the table then locked the room’s doors again and activated the radiation traps he’d installed to sterilize the room before he set up the next experiment.

As soon as that’s finished, I’ll set the rat aside so Sienna can run some more thorough tests on it. Then I’ll run decontamination procedures in the room, fetch Sunset’s necklace, set up the experiment again, and sit on my arse in here for another four hours straight.

Yay.

Spinning idly on his chair, Doctor Turner was just considering checking the feed of the eyebot in the Rainboom’s room when he spotted something out of the corner of his eye. He rubbed his eyes and frowned at the monitor, not quite sure of what he was seeing, “Hello, what’s this?”

An undulating tendril of purple energy was slowly rising out of the spot on the table where Rarity’s necklace had lain. Doctor Turner watched as the tendril started to twist, coiling itself into a loose, rippling spiral.

“This is incredible!” Turner exclaimed, yanking the recorder back out of his pocket and holding it up to his mouth. “This is Doctor Turner, experiment has taken a very surprising turn. It appears that exposure to high levels of radiation can cause even trace amounts of unique radiation’ to somehow replicate, manifest, and take on some sort of physical shape.”

He glanced at the readings from the SDT-1, “Yes, the unique radiation has indeed increased dramatically. The readings are vastly higher than that which was emitted passively by the necklace, and are still increasing, rapidly. More tests will need to be performed to discern how, exactly, the two forms of radiation interact to cause this phenomenon, as well as how varying the relative… hang on.”

Turner gaped in surprise as the tendril suddenly started to darken and split, numerous additional tendrils branching out from the main one and questing through the air. The grasping mass of magical energy was starting to reach almost three feet in height.

“My word, this is a new development,” Turner recorded absently, “it almost appears as if the unique radiation is mutating or adapting.” He cast a curious glance at the SDT-1 readings then muttered, “Scratch that, it is definitely changing. This is fascinating, I wonder how thi- oh shit!”

One of the split tendrils suddenly whipped around, gouging a long furrow in the table beneath it. Deciding that things were starting to get out of hand, Turner abruptly shut off the radiation traps in the testing room, watching anxiously as the rad count in the room ticked down to zero. The magic, however, didn’t diminish. Instead it simply curled in on itself, wrapping itself into a dimpled ball that floated several inches above the table.

“That… was random. Note to self; magic is every bit as unstable as radiation and is apparently as mutable as FEV. Consider greater safety precautions before performing tests on the other necklaces. Now, what the hell am I supposed to do with that bloody magic ball floating in the middle of my testing room?"

The sound of the door opening behind him had Doctor Turner’s head whipping around. He sagged with relief as he saw who it was, “Doctor Bohn. You startled me.”

“Good,” Sienna said flatly. “I need you to contact the President for me.”

“In a moment,” Turner promised, “but first, would you mind taking a look at this for…?” He trailed off lamely as he turned back to the monitor.

The ball of magic had vanished.

Sienna raised an eyebrow as she glanced at the monitor, then shook her head, “Whatever it is, it can wait. Tara’s unhappy as it is with you performing these experiments, no matter how passive they are. Besides, I’ve got a couple of demands from the Rainbooms. It would be in our best interest to provide them with answers if we want them to work with us.”

Turner was only half-listening. He nodded along as she spoke, but he was more concerned with figuring out where the ball of magic had gone, especially given that the SDT-1 was still reading it in the room. “What do they want?” he asked quietly.

“They want to know exactly why Project Purity was targeted, and why their friends were attacked,” Sienna replied. “They also want to speak to James.”

“What?!” Turner yelped, finally giving the conversation his full attention.

Sienna tilted her head curiously at his response, “James, the lead scientist on Project Purity? The Rainbooms want to speak to him. They’re adamant that they won’t co-operate until they’ve spoken to him.”

Turner just stared at her, cold horror working its way up his spine.

Unnoticed by either of the scientists, the Protectron in the testing room shuddered slightly, its AI rapidly adapting to the mutated magic now coursing through its frame.

Deep in the bowels of Raven Rock, the Enclave’s mountain headquarters, Colonel Autumn marched stoically into the Senate Chamber. Modeled after the pre-war Senate Chamber in the old Capitol Building, the room contained rows upon rows of opulent desks and plush chairs, enough to seat well over a hundred people. Now it housed less than a tenth of that number, the entirety of the legislative, executive and judicial branches of the old Federal Government condensed and reduced to the mere handful of people that currently occupied the center-most seats.

Colonel Autumn held back a scowl as he spotted the eyebot hovering above the President’s seat. He knew it was physically impossible for the President to make a personal appearance, but the indignity of the coming disciplinary meeting was bad enough without having to converse through an intermediary. The fact that Senator Devall was sat to the President’s right, in the seat usually occupied by Autumn himself, did nothing for his temper, nor did it bode well for his career. Stopping in front of the President’s bot, the Colonel snapped a salute, “Mister President.”

“Colonel Autumn,” the President acknowledged, “I trust you have recovered well.”

“As well as could be expected,” Autumn replied tightly. He’d barely fully woken up in the medical bay before he was dragged down here. He still had sharp pains in his joints whenever he moved, side-effects of the experimental rad-x he’d taken at Project Purity.

Devall leaned forward and adjusted his monocle, “It’s good to see you up and about again, Colonel. I just wish it was under more favorable circumstances.”

Autumn didn’t reply. He and the overly-friendly monocle-wearing tool had been at loggerheads for years, a mutual dislike that had only intensified after Devall’s assignment to watch over Project Exodus.

President Eden cleared his throat loudly, “Now that you are here, Colonel, there are several matters that we need to discuss. Starting with your many failures at the Jefferson Memorial.”

“I fail to see how and where I failed in my stated objectives,” Autumn replied. “Project Purity has been secured and all scientists are accounted for. The Rainbooms were the only uncertainty in the mission, and they were delivered safely into the custody of Project Exodus, as ordered.”

“Your objectives were to take control of Project Purity, it’s scientists, and to bring the Rainbooms in peacefully. Peacefully, Colonel,” the President said snidely. “Given that one soldier was severely injured and another traumatized in the process of forcibly subduing the Rainbooms, an act of aggression that Doctor Strong and her team are attempting to rectify as we speak, I fail to see how you can possibly say you achieved that particular objective.”

“My orders were to bring them in unharmed, not peacefully, Mister President,” Autumn shot back.

Senator Devall raised an eyebrow, “Unharmed, you say? I may not be a soldier, Colonel, but even I can see that getting punched in the stomach by a soldier wearing a full suit of X0-2 power armor is enough to harm… well… anyone. Let alone an un-armored young woman.”

Colonel Autumn clenched his fists behind his back and resisted the urge to glare at the Senator, “My soldiers gave the Rainbooms every opportunity to submit without confrontation.”

“Your men made a token effort, at best,” President Eden cut in.

“They made the best decision given the circumstances,” Autumn retorted. “If I had been given details on what exactly the Rainbooms were capable of before launching the assault even the few injuries that resulted could have been avoided.”

“If you had exercised a modicum of caution and restraint the confrontation could have been avoided altogether!” the President snapped. “And as for the ‘few injuries’ you mentioned, have you forgotten about the brave soldiers that perished thanks to your bungling of the operation?”

The Colonel cursed silently. He was ashamed to admit that he had forgotten about the two Privates that had accompanied him in the purifier’s control room. Autumn made a mental note to check their names and next of kin as soon as this meeting concluded, he made a point of personally writing condolence letters to the families of soldiers who fell in the line of duty. “An unfortunate loss. However, considering the potential threat the Rainbooms presented, I find myself relieved that only two members of the taskforce were lost.”

“Two?” President Eden asked incredulously, as the gathered Senators and advisers muttered amongst themselves. “Good God, did you not ask the men to debrief you on your way up here?”

Autumn hesitated, suddenly very concerned, “I assume that-”

“Assume nothing,” Eden interrupted. “Senator Devall; will you kindly inform the Colonel of what exactly happened after he was rendered… indisposed.”

Devall nodded and scanned a report on his desk, “After the lead scientist, James, activated the purifier’s failsafe, his son, Adam, successfully escaped the Memorial building with Doctor Li in tow.” Autumn felt his blood run cold at that, “In the process of his escape, a total of six additional men were killed in action, three more are still in critical condition, a further four suffered minor injuries, and three Eyebots were destroyed.”

President Eden somehow managed to project a sense of disapproval even through his faceless intermediary, “Those losses are merely the tip of the iceberg. Since you don’t seem to have completely grasped the extent of your failure, allow me to enlighten you. Since James activated the failsafe, Project Purity has become increasingly unstable. The scientists attached to the Jefferson Taskforce are having to perform round-the-clock maintenance just to keep it from exploding. In other words, Project Purity is not secure.”

Autumn couldn’t help a sinking feeling in his chest as the President continued, “Combined with Doctor Li’s escape, and your inability to bring the Rainbooms in peacefully, you somehow managed to fail every single objective you were given. As if that wasn’t bad enough; upon making their escape, Adam and Doctor Li fled directly to the Brotherhood of Steel, placing all of our operations here in the Capital Wasteland in jeopardy!”

Autumn felt a spark of defiance, “The Brotherhood are hardly that much of a threat.”

The President gave a mirthless laugh, “Oh really? Need I remind you that it was the Brotherhood of Steel that drove the Enclave out of the West Coast in the first place?”

Colonel Autumn scowled. The loss of the Poseidon Oil Rig, and the resulting stain on his family’s honour, still stung, “Even so, I am confident that-”

“The Brotherhood is no longer your concern,” the President said darkly. “From this point onward you will not plan an operation or redeploy troops without clearing it with me first, is that clear?”

Autumn glared at the eyebot, his fists clenched at his sides. One sentence. All it would take is one damned sentence, and I could end this whole farce right here and now. Not yet though. It’s too risky, I can’t afford to tip my hand too soon.

“Is that clear, Colonel?” the President pressed, his voice dropping dangerously.

“Crystal. Mister President,” Autumn forced out through gritted teeth.

“Good.” President Eden’s eyebot turned to look down the room, “Now that that is out of the way, we can move on to other matters. Development is finally complete on the Hellfire armor and we are ready to start putting it into production. The first units will be ready within the week and will be delivered to Squad Sigma for field testing.”

“How long until we can begin mass production?” Colonel Autumn asked quickly.

“Not any time soon, I fear,” the President replied. “Our stock of Duraframe components is running low and we don’t have the resources to produce much more.”

“The Hellfire armor should be a top priority,” Autumn insisted. “It represents a significant improvement over the X0-2, and will greatly enhance the survivability of our soldiers. We should appropriate all Duraframe components from other projects immediately.”

“That seems a little excessive, don’t you think?” Devall asked.

The President hummed thoughtfully, “Actually, I believe the Colonel has a point. The components set aside for FEV Experiment FH-1 shall stay where they are for now, but none of the other ongoing Projects show anywhere near as much promise as the Hellfire armor.”

“I beg to differ,” Devall replied. “Whitley’s enhanced eyebots in particular could be useful.”

Autumn snorted derisively, “Eyebots are surveillance tools and glorified radios. Making them tougher won’t make them any more useful.”

“On the contrary, more advanced and durable eyebots would be extremely useful for many things. For example, helping facilitate safe communication with certain ‘outside parties’,” Devall countered, giving the President a significant look.

Colonel Autumn bristled at the veiled dig at his own failure, but he stayed silent. Pointless insults weren’t Devall’s style. He had an agenda, and Autumn would bet his left arm it had something to do with Project Exodus.

President Eden was silent for several moments as he considered. “I see your point, Senator, but the Hellfire armor is still a high priority. I’m aware that Whitley has completed his first prototype, so I’ll allow him and the prototype to be attached to Project Exodus, but the rest of the Duraframe components from his work will be appropriated for Hellfire production immediately.”

Devall conceded with a nod, “Of course, Mister President.”

Colonel Autumn watched the interaction carefully, as did the rest of the room. It was hardly a surprising result, but he couldn’t fathom why Project Exodus could possibly need Whitley or his research. In fact, the more he thought about it, the more he realized just how many assets the project had managed to accrue.

The Colonel frowned as he spoke, “With respect, Mister President, Project Exodus has already been granted a vast portion of our remaining resources. If we aren’t going to redirect all Duraframe components into the Hellfire armor, then shouldn’t we at least grant the first suits to a squad that will actually be able to field test them? Or, better yet, replace Squad Sigma with another squad, rather than keeping our most elite unit stuck on babysitting duty.”

“Regrettably, their duties are far from mere babysitting, Colonel,” the President replied dryly. “Through Senator Prince’s contacts, we’ve learned that the Rainbooms have rapidly become a beloved presence in two of the largest wasteland settlements, and their popularity is swiftly spreading. I had hoped that we could use that popularity, releasing them once we’d helped each other and having them spread word of our benevolence throughout the wastes. A quick and easy way to win the hearts and minds of the wasteland populace.”

The eyebot intermediary floated forward a few inches, and the President lowered his voice menacingly. “Since that plan has been ruined by your bullheadedness, I have instead transmitted a propaganda broadcast, stating that the Rainbooms came to us willingly, that they are impressed with the water purifier that we are constructing at the Jefferson Memorial, and that they are helping us on a top secret project intended to help all the people of the wastes. Of course, if the Rainbooms manage to escape, all of that will swiftly be revealed as falsehood.”

Autumn nodded as he considered the President’s words, “So Squad Sigma are essentially the Rainbooms’ jailors?”

Senator Devall turned a surprised look on the eyebot, “Pardon me, but I was under the impression that we would be releasing the Rainbooms once we’d learned everything we could from them?”

“The Rainbooms are too dangerous,” President Eden replied. “We defeated them easily once, but that was when they were caught off-guard. Now they have time to plan, knowledge of what our troops are capable of and, more likely than not, something of a grudge against us. Keeping them permanently contained is our best option. I have already given Squad Sigma orders to secure them if they attempt to escape. Alive, if possible. If not, well, there are seven of them. We can afford to lose one or two as a message to the others.”

Sunset felt a small sense of satisfaction as she watched the two scientists sit and try to piece their minds back together.

Doctor Strong looked over at Twilight, her eyes narrowing as she spoke slowly, “So, you’re another me?” Twilight nodded. “From a different reality?” Another nod. The doctor turned to Sunset, “And you’re another Becky- Doctor Shoichet, I mean; from a different reality again, and there’s another version of me there, too?”

Sunset nodded, “That’s right.”

Doctor Strong stared dumbly at Sunset for a few more seconds, then looked back at Twilight, “I’m… not sure how to deal with this.”

Twilight smiled faintly, “Yeah, it was kinda weird the first time I met the other me, too.”

Doctor Strong nodded slowly, her gaze sharpening as she focused on Twilight. Sunset could almost see the gears turning in her head as the woman’s confusion turned to curiosity. “What’s she like, the other you, uh, me, uh... us? Is she a scientist too? Are you a scientist?”

“Let’s take things one at a time, shall we?” Doctor Shoichet cut in.

“I know, I just have so many questions!” Doctor Strong exclaimed, practically vibrating in her seat.

“Yeah, well, your questions are going to have to wait,” Applejack growled. “You’re not getting anything else out of us until we’ve spoken to our friends from Project Purity.”

Doctor Strong recoiled as if she’d been slapped. Doctor Shoichet placed a reassuring hand on her arm and threw a filthy look at Applejack, “Hey, we’re trying to help you out here, so do you mind not being such a bitch?”

Applejack’s eyes narrowed dangerously as Rarity and Rainbow Dash glared daggers at the doctor.

“Need we remind you that if the Enclave hadn’t attacked us then we wouldn’t need your help in the first place!” Rarity spat.

“That’s if they’re even trying to help us,” Fluttershy muttered darkly.

“We are,” Doctor Shoichet insisted.

Sunset arched her eyebrow, “Really? Because from where I’m standing it looks like you’re trying to butter us up so we’ll agree to work with you. Heck, you still haven’t even told us why you want us to work with you, or what you’re really after!”

Shoichet opened her mouth to retort, but Doctor Strong cut her off, “That’s enough, Sunny. Arguing isn’t going to solve anything. Besides, they’re right.”

The two shared a look for a moment, before Shoichet sighed and turned to Applejack, an abashed look on her face “I… I’m sorry. I have a bit of a problem with my temper.” She huffed a laugh and glanced at Sunset, “I guess you’d know that better than anyone.”

Sunset snorted softly, “Yeah. You could say that.”

“I have a question,” Pinkie said suddenly.

“I hope I have an answer,” Doctor Strong replied.

Pinkie tilted her head to the side and looked at Doctor Shoichet curiously, “How come you called her Sunny?”

Doctor Strong smiled shyly, “It’s silly, really. Although I suppose it sort of makes sense makes sense now that we know your names.” She paused for a moment as she thought, then shook her head, “Anyway, she’s Sunny and I’m Sparkles. They’re the nicknames we gave each other when we first started dating.”

There was a sharp clatter as Pinkie dropped her spoon, then dead silence filled the dining hall.

Doctor Strong looked around at each of the girls in surprise, “What? What’s wrong?”

“Would, uh… would you mind repeating that last bit?” Twilight asked quietly.

“You mean the part about us dating?” Doctor Strong raised an eyebrow, looking from Twilight to Sunset curiously, “You mean you two aren’t?”

The two glanced at each other, blushed, and looked away, shaking their heads slowly. “No. No we are not,” Sunset answered.

Twilight rubbed her neck awkwardly, “I… actually have a boyfriend back home.”

“Wait, really?!” Doctor Strong cried. Twilight nodded shyly. “But… but how can you have a boyfriend? Are you sure you’re really into men?”

“Pretty sure,” Twilight replied with a nervous laugh.

Doctor Shoichet grimaced, “Oh God, please tell me it’s not Vincent!”

“Um, no? His name’s Timber Spruce,” Twilight replied.

Doctor Shoichet gave her a blank look for a second, then slapped a palm to her forehead, “Right, you’ve all got different names. Um… he likes music, and he’s sporty but he’s a bit of a clumsy dork. I actually dated him for a while back when we were cadets, but it didn’t work out.” She smiled ruefully at the recollection. “A while after we broke up he ended up getting a crush on Tara.”

“That sounds more like Flash Sentry,” Sunset said slowly. “Me and him dated for a while when we were freshmen. After we broke up him and the Twilight from my world sort of ended up crushing on each other pretty hard.”

Shoichet frowned and folded her arms, “So there are big similarities in the way our lives have gone, but some major differences too.” She looked up at Sunset, “So does this mean the Tara, Twilight, from your world is heterosexual, or…?”

“I’m not really sure to be honest,” Sunset admitted. “At a guess I’d say she’s bisexual, like me. Sexuality isn’t a big deal where I come from originally. You love who you want to love, we don’t care about gender, biological or otherwise.”

Doctor Strong turned to Twilight, “What about you? I mean, I don’t want to pry but-”

“I’m heterosexual,” Twilight replied, blushing again. “Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind women, so I guess I’m sort of bisexual, but I just... I prefer men.”

“And yet I have no sexual interest in men whatsoever.” Doctor Strong slumped in her chair, “I guess there are differences between us. Other than just our colors, I mean.”

“Um, about that,” Fluttershy put in quietly, “if you’re genetically identical then shouldn’t you be the same, um, colors?”

“Mmm, yes and no,” Twilight replied. “Our genotype is the same, so in theory our phenotype, how we look, should be the same, but there’s a little more to it than that. Our phenotype is the result of how our genotype interacts with the environment. If we’d both grown up on the same world, we probably would be the same color, but since we’re from different worlds with slightly different physical laws…”

Doctor Strong sat up straight at that, “Wait, you mean the laws of physics are different in your world?”

Twilight nodded, “Only slightly, as far as I can tell. The most obvious difference would be the radia-”

“I think that’s enough for now, Twilight,” Sunset interrupted. “Let’s save teaching them about our home until after we’ve heard from James.”

Doctor Strong looked like she was about to press her case, but she relented with a sad sigh. Doctor Shoichet, seeing the look on Strong’s face, looked up at Sunset defiantly, “Look, I get that you don’t trust the Enclave in general, but why not us? I mean, we’re you, aren’t we? Come on, just throw us a bone here.”

A sudden clattering sound grabbed everyone’s attention. The whole group stared in stunned disbelief as a random bone skittered across the table to come to rest in front of the doctor. Shoichet looked from the bone, to Pinkie, back to the bone, then back to Pinkie again. “I, uh… why?”

Pinkie shrugged, “You said to throw you a bone, silly.”

Sunset burst out laughing at the sheer absurdity of it, swiftly followed by the rest of the Rainbooms. The doctors just sat and stared in baffled silence as the girls rapidly descended into hysterics.

“Oh man, that was awesome, Pinkie!” Rainbow coughed out.

Pinkie giggled and smiled at her, her hair looking a little closer to it’s true floofiness, “What can I say? I’ve still got it.”

“Where did you even get that bone?” Twilight asked, wiping away a tear.

“I made a friend in the wastes,” Pinkie replied cryptically.

Doctor Shoichet grimaced as she gently pushed the bone back across the table to Pinkie, “Uh, here, why don’t you have that back?”

“Okie Dokie Lokie!” Pinkie popped her thumb in her mouth and blew, puffing her hair up to its maximum level of poof, tucked the bone into the curly mass, then allowed it to deflate back down to it’s previous, diminished self.

The two doctors stared at her, utterly dumbstruck.

Applejack smirked, “Ah’m guessing the Enclave doesn’t have a Pinkie of its own?”

Doctor Strong shook her head slowly, never removing her eyes from Pinkie, “No. Twilight and Sunset were the only ones who had a genetic match in our database.”

“How did you do that?” Shoichet demanded.

Sunset smiled, “Okay, I’ll give you one last piece of advice. After that, you’re getting nothing until we’ve spoken to James.” Her smile widened and she shook her head, “Pinkie is Pinkie, try not to think about it too hard, and don’t … try to figure it out. That way lies madness.”

Before anyone else could respond the door opened and Doctor Bohn stalked through, looking annoyed.

“Sienna? What’s wrong?” Doctor Strong asked.

Sienna glowered at her, “Turner’s being a dick.”

“What? Why?”

“I don’t know. He’s freaking out about something, but he won’t tell me what. He just sent me to fetch you,” Sienna replied. “He said it was extremely urgent, so you should probably hurry before that limey asshole has a stroke or something.”

Doctor Strong swore under her breath, “I’d better go and see what’s wrong.”

“I’ll come with you,” Doctor Shoichet added quickly. “Sienna, you… you just stay here for now.”

“Fine by me,” Sienna replied. “It’ll make resisting the urge to emasculate him easier.”

“Sorry girls, we’ll have to continue this later,” Doctor Strong called over her shoulder as she and Shoichet hurried out of the room.

The Rainbooms just stared at the door, surprised at how quiet the room had suddenly gotten.

“Well, that was random,” Rainbow said flatly.

“What was that about?” Sunset asked.

“Like I said, I don’t know,” Sienna replied bluntly. She eyed Sunset curiously, “Couldn’t you just read my mind to figure that out?”

A flash of mild panic made Sunset splutter, “I… um… you see, I… I don’t like to do it without permission. It’s not polite.”

Sienna slowly arched an eyebrow, “You’re worried about being polite to members of the group that assaulted and kidnapped you?”

Sunset scowled, “Someone has to be the better person.”

Sienna stared at her in silence for a few moments. “Moral, but bitchy. I like you.” She smiled slightly and turned to the door, “Come with me. Now that you’re awake and fed, I want to see what I can do about your stitches.”

Another new chapter for you!

Comments and Criticisms are welcomed, and, as always, thanks for reading!