“Have you ever been on one of these things?” I asked as I looked over at Neivi and the others.

“Once,” Neivi said with a shake of her head. “I didn’t really like it, mostly because Storm here was the one flying it.”

“Hey, mah flyin’ wasn’t that bad,” Storm said with a shake of her head. “Yah take a mare out fer one joyride in a Vertibuck and she never lets yah forget it.”

“Don’t worry Firelight,” Lemon said with a chuckle as Storm and Neivi brought the fillies over. “I’m sure whoever is flying this thing will be more, professional than Storm is.”

“Hey!” Storm said in protest as we headed towards the Vertibuck that was going to take us to Canterbury. “What are you worried about anyway Firelight? You have wings, you must fly all the time.”

“Well yeah, but under my own power, I don’t know, I just…” I said and shook my head. “I’m just…”

“Are you afraid of flying?” Neivi asked.

“Maybe…” I said with a shrug. “I don’t know, I don’t really, understand that kind of machine, maybe…”

Before I could finish that sentence the pilot of the Vertibuck climbed out and I stopped in mid-stride. She was smaller than I expected (okay everypony looked small to me, I’m an Alicorn, it happens), practically a foal as she waved us over.

“Oh you have got to be kidding me…” I said and turned back around. “That’s it, I’m walking…”

“Oh come on, she’s just a bit on tha short side,” Storm said as she pulled me back. “Sorry, she’s just a bit nervous about flyin’.”

“Oh it’s no big deal.” The short filly said with a smile. “She couldn’t be in better hooves, I mean, There’s gotta be a reason the president likes to tow me around with her everywhere.”

I calmed down a little after that. “Sorry, I’ve just never been in one of those before is all, at least not for very long.”

“Oh it’s not so bad.” The filly said, holding her hoof out to me. “The name’s Butterscotch, though everypony calls me Peanut.”

“Firelight,” I said with a soft smile as I shook her hoof. “Aren’t you a little young to be flying Vertibucks for the President of the Enclave?”

“Maybe, but there’s a war looming and wars past ain’t been too kind, Enclave isn’t exactly picky about who they draft.” Peanut said with a shrug. “Just doing what I can to help.”

“Can we fly too?” Dawn Star asked.

“No, definitely not,” I said with a chuckle and shook my head a little. “Well, uh, thank you and President Breeze for being willing to give us a ride to Canterbury. I know Nightingale has only been in the Enclave for a short time.”

“Just keep Storm away from the controls,” Neivi said with a chuckle. “So, are we ready to go?”

“Last I heard they don’t have any ackack over there, so I’d be fine taking you over there.” Peanut said with a chuckle. “The Enclave ain’t too liked in these parts, best to only visit those without guns.”

“They’re also expecting us,” Neivi pointed out. “We sent the Council a message that we’ll be arriving on Vertibuck so you don’t have anything to worry about. This is a formal diplomatic meeting after all.”

“Lets just hope it doesn’t devolve into aggressive negotiations,” Storm said with a shake of her head.

“Aggressive negotiations?” I asked.

“Negotiations with a gun,” Storm said with a chuckle. “But we’re on good terms with Canterbury, Ah’m sure everythin’ will be okay.”

“Well, if you all would like to climb aboard, we can get going.” Peanut said. “No offense to you, Ms. Neivi, but I don’t trust Zebra, going into a big diplomatic discussion with them just seems like a trap waiting to happen.”

“I’m from Canterbury, we’ve had good relations with our Pony neighbors for decades, you don’t have anything to worry about,” Neivi said with a shake of her head as she gave Peanut a look. “Things have changed you know.”

“Never said I wouldn’t have a drink with em, or play a hand of card with them or what have you.” Peanut said with a shake of her head. “Just, when it comes to things like diplomacy or even fightin’ alongside each other, I’d do a lot of things before I let a Zebra be my wingman.”

Neivi looked like she was about to say something when I put my wing around her. “Come on Neivi, we should get aboard anyway,” I said and gave Peanut a look.”Before any of us say something we’ll regret.”

We all climbed aboard the Vertibuck and I took a deep breath. I was still a little nervous but I felt Neivi’s hoof on mine as she gave me a reassuring smile.

“It’ll be okay,” she said and rest her head gently on my shoulder as the Vertibuck started to take off. “When we get there I’ll have to show you around Canterbury, maybe introduce you to my family.”

I gulped involuntarily at that. I hadn’t even thought of that, what would her family even think of me? I was a pony, an Alicorn for that matter and I was in a relationship with their daughter… somehow talking to them scared me more than dealing with that giant bird.

“Wouldn’t you rather me fight a Thunderbird with no weapons?” I asked with a gulp which just made her laugh.

“Oh come on, meeting the folks ain’t so bad.” Peanut said with a chuckle. “It’s like getting a tooth pulled, with no anesthetic.”

“Well yeah, but I’m a pony, and she’s a…” I said with a blush. “I just…”

“Yeah, because it’s a total secret that I’m attracted to ponies,” Neivi said with a roll of her eyes. “Don’t worry about that Firelight. You’re the mare for me and if they don’t understand that, well, I love you enough to not care what they think.”

And with that she leaned up and kissed me gently on the lips. I smiled a little and kissed her back.

“So, what’s with tall, white, and silent over there.” Peanut said, looking into a mirror that I can only assume looked back into the cabin. “She hasn’t said much, starting to wonder if she’s even alive.”

“Moonlight, are yah okay?” Storm asked as she nuzzled the other Alicorn lightly to get her attention.

Moonlight shook her head and smiled a little as she looked to storm “Yeah, I’m fine. Just, lost in thought is all.”

“What are yah thinkin’ about?” Storm asked as she put her wing gently around Moonlight. “Yah know yah can talk ta us about anythin’.”

“Just, about what happened the night before.” Moonlight said and smiled down at Storm. “I’ve never been used like that, it is, very disturbing still.”

“Moonlight, its okay,” Storm said with a smile. “Yah had no control over it and we know how ta keep it from happenin’ again. Ah promise that Ah won’t ever let tha Society or anypony use yah like that ever again.”

“We all will,” I said and Neivi and Lemon nodded. “We’re your friends Moonlight, and I’m pretty sure that means we’ve got each other’s backs.”

“I’ve seen this before.” Peanut said with a chuckle and shake of her head. “Lemme guess, before you were like that, you were a pegasus like me and Storm.”

“Yeah, what of it.” Moonlight said, perking up and looking to our pilot.

“Because, Pegasi are a unique bunch, they require confidence to keep standing tall, and I think whatever happened, you lost yours.” Peanut said, giving a sigh and looking back to the controls. “It’s a sad sight, a pegasi with no confidence.”

“So, how do we boost your confidence back up?” I asked.

“You don’t.” Peanut said with a chuckle, “There is only a couple things that can get a pegasi’s confidence back, and it’s usually confronting the thing that took it away.”

“So, the Society,” Storm said. “Fun, well they need to be stopped anyway.”

“We’ll get your confidence back, I promise,” I said with a smile as I gave Moonlight a nod.

“What if I don’t want it back.” Moonlight said, shaking her head and giving a sigh. “All it’s ever done is hurt me and those I care for, why would I want it back.”

“That there is just crazy talk. A pegasi without confidence is like, a unicorn without a horn or a earth pony with no hooves.” Peanut said. “A pegasi is more then just wings and flight, its their confidence, their warrior nature.”

“Yeah,” Storm said with a smile as she nuzzled Moonlight again. “You just wouldn’t be the same without it, no Pegasi would.”

“What if it just gets us into trouble again, what if I do something stupid because I think I can, and it just backfires on us all?” Moonlight said with a shake of her head. “No, My confidence is better off lost, let’s just focus on the here and now and just move on.”

“Miss. Moonlight,” Blueberry Muffin said, speaking up a little. “Everypony makes mistakes. You can’t just hide yourself away because you’re afraid that you’ll do something stupid.”

“Ah’ll still love yah either way,” Storm said with a smile. “That ain’t gonna change, Ah promise yah that.”

“That, really means a lot.” Moonlight said with a smile. “And for what it’s worth, I feel the same way ‘bout you.”

“Oh boy, you two keep it to yourselves alright?” Peanut said “Not enough space back there to get this bird a rockin’”

“At least you didn’t walk in on them doing it…” Neivi said with a shake of her head.

“I tried to warn you,” I said with a chuckle as I nuzzled her gently. “You really should’ve listened to me.”

“I know, I know…” Neivi said and groaned a little at the memory. “I’m trying to block that from my mind.”

“Ah’m sure Firelight will do somethin’ ta replace that image this evenin’,” Storm said with a chuckle as she gave me a wink. “Ain’t that right Firelight?”

“Umm… err…” I said as I blushed heavily.

“Firelight and I agreed we’re not ready for that yet,” Neivi said, her white fur was as red as mine probably was. “I mean this is her first real relationship and… yeah, we’re not going to do that yet.”

“Right,” I said with a smile.

“Might be young, but even I know that can change on the hourly.” Peanut said with a sigh. “Well, it ain’t gunna be much longer before we get to Canterbury, might wanna make sure you guys got your gear”

I nodded as we checked our gear. Everything seemed to be there so far, I just hoped that our trip to Canterbury was going to go well. I sighed and pulled Neivi in close with my wing and closed my eyes a little.

Right now I just wanted to relax and let the flight end.

When I got my first look at Canterbury for a moment I thought we had actually just stayed in Nightingale. The settlement had a similar layout of being built in the trees with walkways that ran through it. Though interestingly the buildings seemed less makeshift here.

“Well, one of the council should be here to greet us, where are…” Neivi started to say when we heard the sound of arguing coming up the walkway towards the landing platform.

“This is entirely unacceptable! The delegates will be here in just a matter of days and none of our requests have been met!” A cloaked pony said.

“And I told you, you’re not in Carthage,” a Zebra mare said, it took me a moment to recognize her circular stripes as belonging to a Starkatteri tribe member like Neivi had been disguised as. “Canterbury is on the fringes of what would be considered FRA territory, it’s not as easy to get all of the items you requested as it would be back in the Homeland.”

“Do you not comprehend the importance of ensuring the delegates are taken care of?” A cloaked mare said, chasing after the Zebra. “The delegates aren’t like me and the others, they are used to getting their way and if they don’t get it there’ll be hell to pay on all sides, this I can assure you.”

“And I understand that, but I told you our supply ship from the homeland is running late this month,” the Starkatteri mare said with a sigh. “Most of what was requested is still on the ship, I can’t control when the supplies arrive.”

“Uh, is there a problem?” Neivi asked as she walked towards the arguing pair.

“Please tell me you’re a crew from the supply ship here to tell me exactly why I am going to have to tell a group of very important delegates exactly why they are not going to be given everything they asked for.” The cloaked pony said as she looked towards Neivi, then her gaze drifted to me and Moonlight. “Oh, just wonderful, a couple of Alicorns. What more could go wrong with this forsaken mission.”

“Councilmare Neivi, I apologize for the, less than stellar reception for you and your delegation,” the Starkatteri mare said with a sigh. “I’m Councilmare Diala, my associate here is here representing a group from back in the Homelands. We’ve had some, complications related to their requests however.”

“I see,” Neivi said and looked back at the cloaked mare. “Firelight and Moonlight are part of my delegation and I trust them both with my life. They’re-”

“Yes yes, Trustworthy and such.” The cloaked pony said, her hood being surrounded by a light green colored aura and was pulled back, revealing a rather large, luxurious mane like that of a lion, piercing violet eyes, and most interestingly, a curved horn. “Lunari do not simply trust every creature they come across, it took many years before they would even openly converse with the, which tribe was that again… You, Diala, you’re one of them, your tribe, which is it?”

Nevi’s eyes went wide at the reveal as Diala looked at the Lunari mare for a moment before speaking. “Starkatteri.”

“Wait, what?” Neivi asked. “You’re… you’re a Lunari? But… how… why… what?”

“Okay, I’m confused, what’s a Lunari?” I asked and looked at Storm and the others who just shrugged.

“We are, well…” the mare said. “A very, isolated group.”

“I’ve only heard rumors about you, I didn’t think you ever left the homelands,” Neivi said and blinked a little. “I thought you were a legend or something, I honestly wasn’t expecting this at all.”

“You, you’re the councilmare from Nightingale aren’t you.” She said, smiling a little. “Good news for you, and a heads up I suppose. After the… delegates, are done here they want to end off their tour with one of the finest settlements the FRA has to offer, and so, they choose their final destination to be that of your settlement.”

“Great,” Neivi said with a groan. “We’ve got enough problems to deal with right now and you want to add babysitting to the list.”

“Ah’m sorry, its been, a hard few days in Nightingale,” Storm said with a shake of her head.

“I have heard.” She said. “By the way, Stella Septentrionalis, but you can just call me Stella.”

“Well you already know three of our names,” Neivi said and gave us a nod and pointed at each of us in turn. “Storm Wrangler, Lemon Lime, and the fillies are Dawn Star, Blueberry Muffin, and Wind Chime.”

“Nice to meet you,” Dawn said as she looked at Stella curiously. “Why’s your horn like that?”

“Some questions little one, are best left unanswered.” Stella said with a chuckle. “Don’t want to give you nightmares.”

“They live in a very thick forested area so they use it to cut through the vines and things,” Neivi said.

“Wait, but we do too and I don’t have a curved horn,” Dawn said as she tilted her head cutely and rubbed her horn a little.

“Well, uh…” Neivi said. “It’s, something that happened over thousands of years, we’ve only lived in this area for a couple hundred years so, we don’t have that yet. It’s why we use knives.”

“That, or the fact you can’t really get away if your horn gets stuck in vines or a branch or something.” Stella said with a chuckle. “Anyway, Diala, You and I really need to handle this supply issue, unless you’d like to see what happens when a couple of spoiled royals don’t get everything they want.”

“The supply ship was attacked by Estori pirates according to the last report,” Diala said with a sigh. “They’re on their way, but that’s delayed them. They should be here by the time the delegates arrive.”

“Let’s hope so, for both of our sakes.” Stella said, giving a shake of her head. “Punishment for this kind of failure, is usually quite... Severe”

“We spend years fighting the Legion and we yet we still have to put up with this,” Diala muttered to herself though I barely heard it. “Alright, I’ll let you know when the supply ship arrives. Unfortunately that’s all I can do at the moment, but your delegates will have their, requests, you have my word.”

“I hope so, especially the medicine they requested. The last settlement they visited they seem to have walked away with some sort of illness.” Stella said with a sigh. “I have told them, so many times, that wandering a place they have never been would not be good for them, but did they listen, Nooooo, they decided that they just had to see everything the FRA has to offer.”

Neivi frowned a little at that bit of news. “Well, if we’re still in town when they arrive I can take a look at them.”

“I appreciate the notion, but therein lies another problem with these royals.” Stella said with a sigh. “They refuse to go home until their tour is complete, and they refuse to see any doctor that is not of Lunari descent, even if it kills them.”

“That’s a problem,” Neivi said. “I’m not exactly of Lunari descent if its not obvious, and if its life threatening, unless they stop acting like this…”

“This is the problem with most Lunari, ever since the scrolls were found it has only served to reinforce this elitism and, to be honest, pompous behavour.” Stella said with a groan. “I’m not even considered a Lunari because I wasn’t born in our Settlement, It’s why I am reduced to nothing more than a errand girl.”

“The FRA is doing what they can, but between the Legion, the Enclave, and internal issues, well…” Diala said with a shake of her head. “There’s only so much they can do. It’s not an ideal situation.”

“The FRA has done nothing more than aggravate the situation, or need I remind you who found the scrolls to begin with.” Stella said, sighing. “I could rant on this all day, however I feel I am already cutting into valuable time, so I will be on my way, You and I Diala, we’re going to have to finish this conversation later, perhaps, over dinner.”

Diala blushed a little at the suggestion but smiled. “I’m sure I can work that into my schedule. It shouldn’t be too hard if the rest of the council doesn’t try to make me look for rainbow colored magical swords or something.”

“I uh, you know what, me and Storm are just going to go, and uh… get something to eat, or something.” Moonlight said, nervously as she watched Stella walk away. “Right Storm?”

“Yeah, sounds good ta me,” Storm said with a smile. “Come on, Ah know a place from last time Ah was here. Follow me.”

“See you two later, stay out of trouble,” I said with a chuckle as I waved them off. “And make sure she’s back by 2200 hours Storm.”

“Yer no fun!” Storm said with a laugh as they walked off together.

“I’ll show the fillies around town so you two don’t have to worry about them,” Lemon Lime said as she lead them away and we turned back to look at Diala.

“Well, and then there were three,” the Starkatteri mare said with a chuckle. “Come on, Neivi how about we give her a little tour of the town on our way to town hall.”

Neivi chuckled and nodded a little as we started down the stairs and into Canterbury proper.

Canterbury was amazing, in some ways it reminded me of Nightingale but in other ways it was its own town. I smiled a little as Neivi and Diala showed me around, we even went past Neivi’s childhood home but she said that she’d save that for later.

Finally we reached the town hall and entered Diala’s office. It looked like it was still being decorated but it had the typical furnishings plus a few personal items here and there.

“I know it’s not much, but I only recently got the job,” Diala said as she took a seat behind her desk and gestured for us to sit down. “I heard about what happened in Nightingale with the Mayor. It shook a lot of us up what happened with him, how are things going since then?”

“About as well as can be expected given the situation,” Neivi said with a sigh. “Which is why we’re here, well part of the reason. The Mayor didn’t exactly do much to help relations with Canterbury and the other settlements around the Jungle so we want to fix that.”

“Yeah, I figured as much,” Diala said. “But it’s not going to be as simple as that. Canterbury is willing to work with Nightingale with trade and mutual defense of course, but the other settlements won’t be as easy to convince.”

I sighed a little and shook my head at that. Of course it wasn’t going to be that easy, and I doubt having ponies like me and Moonlight around didn’t help matters either. So, how were we supposed to convince them?

“So, what do we do?” I asked finally.

Diala paused a moment as she thought about how to answer that. “I’m a Starkatteri, I understand what it means to be an outcast and hated by everyone around you,” she said as she brushed her mane back a little. “Nightingale has lost a lot of the goodwill it once had because of the former mayor’s paranoia. Canterbury can help with that, but at the same time you’re going to have to reach out and help rebuild that goodwill.”

“So, go to settlements that will need help?” I asked and Diala nodded a little.

“I can get the council to agree to an alliance,” Diala said. “But it’s going to be up to you to convince others. And, well, as much as I hate to say it sending Alicorns is just going to remind them of the Society.”

“I trust Firelight with my life,” Neivi said as she gently placed her hoof on mine. “Is there anything around that?”

“Sure, if she and Moonlight can prove themselves trustworthy, but that’s not going to be easy,” Diala said with a sigh.

“I don’t mean anyone any harm, I hate the Society as much as anypony else,” I said with a sigh. “I’ve seen the truth, and Moonlight, she was never even in the Society. We’ve just as much been hurt by them as anypony, or Zebra, in the Jungle. I know you see us and you see the enemy, but we just want to help.”

“Well, you could try talking to Vox, he could… Diala started to say which made us flinch a little. “What?”

“There’s, another reason we’re here,” Neivi said with a sigh as she explained the situation with the music and radio broadcasts. “And that’s pretty much it, we need to talk to Vox and stop these transmissions.”

“That’s, certainly troubling, are you sure that’s the case?” Diala asked.

“It’s the only thing that makes sense I’m afraid,” Neivi said and I nodded a little. “I know it’s hard to believe but it’s the only thing that fits what we know. We just need to talk with Vox and hope that he’s just a victim in this and not complicit.”

“Vox Populi has been the voice of the Jungle since he was old enough to do the job,” Diala said with a sigh. “We can’t let this get out. If they find out that the Society has hijacked the voice of the people…”

“Then it’ll be a blow to their morale,” I finished and Diala nodded in agreement. “Which is no doubt their plan.”

“It can’t be all the music, that’s the good news,” Neivi said. “If we can figure out which music he broadcasts is triggering the effects then we can stop them from happening. It’s not an ideal situation, but it’s our only option right now.”

“Alright, well I’m sure Vox will be more than happy to hear you out,” Diala said with a nod. “Thank you for bringing this to our attention, and it was good seeing you again Neivi.”

“You too Diala,” Neivi said with a smile as the Starkatteri Councilmare came around the desk and gave Neivi a hug. “Look at you, you always talked about making a difference and here you are now.”

“Well, its not been easy but we’re on the right track,” Diala said with a smile. “Canterbury is my home, just because I’m a Starkatteri doesn’t mean that isn’t true. You taught me that a long time ago, now I’m just doing my best to show that its true.”

“Yeah, and I couldn’t be happier,” Neivi said as she released the hug. “Well, I should probably take Firelight to figure out where we’ll be staying. It was good talking to you again.”

“You too Neivi,” Diala said and we walked out together.

“So, you two are old friends huh?” I asked as I looked at Neivi with a chuckle.

“Yep, knew her ever since I was a filly,” Neivi said. “She was an orphan whose mother died trying to get her to Canterbury, we never found out why. But she’s always been there to watch my back.”

“I don’t have to be jealous do I?” I asked.

“Of course not, she’s cute but, well she’s not really my type,” Neivi said and leaned up and kissed me on the cheek. “I love you Firelight, you’re the only mare for me.”

“I love you too Neivi,” I said and we shared a long kiss together before we continued to walk out.

“Do we really have to do this now?” I asked, it was that evening and we had already gotten settled in but Neivi had wanted to take me to her home. “I mean, we’ve only been together for a few days…”

“Firelight, you and I both know that our lives are so crazy that we don’t know if we’ll get a chance to do this again anytime soon,” Neivi said with a smile as she stopped and looked back at me. “I want my parents to get to know you, you’re the mare I love and that’s what’s important to me right now.”

I paused a moment and sighed. I honestly wasn’t really sure what to think about that. I cared about Neivi, she was the mare I loved more than anything else. So, why was I so afraid of what would happen if I met her parents?

Well, I mean there was the obvious, I was an Alicorn that had been part of the Nightmare Society. I represented everything that was evil to the ponies and Zebras around this part of Equestria.

To them, I might be a monster. I just hoped that we’d be able to make them understand that I wasn’t like that.

“I know that,” I said with a sigh. “I just, I don’t know what they’ll think of me. I mean, I’m a Pony, you’re a Zebra, and I’m an Alicorn at that so…”

Neivi laughed a little at that. “I don’t think you’ve noticed but I’m not very good at hiding my attraction to ponies,” she pointed out. “They’ve known ever since I was young and they won’t care that you’re a pony, most tribes are open minded about that including the Mendi.”

“And what about the, you know, Alicorn thing?”

“That, may take some getting used to,” Neivi admitted. “I’ll go in first and tell them you’re a friend of mine from Nightingale. I mean that’s kind of true, so we can ease them into the whole Alicorn thing. Well, unless you can hide your wings with illusion magic.”

“Well, yeah, but I’m taller than normal ponies and I still look like an Alicorn,” I pointed out and sighed a little. “I mean, I can hide all of that sure, and we can just say I’m taller than usual. But I don’t want to start my relationship with your parents by lying to them.”

“Yeah, you’re right,” Neivi said with a sigh. “Alright Firelight, I’ll talk to them and hopefully it’ll be okay.”

“Yeah, hopefully,” I said as we finally reached the house. I leaned down and kissed Neivi gently on the lips. We held that kiss for as long as we could as I gently ran my hoof through her mane, I didn’t want to ever let go of this mare but I knew I had to. “Alright, I’ll be right outside.”

Neivi smiled and nodded a little as she headed into the house, leaving me standing alone outside.

I sighed a little and leaned on the railing as I looked out at Canterbury. Neivi’s house was carved out of a tree that was at the center of town and looking out I could see most of the town from here.

It was amazing, I hadn’t ever seen this many Zebras in one place. There were a few ponies here and there, but from what I could see there were a lot more Zebras. They hadn’t been kidding when they talked about this town, was kind of the reverse of Nightingale really.

I wondered what it would’ve been like if I had grown up here instead of in the Society. Would I have been friends with Neivi still? Would things have still happened like they did between us?

I didn’t want to dwell on that, I was just glad that I was here now. Hopefully, things would be looking up from now on.

“Alright Firelight, they’re ready for you,” Neivi said as she opened the door and gave me a smile.

“What did you tell them about me?” I asked.

“That you’re the most wonderful and amazing pony I’ve ever known,” Neivi said and gave me a kiss on the cheek. “They’re excited to meet you, I’m sure you can convince them that you’re not evil.”

“I hope so,” I said with a sigh. “I love you Neivi, and I want your parents to like me.”

“Don’t worry about it, come on in,” Neivi said as she lead me into the house. It was a pretty small house that had stairs leading up to the next level. A Zebra Mare and stallion were seated in chairs in what had to make up the family room.

“You must be…” the mare said and stopped in mid sentence when she got a good look at me. “You’re, an Alicorn?”

“This was a bad idea…” I muttered to Neivi.

“Mom, Dad, this is Firelight,” Neivi said as she gave them a smile. “Look, I know she’s an Alicorn but hear us out first.”

“Take a seat,” the Zebra stallion said as he gestured towards the couch in the room and we took a seat. “Now, if you have an explanation, now would be the time to give it.”

I sighed, there was hardly any point in lying as we told the two older Zebras everything that had happened. They listened carefully as we told them about how Neivi and the others had found me in the jungle and what had happened in Nightingale.

As we finished they looked concerned. I tried not to look nervous as her Dad sized me up, how was I supposed to explain this to them? I had no idea if they’d believe me that I really wasn’t evil.

“That’s, quite the story,” her mom said as she looked at me and then at Neivi. “Are you two, involved?”

“Yes,” Neivi said with a sigh as she placed her hoof on mine. “Firelight makes me happier than any being ever has. I would trust her with my life.”

“And what about you Firelight?” Her dad asked. “Do you really love my daughter?”

“Yes,” I said without hesitation. “Neivi saved my life back in the jungle, there’s no ignoring that. And as I got to know her for the amazing mare she really is, I started to fall in love with her. She’s smart, funny, and the kindest mare I’ve ever met, I wouldn’t be sitting here if it wasn’t for her. She makes my life complete, and I would never do anything to hurt her.”

Her dad sighed a little as I wrapped my wing gently around my marefriend. “Alright, if Neivi trusts you I trust you too. But, if you ever hurt her or break her heart, I will chase you to the ends of Equestria, understood?”

“Understood,” I said with a gulp.

“Well now that that’s over with, we really should introduce ourselves,” her mom said with a chuckle. “I’m Hania, and this is my husband Vant. Welcome to our home, and don’t worry about Vant, his bark is worse than his bite.”

“You always have to ruin my persona don’t you?” Vant asked with a frown.

“It’s not my fault you scared off Corin’s last marefriend he brought home,” Hania said with a roll of her eyes.

“Corin?” I whispered to Neivi.

“My older brother, he works as a traveling Doctor in Equestria proper,” Neivi whispered back. “He left not long after that.”

I just chuckled a little as I laid back on the couch and pulled Neivi in close as she smiled a little. Vant glanced at me and I could’ve sworn I saw the ghost of a smile form on his face as Neivi snuggled up to me.

We talked for awhile, they mostly seemed to want to get to know me as they asked me about myself. I answered as best I could but given that I hardly knew anything about my life before the Society most of my answers were related to that.

I could tell that made them a little uncomfortable. They were still having a hard time seeing me as more than just another Alicorn. I tried to put on a friendly face as I did, but there was only so much I could do.

“Well, I should get dinner ready,” Hania said as she got up and looked at Neivi. “Would you like to lend me a hoof?”

“Sure,” Neivi said as she got up and went with her mother up the stairs.

“Look, I really do love your daughter,” I said with a sigh as I was left alone with Vant. “I know it’s hard to accept that I’m an Alicorn and everything.”

“Neivi always wanted to do her own thing,” Vant said with a shake of his head. “She went to Nightingale because she wanted to strike it out on her own. And I’m proud of her for that, what is most important to me is her happiness. You seem to make her happy, so for now that’s good enough for me.”

“Like I said, I would never do anything to hurt her,” I said with a sigh. “I just want a chance to prove myself.”

“Alright, I won’t judge you further, but just treat her right okay?” Vant asked and I nodded a little. “Alright, well come on dinner shouldn’t take too much longer.”

I nodded and we started up the stairs together. That hadn’t been as bad as I had feared, but I just hoped that I wasn’t going to mess this up somehow.

As me and Neivi entered the radio station in Canterbury the next morning, Vox was just finishing up his news segment. The sound that followed was an ominous sounding organ tune that sent a shiver up and down my spine.

“Kagenotsuki no Kassei-ka,” a stallion with a familiar voice said as he stepped out of the broadcast booth. He was a red unicorn with a narrow yellow and red mane and short tail. “It’s a Neighponese piece from long ago.”

“I see,” I said as I looked at Neivi who just shrugged a little. “Diala said you would be expecting us.”

“Oh, yes of course, I’m Vox Populi, but you probably already knew that,” Vox said with a chuckle as he offered me a hoof. “And I know who you are of course.”

“You do?” I asked and blinked a little.

“Orange Alicorn with a fiery red mane and yellow eyes,” Vox said with a chuckle. “You’re hard not to recognize, I heard about what happened in Nightingale. Terrible business really, but I’m glad you worked it out.”

“Yeah, me too,” I said with a weak smile, at least he wasn’t causing a problem.

“Can I get you two anything? I’ve got some Opal soda or Sparkle-Cola if you’d prefer,” Vox said as he walked over to an old fridge. “Never liked the taste of it personally, but I keep it on hoof if anypony ever wants any.”

“No, we’re fine,” Neivi said. “Look, Vox, there’s something important we need to talk to you about.”

“Of course, anything for two of the heroes of Nightingale,” Vox said as he levitated out a purple colored drink and popped the cap and took a swig. “So, what can I do for you two?”

“We need to talk to you about some of the music…” I started to say when there was suddenly the sound of gunfire from outside followed by a loud scream. “What was that?”

“Come on, let’s check it out,” Neivi said, we were both now on edge, was Canterbury being attacked?

We rushed out of the building to find Storm standing with her rifles aimed at… something I didn’t expect to see. They were shaped like a pony, but they looked too, mechanical, with a silver metal coat and solid green eyes. It was some sort of machine, and its guns were retreating back into its body.

“What…” I started to say when I saw that Moonlight was laying on the platform bleeding out of several bullet holes, she was breathing but only barely. “Neivi!”

“On it,” Neivi said as she ran over to Moonlight’s prone form and started to work on her while I moved in front of them. My horn glowed and an orange shield formed around us.

“You have a lot to answer for robot,” I said with a glare at the, thing that had attacked one of my friends. “Who are you? Why did you attack her?”

“I am Luna Umbra, the will of the Empire,” the robot said in a mechanical sounding voice that sounded almost feminine. “Nightmare Moon is a blight on this world, and I only did my duty.”

“She’s not Nightmare Moon!” I shouted at the robot. “You attacked the wrong pony, she’s just an Alicorn!”

“Negative, scanners show that the target was Nightmare Moon,” Luna Umbra said as it looked me over. “Target neutralized, mission complete.”

“Why you…” I started to say as I pushed after her only to be interrupted by Neivi’s voice.

“Firelight, we have bigger things to worry about right now!” She shouted at me. “We need to get Moonlight to the clinic. We can worry about that, thing later.”

“Right, what can I do?” I asked as I headed back to them.

“I’ve managed to slow the bleeding but its not going to do us much good right now, I need access to a clinic,” Neivi said with a shake of her head. “Can you get her to the clinic? I’ll show you the way.”

I nodded and gently levitated Moonlight up onto my back. We started to walk towards where the clinic was while I kept a close eye on Moonlight to make sure she was still alive.

Goddess, what had happened? Why had that thing thought she was Nightmare Moon and why did it attack her?

“Alright Storm, tell us what happened from the top,” I said as we sat in the clinic while Neivi and the local doctor was working on Moonlight. “How did this happen?”

“I don’t know!” Storm said, she was crying as she looked at us. “We were just walking around town when that, thing came up to us!”

“Did she act weird?” I asked as I looked at her for a moment. “Did she act at all like she was going to attack?”

“No, she seemed, polite actually, fer a robot at least,” Storm said with a shake of her head. “Ah’ve never seen a robot like that honestly, it was, weird. Then suddenly her eyes started glowin’ this really creepy shade of green. She called Moonlight Nightmare Moon and then just, attacked her before we could do anythin’! Yah know what happened after that.”

I sighed a little, that wasn’t a lot of information on what the robot, this Luna Umbra’s motive was. We sat in silence as we waited for some sort of answer before Storm finally spoke up again.

“Ah think that was supposed ta kill Princess Luna,” she finally said with a sigh. “Ah can’t prove it, but Ah’d put good caps on it. Though, Ah don’t know why she thought that Moonlight was her.”

“Maybe it’s related to why she can dreamwalk,” I said with a sigh. “Luna is the only other pony we know of who can do that. I honestly don’t know what to think about all of this, but she’s in good hooves at least.”

“Yeah, if anybein’ can heal her, it’s Neivi,” Storm said with a sigh. “Still, Ah’m scared of losin’ her. We haven’t been together that long, but Ah love her yah know? Ah can’t stand tha thought of losin’ her…”

“Yeah, I know how you feel,” I said with a sigh as I placed my hoof gently on Storm’s wither. “Moonlight is a strong pony, she’ll pull through and she’s got some good doctors working on her. I promise Storm, she’s going to be just fine.”

“Ah hope yer right,” Storm said as she wiped the tears from her eyes. “This ain’t right, she never did nothin’ to hurt anypony. She ain’t Nightmare Moon, Ah hate ta think of what might happen if…”

“We’ll figure out what happened, but first we need to make sure she’s okay,” I said reassuringly. “I promise, we’ll stop this Luna Umbra before she tries this again.”

We sat there in silence for awhile as we waited for some sort of news from Neivi or the other Doctor. It was strangely quiet in the clinic as we waited for something to happen. I tried not to cry too, I had to stay strong for Storm.

Finally Neivi came out of the operation room and gestured for me to come over to her. I looked at Storm and got to my hooves and walked over to her.

“What’s going on?” I asked quietly.

“Moonlight’s in bad shape, the bullets are one thing but…” Neivi said and paused for a moment. “She’s been poisoned too, we’ve tried the usual radiation treatments for Alicorns and Ghouls with no luck. We don’t have the antidote and we don’t have time to find one, she’s going to die if she doesn’t have one soon.”

“Do you have any ideas?” I whispered back and Neivi paused a moment as if she was thinking about it.

“There is, unfortunately only one option,” the Zebra mare said as she looked down at her hooves for a moment. “You told me that the Society has a lot of medicine and healers right?”

“Yeah, but that’s…” I said and my eyes went wide. “You want me to teleport her to the Temple in Haythens?”

“Do we have a choice? Its that or she dies,” Neivi said with a shake of her head. “She’s already transformed and if we can get into the Temple we should be able to save her. I don’t like it either, but we don’t have any other choice. We can always save her somehow, can you do it?”

“She still has her memories, that can’t wipe them anymore, I think, that should let her be able to escape on her own,” I said with a sigh and gave her a nod. “What about Storm though? She’s not going to like this.”

“I’ll talk to her, you just go in there and do it,” Neivi said with a shake of her head. “I don’t like having to do this without talking to Storm first but if we do she might die.”

I sighed a little and nodded. “Alright, I’ll do it,” I said with regret in my voice, I hated myself for what I’d have to do. “You talk to Storm.”

Neivi nodded and walked over to where Storm was sitting. I slipped into the operating room where Moonlight was lying on an operating table. I paused a moment and looked at her, she looked so weak and helpless.

Thinking quickly I took out a pad of paper and a pen and wrote on it. I wrote a quick explanation of what happened and put it under her foreleg, then I wrote again, this note was more private, I wrote our names down and added, just in case the worst happen, “remember your friends.”

I tucked it away where it would be harder to find and backed off a little. I hated to have to do this, but I didn’t have a choice.

“I’m sorry Moonlight,” I said softly and my horn glowed as my magic enveloped her.

With a burst of light she was gone, and I broke down crying.

LEVEL UP!

Perk Received: Concentrated Fire.

Details: You’ve gained a better knowledge of SATS and how to improve your accuracy with your weapons. Each subsequent attack using SATS gains an extra %5 accuracy after the first one hits.