Just a friendly reminder to all you would-be bigots out there, ghouls are people too. You see, children, ghouls are simply humans who've been exposed to an ungodly amount of radiation and haven't had the good fortune to die. Sure, they may look like hideous zombies from an old monster flick, but their hearts, their souls, their tears are all very much human. So please, if you meet one of the Capital Wasteland's many ghouls, leave your prejudice at the door and your pistol in its holster. Ah yes, one important caveat, kiddies. Those feral ghouls that prefer the dark, dank underground? They are basically mindless zombies. So kill as many as you damn well please.

Together Fluky and I sat, in a small opening surrounded by... trees. It'd have made a good spot for a campfire, if the trees weren't made of metal. These branches weren't exactly flammable...

Whose idea was it to make metal trees?

Oh, don't mind me! Just gonna turn nature's oxygen supply into fucking metal! Hey! While I'm at it, why don't I just go ahead and turn the air into chlorine!?

Ugh... my back hurts... and my head... and everything else...

It was safe to assume that I wasn't in a good mood, considering my situation...

I lied down in the grass - which, to my surprise, was real grass - and stared up at the virtual sky, until it went dark on me. The two of us remained dead silent the whole time we were blinded. When it came back, Fluky turned and looked at me.

"You alright?"

"Come back to me with that question in an hour and try again."

She lied down on her stomach and looked out at the moderate stretch of bridge ahead, on the path, maybe a few dozen yards away. On the other side, was the door out of this place. At least... I hoped it was. It was kind of hard to tell. For all I knew, it could have led to another section of the residential area.

Please don't let it lead there...

About a minute passed by, and I felt my rear hoof get raised, which only agitated the entire limb...

I looked down to see Fluky by my side, holding it up. She glanced at me, then returned to my hoof. She proceeded to prod at the injury, to which I winced, groaned, and jolted a bit. She took her hoof away immediately.

"Sorry about that..." She gently set it down on the grass and went for a hanging vine. "I'm gonna have to patch it up." She bit down on the nearest vine and ripped it loose from the tree it hung from, then came back. "Unfortunately, we'll have to make do with what we got."

"Wait, whoa..." I sat up, wincing, and she looked at me in worry. I put my hooves over my injury. "That doesn't sound like a good idea... What about infection?"

She looked on for a few seconds in thought, then dropped the vine in her mouth with a nod of understanding. "Hm..." She proceeded to look around. "Well... I'm not exactly seeing other alternatives..." Then she turned to the bridge... "I'll be right back."

"Flukes, no!" I started to get up, but a sharp pain in my leg flared up, causing me to moan and lie back down. It was astonishing I was still conscious at this point.

"Don't call me that." She replied, heading off for the bridge. "I'll be back. Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye."

"Fluky..." I tried to get up again, but my leg and back both worked together to keep me down. "Damn it, don't!"

She returned to me and looked down, deep in my eyes. "If I don't, you'll die." She stated with mild worry in her voice.

"Then I'll get what's coming." I shook my head with worry. "Don't go..."

She gently placed her hoof on my cheek and looked on, smiling sadly. "You're allowed to die when I say you can. Right now is not that time." With that, she ran off for the bridge.

"Fluky!" I called out. "Don't-AGH!" My hoof was flared up and burning, and my back was aching like nothing I had ever felt before. "Fluky!"

There was no response.

Goddess damn it... I swear, if anything happened to her...

I wouldn't be able to handle that...

I was stuck there with the recording of birds chirping, until everything in here shut down, then had everything reboot and continue their singing.

Whenever the lights went out, I imagined something would come out and finish me off. Or that, when they came back on, I'd be face to face with one of those fungal things...

I kept my ears open for anything when everything turned off, but all I heard was my own panicked breathing, the rapid beating in my chest, and the distant struggles of the beetle that Fluky had trapped.

I didn't know what was keeping me alive this long... Fate? Karma? Adrenaline? I should've passed out long ago, but I was fading away slowly, rather than what would have been the norm for my situation.

Still... Over time, I found it harder to keep my eyes open... I was losing too much blood...

Too... much...

The air was hot and heavy with fire and ash. Sweat dripped down my form in mere seconds of being exposed to the outside.

The sky glowed red overhead, with the same wide patches of black I had seen earlier. The screams of souls cried out once more in a choir. Looking to the horizons, in every direction, was a torn and desiccated city. The bloody skies blanketed over the land for as far as the naked eye could see. I had noticed something else, as well...

I could see the park in the far distance, but the vortex that was once behind it, appeared to be gradually moving off towards the east, as if drawn by something. As it slowly swept past, more of the white orbs were ripped from the earth, sucking them up like a vacuum; ensnaring them.

I stood upon the tower that still remained standing upright, and looking down, I was greeted by the massive field of gore that consisted of... trees...

I had noticed my hoof wasn't hurting anymore. I didn't know if that meant that I was dead, or if I was just too out of it to feel anymore. Either way, it wasn't something worth celebrating.

"It's a beautiful day, yes?" Someone spoke from behind in a rather charming voice. Slightly cheerful, too. I spun around and looked at the silver coated stallion, standing there with a grin as clean as...

... Para's...

The gunshot in his chest was left untreated, but he didn't seem to pay it any mind. His mane was black, raggedy, and covering one eye, like a certain pony I saw on billboards and posters...

"Who... who are you...?" I asked, keeping my distance.

He gestured to himself and spoke with confidence. "I am Happy." Then he pointed a hoof to me. "And you must be Charger."

"How do you know my name?"

He gave an amused 'hmph' and looked on with blue eyes. "Well, why wouldn't I?" He paused, putting a hoof to his muzzle and thought to himself with pursed lips as I stared quietly. "That question kind of answers itself, doesn't it...?" He reached out a hoof and smiled once more, looking at me. "I suppose we haven't formerly been introduced."

"Your face is on billboards and posters." I stated simply.

He put his hoof down, and his smile faded. "Yes, well... I've taken better pictures than that..." That grin came back. "Smaller too, if ya want something for your wallet."

"How are you here?"

That question seemed to kill that grin, and he looked on with a more serious expression, as if I had offended him. "I beg your pardon?"

"The billboards couldn't have been put up after the bombs. Which means you were around before that happened. So, you're either a copycat killer, or you're the real thing. Though that could be unlikely... I mean... Look at you. You haven't aged a day. I'm... finding it hard to decide my theory..." I observed him carefully. Yep, he looked exactly like the one in the poster... But the poster was offering caps for him, which meant that he had also done things after the war... right? Ugh... This was giving me a headache. I loved a good mystery book, but this was beyond my skills. "There were some things said on a billboard, claiming you were a murderer and a psychopath. What's that all about?" I narrowed my eyes.

"False accusations." He waved a hoof, dismissing what I had said and looking to his left with mild irritation on his features. "I only made people happy. They always smiled."

"How?"

He looked back at me with a raised brow. "How what?"

"Come on, you know what." I rolled my eyes. "How did you make ponies happy?"

"By giving them what they sought."

"And what exactly did they seek?" I asked quickly.

"Freedom." That grin came back once more. "They sought freedom, and so I gave to them what others feared to give. I gave to them their desires. The others hated it, because they thought it was against the rules. They thought it as evil. And so I was punished for it."

"You killed."

"That's where you're mistaken, Charger." He stepped forward, and I stepped back, closer to the ledge. My rear hoof nearly slipped off, but I quickly corrected myself, looking at the ledge. He gently put his hoof on the side of my face, turning me to face him with ease, as if it were a romantic gesture. Our eyes locked with each other, and he smiled warmly. "I helped ponies. I could help you."

Okay, maybe I was dead, because my heart would have been thumping hard inside me right now, and it wasn't. I couldn't feel anything in there but a cold emptiness...

I glanced around our surroundings, before locking eyes with him again, hoping I could change the topic. "Where are we?"

He put his hoof down, but kept his muzzle less than in inch from mine. "Saddle. My hometown. It's been a while, I'll admit."

"Why does it look like this?" I gestured to the ruins.

"What do you mean?" He raised a brow and looked around, before returning to me again. "It's always looked like this."

I spun back to him. "Always looked like..." I shook my head hard. "Okay then..." I spoke in disbelief of what I just heard. "Why are we up here?" I still hated the idea of heights...

"Mm." He nodded. "Yeah, I was hoping you could help me with that. See, I seem to have misplaced something, and I can't find it. Will you help me?"

Something told me that if I refused, I'd be dead. Though, that didn't seem like much of a difference now. Still, I may as well have played along. Maybe it'd save me from getting tortured for the horrible things I've done.

"What did you lose?"

He grinned at my reply and spoke. "I lost a battery."

The real world - or, what I hoped was the real world - rushed back to me with a sudden, sharp pain in my chest. I gasped hard; my lungs wheezing as oxygen flooded the air sacs. I almost shot up from the shock, but my body preferred to stay down at the moment.

Then, somehow, everything started feeling better. I felt stronger. Much stronger. Much more awake. Much more alive. The pain subsided.

I opened my eyes, and Fluky stood before me, pulling a syringe out of my chest with her teeth, before dropping it between us. She regarded my coolly. "What did I say about you dying?"

Panting, I couldn't help but be playful. "To die without your permission?"

She raised a brow. "Funny." She paused, then added. "I got five more of those needles to stab into your chest, should the need..." Her eyes moved over my form, up and down, while her head remained still. "... Arise."

I smiled faintly and spoke with sarcasm. "I'll definitely look forward to that."

She shook her head and revealed some bandages. "Hold still, you butt. I need to take care of your leg."

I kept my back against the grassy surface and looked up at the sky... er... the 'sky,' as Fluky got to work on my leg. There were still sudden, sharp pains that flared up at her touch, but it wasn't enough to make me jolt.

I felt a liquid pour over it, and that's when the entire vicinity burned like hell... That made me jolt a bit. A lot, actually. I looked down shortly after, to find Fluky was in between my legs, observing and cleaning the area with alcohol.

"Where did you find all that stuff, anyways?" I winced.

She glanced at me and smirked, before resuming her operation. "Around."

"Thanks for painting a picture." I said flatly. "I mean, what's ahead?"

She looked behind her, then back at me, pointing a hoof the other way. "A tree."

...

I stared flatly, before sighing with exasperation. I swear, she was as bad as Fire with her snarky attitude...

Finally, she chuckled and shook her head, before putting the bottle of alcohol down and going for the bandages. "Looks like a medical wing, but further in, it starts becoming more..." She paused, but continued wrapping the fabric around my leg. "I don't know how to put it... Mechanical?" She looked to me for clarification, but I just shrugged. "There was an entrance to a mine or something, but the door is fused shut. There were a lot of sentries around that area anyways, so I steered clear."

I nodded and looked at her sincerely. "Thank you, Fluky. I wouldn't have made it if it wasn't for you."

She smiled faintly, then averted her eyes back to my leg. "Well..." She gently set it down after tying it off. "I think that'll do for now."

A sudden realization washed over me. I had died. Or... at the very least, came very close to it. Close enough that I stopped breathing. This place would have been my steel coffin, if it wasn't for that needle. Fluky was doing more good for me than I was for her... My life seemed to be in her hooves on more than one occasion.

Sweet Celestia, the surface was biza-wait... I'm not on the surface. The underground was just as bizarre as the rest of the world, I guess.

... I dunno...

I was back to limping on three hooves. There was no way I was going to even attempt putting any pressure on my injured hoof. Judging by how it looked, it'd fall off if I tried.

The stretch of bridge curved upwards, allowing me to see only the top of the door ahead. Fluky must have closed it when she came back. She was playing it safe. I liked that.

We got to the door, and I looked over at her. "So, did you by any chance find any healing potions when you went in here?"

She shook her head slowly. "Sorry... Otherwise, I would've just used that on you."

I sighed and patted her head gently. "It's okay." With that, I hit the door switch, to which the door folded in on itself, moving aside to grant us entry.

We stepped forward together in a plant-infested corridor. The lights hummed softly above us, while all else was silent.

There were two signs ahead; one pointed left, while the other pointed right. The one on the left read 'MACH. MANUFACTURE' while the other read 'MINE.'

"Did you check out the left?" I asked quietly, keeping my eyes ahead, but leaning closer to her.

"Tried." She replied. "But honestly, it's best if we don't..." I looked at her, to which she resumed. "Sentries and those spider-like robots that float... They just kept coming out of that room in never ending waves..."

Yikes... I really didn't want to have to deal with any of that...

"There's a vent to the right." She continued as she made her way forward. "Follow me."

She had the right idea. It was best to just travel through the air ducts from here on out. There was just too much dangerous activity going around, and all Fluky had was a baton that she could barely lift with her magic, if at all, and all I had was a pistol, with not a whole lot of ammo. Even then, it was kind of useless. I wanted to avoid as much fighting as possible.

We turned right, at the intersection, and came to a stop at a vent in the wall - and found that I was correct about them being maintenance hatches, judging by the label above the grate - and crawled inside, one after the other. She got in first, since she had more knowledge of this section than I. Where she had little, I had none.

The stronger additions of the sentries, Handy's, and Gutsy's patrolled the grid in teams of three... As if they weren't strong enough as it was... Sheesh...

Their one major flaw was that they didn't seem to think of anything traveling through air ducts. As long as we stayed quiet, then we wouldn't have any troubles.

Then I noticed something strange as I looked down through one of the grates...

The ground consisted of quite a lot of distorted pony faces; all the same color... And I use the term 'pony' lightly. Really, it was those fungal abominations. Their coats were pancaked against the floor, with the tread marks of sentry wheels embedded into them.

They must have gotten in their way, and because of that, they were run over repeatedly, over and over again, for as long as they've been patrolling the same section. The machines weren't shooting at them, for some reason. That much was revealed, back in the residential area of 32.

We continued on our way. I was hoping none of those fungal things would be there, but this place had been compromised long ago, unfortunately. It seemed the entire stable was overrun with them, specifically. The robots were a hassle, yes. But the pony... tentacle... things... they were far worse. They traveled in massive numbers, had a decent reach to them, and did... unexplainable things to their... prey.

I shuddered and closed my eyes just at the thought of that griffin getting pulled into the creature's stomach, screaming and trying to break free as it 'fed' him...

The metal surroundings started to creak, causing us both to stop. Fluky looked back at me, and I at her; both of us concerned, judging by how I felt, and her expression.

Then our floor fell, and us with it.

So... it probably wasn't a good idea for us to stop over a weak spot in the vent...

There was no telling where we were, before the fall. We had been going for a while, with only one choice ahead of us.

Fluky screamed as we plummeted down, and in less than a second, we struck the surface.

"Gah!" A Handy shouted in their posh tone. "Intruders!"

"Fuck me sideways..." I shook my head and quickly pulled out the baton, slid it over to a slowly recovering Fluky, who wouldn't have known it was there, had it not bumped into her hip, and unholstered the pistol. My tongue worked around the trigger.

Fluky bit down on the grip of the baton.

Suddenly, the screeching of metal on metal occurred just outside the shaft. My ears rang with the horrible piercing that traveled through the sound waves. I had nearly pulled the trigger from the surprise, which would have ended in Fluky having a bullet up her ass.

I quickly looked away, just in case I did end up firing on accident.

A buzzsaw worked its way through the top right hoof corner of the shaft, trying to break in. I quickly backed up from the weapon that gradually cut through.

My heart thumped hard enough that it was starting to hurt... Bad. Fear grew inside me faster than my newly developed hate for buzzsaws.

It was going to gut me... I was going to die. No, no... please, fuck... NO! Don't let it get me! I don't want to die!

Fluky crawled for the other end, and before leaving, looked back at me. I saw her mouth moving, as if she were talking. I couldn't understand her. I couldn't hear her. Only the buzzing of saws against metal...

I stared at her for what must have been minutes. The saw had almost cut between us completely. Then her horn flashed a bright yellow, her eyes glowed white, and her voice boomed through the waves.

"MOVE!"

I snapped out of it and shook my head. Her eyes went dim, returning to her normal colors. The aura around her horn disappeared, and she shook her head, rubbing her temple and blinking as she looked around her surroundings. Ignoring the saw, I backed out immediately. Fluky started to crawl out the other end, after seeing me do it.

Three of the bigger, upgraded Handy units hovered there, waiting eagerly to deal with their 'intruders.' The light between the plating wasn't green, or even blue for that matter, but instead, a bright red.

I quickly aimed at the one closest to me, which had been digging into the air duct we were once in. One of its three eyes circled around to face me. "Ah ha! Found you!"

I pulled the trigger twice, but they just deflected off its frame, not leaving so much as a dent. It pulled its buzzsaw free from the duct, and its three arms rotated, only to aim a device with a lit blowtorch on the end, just below a small gun barrel.

The other two seemed to share the same idea...

I turned around as fast as the armor would allow me and booked it for the nearest thing I could find for shelter; a metal desk.

Before I could even get around it, they had doused me in flame. The heat grew on my back and rear excessively, and I was already starting to sweat, after just a second of it. Fire danced in the corners of my vision as I ran...

But I had noticed that it didn't hurt. I had expected horrible, agonizing pain that would scorch my hide and boil my skin; that would eventually kill me for good and leave me as a barbecue.

Instead, there was just an increase in temperature that was more annoying than it was painful.

I ducked behind the desk as pillars of fire shot out at me. I spared myself maybe a few seconds of time, if that. This pistol was useless here. I needed something stronger...

I would have loved guns like Bloodwing's, right about now...

My eyes darted for the left as I prepped myself to jump out of cover and start shooting again, despite my chances of having anything successfully hit being quite slim. That's when I noticed the drawer beside me was left ajar. Inside, I caught the glimpse of a clip, along with a box of ammo.

I yanked it open and quickly pocketed both the clip and the box. Chances were I'd be needing it very soon, assuming I survived this. I had more than enough doubt that it'd work against these units, but every little bit helped. Maybe one of my shots would get lucky and hit something vital.

The large torrent of flame that swept over the surface of the desk had ceased, and I could hear the Handy's advancing from both sides, flanking me.

My armor sizzled from the abuse it had endured as I stayed crouched, ready to fire at the one that would come out before me. If I was lucky, I could turn fast enough and fire at that one too, if the first one was stunned, or better yet, expired. That was more unlikely, however. So I prepared to evade, if I couldn't at least stun it.

I caught the very edge of a buzzsaw start to come out of cover from the desk, before Fluky shouted.

"Hey, you big cyber bullies! Go beat each other up for caps, or something!"

Or something? Seriously...?

The buzzsaw retreated from my view. "Come here, you immature midget!"

She scoffed. "Midget!? I'm not a mi-" She stopped, only to release another scoff.

I shook my head, clenched my teeth down on the grip harder, came out from the cover that the desk offered, and opened fire on the Handy closest to Fluky, getting ready to cut into her. As I had expected, the round ricocheted off its metal plating...

... And struck me in the head.

I fell back, groaning, as a sharp, ringing pain lingered in my temple. Placing my hoof over where the bullet had struck, I felt a flattened piece of metal stuck in a tiny crater in my helmet. If I hadn't been wearing that...

Okay, deep thoughts for later...

I shook my head to try and snap out of it and focus, then got up. My head still hurt, but there was nothing I could do about that at the moment. The armor was strong enough to not make me pass out, or better yet, die. I wasn't going to look a gift-horse in the mouth.

I grabbed a hold of my pistol, which had fallen from my grip when I got shot, then aimed it back at the Handy units, firing in random order. Concentrate, Charger... Concentrate!

They were still going for Fluky, who was giving them the run-around, clanging her baton against anything she passed by to keep their attention on her... and it was working.

What wasn't working were these bullets against their armor. What were these machines made of!?

After repeated pings and ricochets, which had me ducking back for cover for a few seconds each time, my gun had finally clicked. I ejected the clip, letting it drop to the ground, to which I grabbed a fresh one from my pouch, slid it into the gun, and cocked the chamber back.

Retreating from cover, it came to my attention that they had cornered Fluky and were getting ready to cut into her. She tried running under them, but one of them grabbed a hold of her, keeping her from escaping.

"No!" She shouted. "Get off me!" She turned and looked at me... looked at me with those eyes I've seen one too many times before...

I pulled the trigger...

Three Handy's became two.

The third that had a firm grasp on Fluky had fallen; the light within it flickering out.

The other two immediately stopped what they were doing and looked at me. They had a threat now.

I quickly aimed at the next one and fired, taken out of my moment of surprise that things had actually gone my way for once.

It didn't go down instantly, but the round penetrated the armor, which was more than I was getting less than a minute ago.

Fluky got to work on removing the clasp that held her leg. It had locked around her limb, by the looks of it.

They came at me with their buzzsaws, instead of their flamers. I imagined they needed refueling, after throwing all that fire my way. Which meant that these units didn't have restoration talismans built into them. That was a big plus.

I noticed that these ones were a lot quieter than the ones I fought before, though. They didn't talk as much.

I continued firing, but within a matter of seconds, they had reached the desk and were ready to cut my head off in one fell swoop. One Handy swung from one side, for my neck, while the other swung from the other side.

I ducked just as the saws came around, then came back up to resume firing.

The plating of the left was riddled with holes, and sparks flashed about within. I could hear the internal mechanics going on the fritz, and soon enough, after a series of uncontrollably twitching, its arms spasmed, causing me to go back for cover.

The other unit went around the desk to deal with me. It had decided to take the route I was facing; the right. Otherwise I probably wouldn't have noticed, until it started digging through my armor.

The first few shots were a miss, as I was aiming at the jet that kept it aloft. Three bullets... what a waste. I had about six shots left in the clip.

My fourth shot hit towards the base of the jet, causing it to stagger and struggle to keep itself up off the ground. It made attempts to swing at me, but I jumped back and leaned my head back. By the time the saw came around, it felt as if it were about an inch or so away from nicking my muzzle... Too close for comfort.

I backed up more, but kept away from the spasming unit. That was when I found my heart was still pounding hard in my chest. I was breathing heavily out of panic.

It seemed I was right about the arms stretching out farther than the earlier models... Yikes...

It didn't come for me, and it didn't back away. Instead, it seemed to focus solely on trying to keep itself up.

I calmed myself and looked down the sight, aiming at the gap between the plating. Once I had a good shot, I took it.

The machine fell instantly.

The other Handy was still having a mechanical seizure, so I put that out of its 'misery' as well. It was probably for the best, anyways. Eventually, it could have fixed something on the inside and become operational again, though that was unlikely without a restoration talisman. Still, I wasn't taking my chances.

I looked over at Fluky to see she was still struggling with the clasp. She was beating it with the baton, but that wasn't going too well for her. I walked over, put the gun down beside her, and tried removing the plating so I could see what was keeping her shackled like that. Unfortunately, it seemed to be a lot more secure than I would have liked. Removing it without welding gear wasn't an option.

I picked my gun back up, aimed it at the joint between the arm and the clasp, and put a bullet in.

The clasp immediately released, and Fluky backed away from the expired Handy. She looked up at me with sincerity in her eyes and sighed with a slight nod. "Thank you."

"You didn't have to distract them, you know." I put the gun down and slid the clip out, then cocked the chamber back. I caught the bullet that sprang out from the gun in midair, then slid it back into the clip. I had two rounds left.

"I was trying to help you." She stated, looking down as if she were being scolded.

I smiled faintly. "Guess that puts us Fluky, 5, Charger, 3, on the who-saves-who count."

She smiled back. "Robutt, 4. You're missing one."

"I am?" I raised a brow.

"You just saved me from getting ripped apart, you pushed me out of the way from that explosion, back in the park, you saved me from getting attacked by the group of bad guys, and you saved me from when the other robutts attacked my home."

"Oh..." I didn't think of that last one as saving her... But she did. And that made me feel at least... a little better...

"Which ones are you counting towards me?"

"You gave the Handy's a run around to distract them, you helped me with my hoof the best you could, you helped me when that radio blew up in my face, you saved me from dying when my gut was torn open, and you saved us from the motel encounter." I paused, then added. "Guess I'm never gonna catch up, huh?"

"You never know." She smirked.

I looked down at the clip in my hoof. "Well, if worse comes to worse, we can always just hit the off switch. Got only two bullets left. One for each of us."

She stared at me in worry; all wide-eye'd, like she got whenever something freaked her out.

I tilted my head to the side a little and smirked, narrowing my eyes. "Gotcha." I pulled out the box of rounds I had taken from the desk and dropped them before me. The inventory inside clattered around to the impact against the ground.

She took a deep breath and shook her head. "You had me worried for a second, there."

I chuckled softly as I opened the box. Now that I thought about it...

I pulled out the other box and looked inside, only to see normal rounds. But the ones in the new box were slightly bulkier... and a bit heavier, too. I went to read the label, but all I got was a sticky note on the side of the yellow box, which read 'T rounds. Use only in emergencies.' They were the same exact silver color as the plating of the Handy's we had just finished fighting.

So regular bullets didn't work on these upgraded machines. It was T rounds that got the job done... Sure wish I had known that before wasting an entire clip of the regulars on them.

I loaded the clip with the T rounds, then grabbed the empty spare to fill that one up with the same rounds as the other. I had a strong feeling in my gut that we'd be dealing with a lot of buzzsaws and gatlings from here on out. Hopefully, they worked just as good on the fungal creatures as they did on the machines. I wasn't ready to fight them. But I had to stomach it and do it regardless, if they got in our way. In this crazy, underground station of death, it was me or them. And I chose them. I've been out here for a little over a week, and I had already come close to dying on several counts. I had caught a glimpse of Hell. I have had enough encounters I wouldn't have ever dreamt of, but there was more coming. I knew it. I needed to be ready.

"Let's search the room, and then we'll be on our way." I said, just before slapping the clip back home and putting the spare in the pouch, along with both boxes of ammo. I was getting low on the regulars, but thankfully, the box of T rounds was full when I found it. If I was smart about it, they'd last a while. I guess the pony that owned the T rounds never lived long enough to use them for emergencies.

I stood up and started to head for the filing cabinets, while Fluky searched the other side of the room. There wasn't much of anything, except boring paperwork and medical results. After skimming through the papers, something had caught my attention, however. There was a name written in cursive. They had signed for a medical examination, but it didn't say what for.

The name written on the bottom was none other than Petiole.

I put the paper back and resumed my search for anything useful.

Throughout my search, I had found nothing. Not much time passed though, so it wasn't a complete waste. I moved to the desk to finish my search for more resources, but there was nothing else in there that would have proved useful. I had already grabbed the ammo, but the gun that belonged with it was nowhere to be found.

Just before it was concluded that we had searched everything, I found a piece of paper lying in the bottom of the upper desk drawer.

'Note to self. Find a way to turn oxygen into chlorine.'

Oh, those motherfu-

With the airduct being broken, there was no traveling the safer route anymore. We had to walk the grounds that the machines endlessly patrolled.

Upon poking my head out of the open doorway, I found the coast was clear. To the right was a sign that pointed off towards the mine which, according to the direction the arrow pointed, took another right, just down the hall.

The left theoretically led back to where we came from. At least, judging by where we were going and where we came from before the vent dropped.

We would have to continue on until we found another entry hatch, as the one back there was now worthless to us.

We started for the direction of the mine, and upon stepping into the intersection, we stopped. The route ahead of us led down, but the floor beneath us had been flooded with brown, murky water. A long stretch of corridor was on our right, and at the very end, machines patrolled. There was a massive door at the far end, unlike any other I had seen here so far.

The water started rippling...

Without hesitation, I grabbed Fluky, who complained about personal space and the lack of. I put her on my back and booked it to the left as best as a pony could with a crippled hoof that was threatening to fall off if they weren't careful.

A sentry started to come into view ahead, but I wasn't stopping there. Instead, I pressed forward, hoping I could reach the next door before that green light between its black plating became red.

Something burst from the water behind us, and the lights of the sentry flashed blue. I wasn't sure if it was because of me, or because of whatever was behind us.

"SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY DETECTED. INVESTIGATING."

Before it could turn its heavy mass to face us directly, I slammed my hoof against a door panel and jumped inside, right after the door slid open. I slammed the button of the panel on the other side, and the door closed behind us. There was a window that gave us a view of the corridor outside, and after looking around the room to find that it was clear, I set a confused Fluky down beside me and got up on the couch underneath that window, peeking out. I could hear the booming voice of the sentry as it approached.

"UNKNOWN LIFEFORM DETECTED. USE OF LETHAL FORCE AUTHORIZED."

A massive flurry of lasers flew to the right, while a bunch of oversized crab-like creatures with four legs charged for the left, towards the overpowered machine that ripped into them without any real challenge. A few had already fallen or just downright disintegrated into a red, glowing powder, right before me. Piles of the red powder blew away from any wind currents, no thanks to the army of crabs that ran forward. Some of them had stepped right over what remained of them, knocking their glowing remains around along the metal flooring.

I lied my back against the couch, looking up at the ceiling. My hoof was aching from the sorry excuse of running that I had just done. I looked over at Fluky to see she was staring up at a vent in the ceiling.

No time like the present...

I got up, groaning from the pain that my leg was being put through... and then I heard a hissing...

Fluky snapped her head in my direction, then looked towards the bedroom door, which was left open.

One of the fungal creatures stumbled out and looked at me, baring those black fangs. I quickly reached for my gun, but before I could bite the grip, those 'fangs' shot out in slimy tendrils, wrapping around my helmet and ripping it off. I started to jump back for cover, but they moved with haste, grabbing a firm hold of my head, to which they pulled me closer to the monster. Its mouth was held wide open as my hooves dragged along the ground. I couldn't stop myself from moving...

"Fuck, fuck, fuck, Fluky!"

She ran up to me and grabbed a hold of my pistol, ripping it from the holster and aiming it at the monster before me. The slime around the tendrils started rubbing off on my mane, and I could feel it in my coat. I looked ahead to see something moving deep within its throat, before emerging like the pod thing that I had seen come out of the stomach of the first one. It unfolded like a flower, revealing several small fangs, while the center had several smaller, wiggling tendrils awaiting my arrival.

"It's not working!" She shouted.

"Pull the trigger!"

"I am! It won't move!"

"Damn it, hit the safety!" I shouted back in desperation, doing all I could to pull away. I wasn't far now...

"The what!?"

"The switch on the side of the fucking gun! HIT IT! PLEASE, FUCK, JUST HIT IT!" It was stronger than I. No matter how hard I pulled back, it pulled back harder.

The 'pedals' of the flower-like suction that emerged from its mouth dug into the sides of my face; its tiny, sharp fangs digging in and pulling me in closer, only to let go and get a better hold of my head. The tendrils in the center of the flower were slapping against my muzzle, trying to get in. All I could see was the red, fleshy insides of the flower. I wanted to scream just at the touch of it, but the moment I opened my mouth, that would have been it for me.

The tentacles started to enter through my nostrils... They were delving deep. All I could do was scream with my lips sealed tightly together...

Then came the loud bang of a gun. I felt the tendrils around and inside me tense up, before writhing around. There was another shot that followed, and the creature tore its pedals off, leaving holes in my face that allowed blood to flow freely. The two that had been traveling through my nasal passage quickly recoiled as I fought to back away; finally able to breathe again. Even then, I didn't want to open my mouth.

The black tendrils that I had thought were its fangs let go of my head and whipped around to grab a hold of Fluky. Their new threat. Her eyes grew wide with fear and realization that she was being targeted.

I ran for her, pushed her out of the way, and received a very discomforting, wet slap to my side, knocking me back and causing me to fall down on her baton. Despite the barding, that was probably going to leave a mark...

Fluky got up and fired one more shot before they grabbed a hold of her head as they did mine. She fired again and again, striking its head repeatedly, but one of the tendrils around her let go and tore it from her grasp, throwing it across the room. She screamed in terror as it dragged her in; moving a lot faster than it had done with me. I assumed it was because she was a lot lighter than I.

I got up, grabbed the baton I lied on, and ran forward. "LEAVE HER ALONE!" I shouted in a muffled cry, before striking the tendrils between her and the monster, only to find that they had a rubbery texture to them. Seeing as that didn't do a whole lot for me, or for her for that matter, I swung the baton at its head. It recoiled and threw her back, then faced me, ready to take me on once more.

"Fluky, grab the gun!" I shouted behind the weapon in my mouth, before lodging it into its right eye and jumping back.

It recoiled further, taking the baton with it. I continued to back away, watching it closely. Fluky was still on the ground, slowly recovering from the knock back. I made my way for the couch, where the gun was tossed. Just outside, the massive sentry rolled past, crushing and obliterating all that was in its way. We had gone unnoticed by it. Even if it had noticed us, there was nothing it could do at this time.

One of the black tendrils moved up and wrapped around the hilt of the baton, tore it from its eye, and dropped it on the metal floor with a loud clang. There was a thick, green pus on the end, and more dripped out from its orifice.

Grimacing, I went down for the gun. Upon doing so, I heard the snapping and cracking of bones; the ripping and tearing of hide. I quickly shot back up to see its back was bulging as it stared directly at me with one glowing eye. Dark brown, hairy appendages had grown out from its mutilated back, and the ends touched down on the floor, lifting its body off the ground as it continued to hiss and growl in a note I hadn't heard from them before. There was another voice behind it; something of a demented roar as its tentacles writhed around viciously, eager to take me again.

It had grown the legs that of a spider, but unlike the common arachnid, it only had four.

By the time it had risen, it was nearly touching the ceiling. It stomach split open, and several other tendrils spilled out like guts, writhing around as if enraged.

Something swelled in the center of the flower-like appendage that stuck out of its gaping mouth, looking a lot like a bulbous pustule. I quickly grabbed my helmet off the floor between me and it, slammed it on my head, and grabbed the table in front of the sofa just as it was ready to burst. I dragged it over to Fluky and tipped it over, not giving a damn about any of the contents that lied on its surface.

Before I could duck, it had burst...

I turned my head away just as a wall of white splattered against my armored form. Looking over on my left shoulder, I saw several white, maggoty parasites crawling around me. One by one, with haste, I tore them off wherever I could find them and threw the disgusting critters across the room, away from us. Some had splattered against the wall and exploded in bursts of white. They were probably already really weak, but the force behind my throws were pretty violent as well. Others that hadn't hit me, struck the wall behind us, or the table, killing them instantly.

I looked at Fluky afterward, but she seemed fixated on my groinal region. I looked down... Oh hell no.

I tore one last parasite from my crotch and threw it at the beast. Thank the royal sisters that that part of me was just as armored up as the rest of my body...

The towering abomination responded with shooting a stream of unknown liquid at me, via the burst pustule that had been carrying its... babies, or whatever the fuck those things were. The monster's distorted screams went on.

I kept my head turned away and ducked; one half of my barding drenched in pus and whatever it just shot at me. Its piss?

Fluky looked at me in worry.

"Don't touch me." I spoke with warning, looking at her. "I think it did something to my armor. It could be contagious... or lethal."

"What are we gonna do...?" She whimpered as it roared. I was barely able to make out what it was she had asked.

"We're gonna fight it..."

"How...?" She peeked around the corner, then quickly retreated as the stream of liquid sprayed at where her head once was. She looked at me in horror and asked aloud. "How!?"

"I don't know yet... The bullets didn't seem to do much for us..."

"Where's the baton?"

I shook my head hard. "I don't think we should use it anymore. It's covered..."

"Covered...?"

"Don't ask..." With that, I tried to prepare myself for what I was about to do, which admittedly, was a stupid plan, but it was all I had. I took a deep breath and exhaled behind clenched teeth. "Here we go..." I jumped out from cover to see the monster had been making its way for the tipped over table, and started firing blind shots at its body, over and over again, as I strafed around the room. It stayed focused on me. Some of the rounds had struck the spider-like appendages, but not even that had much of an effect on it.

"Goddess damn it, just die!" I shouted, before resuming fire.

It turned and faced me, and immediately, the pustule began again, spraying my visor. Hints of it got into my mouth upon the stream focusing on the gun. The taste was rancid and was almost like moldy, rotted food. Bitter and sour. I gagged and choked, and through all that, my shots were getting misplaced. I was still firing, despite all that. I couldn't stop. One hit the window, another hit the door. A third bounced off the floor, then the wall, then the ceiling, and only then, did it strike the back of the creature's head. Still, that didn't do much in my favor.

One of its tendrils wrapped around my left foreleg, and the other wrapped around my right. I kept firing. There was no way I was going to sto-

The gun clicked.

"Damn it!" I tried pulling my hooves back as the gun fell to the ground, and this time I had actually managed to pull back. It wasn't futile after all. I raised on my hind legs and kept pulling back. "BRING IT ON, FUCKER! YOU AND ME!"

The other two black tendrils wrapped around my hind legs and lifted me off the ground as I waved my arms and legs around in a frantic effort to escape.

I felt one of its appendages tighten around my bandaged leg, causing me to scream behind my clenched teeth. I knew what it was trying to do... Trying to get me to open wide for it... That wasn't going to happen...

Not gonna happen...

It knew I wasn't going to so easily, either... and so it tightened its grip even more, to the point where I heard a snap, a pop, and a tear... and holy shit, did I feel it...

It held my own severed hoof in front of me in a taunting wave as I cried out, doing my best to keep my mouth closed. It was hard... It was so hard... I was getting weaker by the second from blood loss... How much blood did I have left to lose, at this point? Not a whole lot, I imagined...

It tossed my hoof aside and wrapped around my stump tightly, stopping the circulation, therefore causing the drainage of my blood to cease for the most part.

I heard a few items clatter along the ground behind me, but I couldn't see what they were.

Two of the tendrils from its abdomen came up and forced my maw open with impatience. I jolted around as it brought me closer to its mouth; the tendrils in its flower eager to reach me.

They started whipping around my muzzle once more... and then my lips. I felt them on my teeth; on my tongue. Starting to explore the inside of my mouth as they made their way for my throat. A sour, rotten taste started to fill me...

I heard the gun click, and a second later, several gunshots. The tentacles writhed again, and the creature threw me back. I slid along the floor inside the bedroom, coughing and hacking from what was just inside me. I looked down through the open doorway to see Fluky shooting at the monster as she ran around the room, making it turn around in circles. Tentacles from its stomach lashed out at her, but her reflexes were good. Too good for a pony her age...

I had underestimated her.

Then I noticed her eyes were flashing white, and her horn was flared up in a bright yellow aura.

It was no wonder she was kicking ass right now. Her magic had kicked in again.

The gun wasn't in her mouth, but instead, flew around the room, firing in an organized sequence. With each shot, the rounds stayed frozen in midair; evenly spaced from each other. The gun increased in speed that started to become a blur to me. By the time that clip had been emptied, every bullet moved in unison, striking the monster all at once, from every side. The whole time, she jumped, somersaulted, slid, and dodged any attacks that came to her, all while running around the room. As she did, the box of T rounds opened up, and the gun hovered over it; the clip sliding out. Within a span of 2 seconds, bullets had flown in from the box in a line, loading the clip in full. It slammed home, and she resumed her trick prior to the loading of the gun.

I quickly looked around the room to conveniently find a handgun and a few grenades with red bands around them, along with a note, and the skeleton of a pony on the mattress with a bullet driven through the skull.

I immediately got up and grabbed the pistol, rushed back to the doorway, and started firing repeatedly at the bea-

Damn it, no bullets! Seriously!?

I dropped the gun and went for the grenades. "Fluky, look out!" I shouted, holding out a grenade, standing in the doorway.

She didn't look in my direction. Honestly, I didn't think she could even see or hear me.

I pulled the pin with my teeth and chucked the grenade at the monster. It landed beneath the beast and stayed still for a few seconds.

Fluky was giving it the run around, and suddenly, right after ducking from a swing of a black tendril, she tensed up and disappeared in a flash of yellow.

Then the room lit up in a fiery blaze. The bullets that had been dropped in the living room exploded from the excessive, sudden heat, shooting off in a variety of directions. I was caught in the edge of the blast radius, but before the flames could reach me, the force knocked me back, slamming me against the wall and punching the wind out of me. I collapsed on my stomach and looked into the living room to see the monster thrashing about as flames danced around its form. It screamed in high, shrill tones that I was convinced I was going to go deaf over, if it kept up.

It wasn't focused on anyone, anymore. Just its own escape. And it was failing.

I watched as it ran around the room on its four spider legs, trying to find a place to break free. It rammed against walls and slammed against windows, but they were too strong and shatter proof. It tried the door, but it was too big for it to fit through.

It started to slow as it looked around in desperate attempts to break free from its prison; from its imminent demise.

I struggled to get up. I was losing blood, and fast... But even through all that, I smiled as I stared on.

It had taken me down, but I dragged it down with me.

It collapsed on itself, looking at me with that one glowing eye as flame devoured its form. It saw my smile. It saw that, even in my condition, I found myself the victor.

"I have seen Hell. You're not it." I said as I watched its eye dilate and grow distant through all the fire that danced between us.

Smoke started to cover the ceiling, and it was getting harder to breathe. I needed to get out of here, but my first priority was my leg.

I stumbled over to the dresser and opened one of the drawers to reveal some Stable-Tec jumpsuits, along with a small selection of pre war design.

I removed my helmet, took a shirt, ripped it into sheets, then firmly tied them around my stump, bandaging it and doing all I could to cut off the circulation. Each and every strip of ripped clothing went to that leg until I felt satisfied with it... which wasn't happening. Groaning out of frustration and pain, I dug into the other drawers. Then I found it...

I ripped a black, leather belt from a pair of pants and started tying off my stump as tight as I could get it. Even if it hurt. Of course I was still going to be in pain, but I didn't see so much spillage as there was not too long ago. It was working.

I grabbed another shirt and used that to clean off the blood that had been dripping down my face for some time now. My coat was stained in red, and I wasn't feeling too good. If I collapsed here, that would have been it for me. I couldn't pass out. I'd never wake up again, if I did.

I wrapped the shirt around my head, from top to bottom, so that my wounds were covered up entirely. I looked like a flat out idiot, but it was that, or suffer more blood loss. I slipped the helmet back on, limped over to the bed, and looked over the note.

That son of a bitch got me, Iron. I've seen what happens when someone gets nicked by those nightmares from the mine. I ain't goin' down like that, ya hear? So I'm spending my last bullet on my noggin'. If you're readin' this, I love you. Always have. Always will. I know I didn't tell you enough. For that, I am sorry.

I know. Sappy as shit. You can laugh at me in the Everafter, if that's where we're even goin'.

I left three grenades for you, in case you try and make it for the exit. I know the sentries are preventing everyone from leaving, due to containment bs. Fuckers have a mind of their own, I swear. The overmare is hiding in her office, hoping this'll all blow over. Hope she starves in there. Whatever you do, don't take the tram station. Everyone has that idea, but it's gonna get 'em killed. Either they get fed into a blender o' gatling, or the zomponies get 'em.

Sorry I don't have any shock 'nades for ya, but the fires should help against the zoms. There's a gun locker in medical lab A-9-h. Has a rifle, some mags, filled with T rounds, and some health potions. To my knowledge, no one's gotten to it yet, and no one knows the password. Get to it. Password is 'Cocksock69.' I set it myself. Gutsy will let you right in if you say it. Well, I best cut it short, before I decide to write an entire book of my final thoughts.

You're one hell of a guy, and one hell of a stallion in bed. See ya on the other side, whenever your time comes. - XOXO, your hot little cum slut, Bouncy House

P.S. I'm still gonna shove my entire hoof up your ass for giving me that stupid nickname...

I pocketed the note, the grenades, and looked frantically around the room, coughing violently from the smoke that filled up the area. My vision was getting more obscured as time passed, and my lungs were starting to burn. Probably wasn't a good idea to stop and read the damn note while I was losing oxygen. Somehow, I imagined the pony that wrote the suicide note was looking down at me, getting ready to smack me upside the head and say 'good one, ya frickin' idiot.'

Above the dresser, I found a vent to the airducts. I looked back to the living room. My barding was flame retardant, but that didn't mean I could just run through so easily without getting burnt. Half of my face was covered, while the rest was left exposed. There was no way I was going to make that...

I jumped up for the vent, but it was too high. I quickly went for the bed, pulled it over, and climbed on top, gaining my balance from the soft mattress for a few seconds, before reaching up and pushing the vent up and over. I jumped up and pulled myself inside, then began my crawl through the shaft. The metal was growing hot, but it was either I moved forward and stayed alive, or be stubborn and just let myself suffocate and burn. For someone that feared for their own survival, it was safe to assume I preferred the former, rather than the latter.

The smoke had made its way through the airducts, still choking me out. I had to keep moving...

My stomach was burning from the heat, and my lungs felt torched from the smoke. Under the armor, sweat formed.

I passed by the vent to the living room, and the temperature grew more. I looked back to find flames dancing through the grating. I pushed forward faster. I had to get out. My lungs couldn't take it anymore. My sight was a blur. Each blink of the eyes stung. Each breath of the lungs felt like the fire on my stomach I had felt not too long ago.

I stopped at the next grate, which looked out at the end of the corridor. I applied brute force to it a few times, before it finally dropped down to the ground with a heavy thud against the dirt below. I poked my head out afterward to find that the coast wasn't clear, but that all attention was turned away from where I was.

I slipped out, fell on my back, groaning softly to myself as I felt the vent that had fallen press against my back, seeing as I landed on it, then lifted myself up.

The sentries rolled on down the corridors, and other fungus specimens stumbled around aimlessly, not paying me any mind. I looked to my right to see that I had dropped out at the T-intersection. I still heard the sentry fighting off the army of crabs that had emerged from the waters of the lower levels.

I peeked my head out to see its progress, and immediately recoiled at the sight of a zompony face to face with me; its green, glowing eyes looking into mine for the split second that I looked out.

It stumbled forward, and I backed up. I had no weapons on me, save for the grenades. I pulled one out and bit down on the pin, ready to pull.

Instead, it crossed the hall, to the other side, avoiding and ignoring me entirely, as if I didn't exist. I stared in wonder as it stumbled by like a drunk, bumping into walls and tripping every so often.

Could they not... see me, anymore...?

I ventured down the same way the creature was going, only I moved faster than it. I still kept my eyes on it as I passed by, in case it changed its mind about me. But it didn't even look at me. Not even glance in my direction. It was as if I didn't exist...

The sentry ahead of us had turned right, and proceeded on from there; the lights between its armor green. Between me and it were a few other zomponies, but they were just like the one behind me; ignorant of my existence. I limped past them, and some had bumped into me, but not even that had any effect on them. They kept stumbling around, as if nothing had happened...

A thought entered my mind... A dangerous thought... A thought I didn't want to think about... Something I wish I had been ignorant of... I didn't want to believe it, but...

No...

I shook my head and kept on. I wasn't going to let it stop me.

I stopped at the intersection that the sentry had turned down and peeked out to see it was starting to make another right, at the next turn. The moment it disappeared, I limped across and made my way forward. There was a large, metal door at the end that read 'METRO.'

I had no idea where Fluky had gone, but she had a fresh clip of those T rounds I was growing fond of, along with a gun. I could only hope that she was somewhere safe. Somewhere much safer than this place. I didn't know much about unicorns and their ability of teleportation, especially seeing as the only ones I've ever really known were very inexperienced, due to Bristle's orders against them learning too much magic, in case they got the idea to take over. I had no idea how it worked, or if there were any limits to how far it could go. I knew nothing.

All I could hope was that Fluky was safe and unharmed...

I stopped before the door and pressed the button on the side. As the door folded in on itself, I heard a massive horde... hissing and growling. As the slab in the center lowered, I was greeted by a subway station that probably reached the maximum occupancy with the fungal zomponies.

They stumbled around in one, big, rotten, fleshy mass, bumping into each other and hissing constantly. The smell... Oh goddesses, the smell...

They started to stumble out into the corridor, exploring new ground; passing by me with ignorant bumps. I stood there as they passed by me, before shaking my head and stepping forward.

I made my way through the mass, having to push some aside to get through. A tram was waiting on the tracks; the lights within flickering.

During my travels through the mob of... whatever these things really were, it had come to my attention that some of them were actually fused together by the skin of their coats; forced to move together as one. One of them that had caught my attention had engulfed another's head with the melted flesh of its own, as if they were stuck in some morbid kiss. Their lips didn't exist anymore, but through the burst pustules in their face, black tendrils wiggled out.

I carefully moved through the disgust that this place had become. Along the way, I found remnants of the past, lying along the filthy, bloody tiles. The pasts of other ponies... Guns, spent shells, keys...

... A teddy bear with a missing arm, the stuffing exposed...

No... I had to keep moving... Don't think about it... Don't...

I stepped through the open doors of the tram. The inside was crowded, and so I worked on pushing them out, one at a time. They didn't protest or retaliate, but I felt disgusted with myself for even touching them...

Regardless, they seemed to obey.

One after another, I pushed them out of the vehicle. Every so often, a straggler would wander in, but I'd push them back out. Once they were all vacated from the vehicle, I quickly limped for the controls in the front of the tram, before anymore could get in. After a few seconds of closely examining the controls in the cab, I found the door switch and hit it. Looking through the open door that revealed to me the rest of the flickering tram, all exits and entrances were sealed off.

Good start.

A screen flashed before the driver seat, and looking back, I saw the layout of the subway's systems and where it led. There was a large variety to choose from. A lot more than I had suspected there'd be.

Recreation was under the massive room that I could only assume was the park. Beyond that, was Living Quarters, which branched off from the main path. Opposite of that, was another path that circled around to a dead end, which read Generators. The main path itself led to the Atrium, Cafeteria, Maintenance, and then lastly, Stable Exit/Entrance. The location that was highlighted with an intricate, rotating, green dot, that I only assumed was where I was, for obvious reasons, was called Labs. The path turned for a more crude, distorted diagram of the structure, which was a dead end that read Mine.

I tapped my hoof over Atrium, and the circle highlighted the selected option. A green light flashed on beside it, which I soon discovered to be a button. Upon pressing it, the headlights flashed on, and the machine jolted forward, screeching along the tracks. I was surprised it still worked, after all this time. A red light flashed underneath the green, which I assumed meant to stop the ride, should there be an emergency.

Sparks flew out from above and below, but the tram pushed forward all the same. It wasn't all that fast, but it was still a lot better than walking. Especially for someone in my condition. This stable was a lot bigger than I had initially thought.

I stepped out of the cab and lied down on the row of three seats that had been built into the wall, underneath a window pane that looked out into the dark tunnels. I looked up at the flickering lights overhead, which soon enough, put a strain on my eyes. I was already feeling a headache, after a few seconds.

I sighed and sat up, frowning as my back pressed up against the wall behind me; the same wall that separated the cab from the rest of the tram. My rear hoof rested on the ground, while my stumped leg remained sprawled out along the row of seats. My fores rested on my lap as I looked out the window, peering through the darkness outside.

The lights in the tunnel remained every few dozen feet or so from each other, and through that, I caught the silhouettes of those zomponies stumbling around. There were a few thumps throughout the ride, which I imagined was something that was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I looked down at the belt that wrapped firmly around my stump, then hung my head down, closing my eyes. I had lost too much blood in such a short amount of time, and I was definitely starting to feel it more, now...

That syringe... The syringe that Fluky struck me with. That must have kept my adrenaline up and kept me awake, where others wouldn't manage.

A loud buzz occurred, causing me to jump in my seat and look around frantically. I looked up at the speaker overhead, which turned off shortly after. Turning to the window, I noticed we were slowing down at a station of benches, vending machines, restrooms, and trashcans. Trash littered the floor. Papers, wrappers, empty cans...

The lights flickered here as well, but it seemed that nothing had reached here, with me being that exception. This place seemed abandoned a long time ago.

There was an escalator that went up to another floor, but it looked to be shut off for good.

The tram stopped, and the doors slid open. I got up and limped out of the vessel, making my way for the stairs. Along the way, I found a few caps, to which I pocketed.

I made my way up the stairs, one hoof at a time. I was in far too much pain to worry about making haste anymore. I didn't have it in me. I was mentally exhausted. I was physically exhausted... My bones ached and protested against any movement I made. My coat was bruised and bloody... I didn't want to run anymore, and with there being nothing to run from at this moment, I took my time climbing the steps.

But that wasn't true... was it? There was always something to run from. There was never an exception. Even when nothing physical was chasing you, something else was. An invisible beast that would never fade from existence...

Time.

Time was a hunter, chasing me, and I was tired of running from it. But as I ran from time, I also ran out of it. It was going to win sooner, rather than later, if my theory was true... No matter what, time always won. There was no killing it. There was no running from it. There was no hiding. There was no escape... It was a merciless thing that did no favors for anyone, but instead, targeted all. It wasn't an enemy, nor was it a friend. It was time... and time always had its own agenda.

I made my way to the top, already fatigued from the short distance I had made. At the other end of the long stretch of tiled hall was a set of turn styles, and a door with a sign above it, which read 'Atrium.'

Hopefully, Fluky was already outside of the stable, waiting in that park. The chances of it happening were very slim. She could have been anywhere in all of Equus, for all I knew... but I had high hopes that she was okay, and safe, and that I'd find her again...

I had to go... This place had chewed me up and spat me out, and then chewed me up some more. It was a miracle I was even alive at this point. Something told me that wasn't going to last much longer, though... Not now...

I didn't find any survivor of 32. Everyone was dead. I was a fool to think otherwise, and I was paying the price for it now. Just like I deserved.

The ponies that accompanied me here did not deserve this, though... And I felt great shame for it... For as long as I'd live, I knew I was going to dwell on it... I messed up... I messed everything up...

I climbed over the turn style and opened the door before me, stepping through afterwards.

The room was dark and grey. The lights through the windows on the second floor continued to flicker, and several dozen silhouettes stumbled down the corridor, towards the exit.

I looked around the room to see several of those ponies I noticed earlier, standing around the room, still and silent as ever. I approached one carefully, but upon closer inspection...

They were statues. Wooden statues, yet they looked like real ponies. They probably were, at one point. Each one had fear and distress forever etched into their features, as if their last moments of life were spent screaming for mercy. Leaves and branches stuck out from their forms.

I looked up at the tree in the center to see a variety of blue, beautiful flowers, blooming with life.

Despite everything that happened, I smiled and sat before it, marveling at its glory. I took comfort in its health. It stood tall, nearly reaching the ceiling.

"You've finally arrived." Someone spoke from behind in a monotone, tired voice.

I spun around quickly, but all I saw were statues.

Then... one of them blinked at me with milky white eyes and a light grey, wrinkly hide. Patches of his coat were ripped from him. A hint of pink mist blew out from his nostrils with each breath. A twig stuck out from the side of his head, with a leaf on the end. His dark grey mane was messy and torn in a lot of areas that would make a hairdresser cringe. He wore what was once a lab coat around his body.

He was a ghoul...

The freak took a step forward, causing me to jump back.

"Don't touch the tree." He pointed behind me, and I glanced back at it, before quickly returning to him. He had the same exact voice of the pony that was in the distress call. "It's contagious." He then proceeded to put his hoof down as he looked around the room, at the statues that surrounded us. "They've all been infected because they got too close." He shook his head and looked down at the ground before him. "It's sad, really. The most beautiful things in life are often times the most dangerous." He noticed my stare, then continued. "So how did you find this place, stranger? Why are you here?"

"I heard an S.O.S. on the radio. I came to see if I could be of any help."

His eyes grew wide, and he shook his head. "Damn it..."

"What?"

"I should have destroyed that message long ago. It was a mistake putting it up..."

"How so?" I sat down. It was pretty obvious that he was the one that set it, judging by his voice. That was no mystery.

He looked at me and sighed, releasing a slightly thicker cloud of pink, which raised up to the ceiling, before dissipating. Hadn't Firebright warned me to stay away from that stuff? "When I made that broadcast, this place was starting to fail. There were a few ponies left alive around the stable, and I had... hoped... that someone would come here to save us from what we had discovered."

"You mean those fungus things?"

He nodded as he closed his eyes. "Days passed by. Weeks. It was too late. Everyone had died, save for me. I barricaded myself in here until the infection ceased to spread, because there was nothing left to infect. Stayed away from the tree behind you, and kept to my research." I got up and moved away from the tree, only to sit down again. "Truth be told..." He paused for a deep breath, then shook his head with regret. "I should have stayed away from that, too... I am like this, because of what I was researching." He gestured a hoof to himself, before resuming. "Anyways... power goes out across the entire stable. Machines shut off... Lockdown stays up. All is safe." He started coughing and hacking violently, then groaned. "It... hadn't come to my attention that the power would ever turn on again, and so I never bothered going back to destroy the recording I had made so long ago. About a week... or, at least, I think it was a week ago from today... had passed, and the power came back. The machines are moving once more, and the lockdown was lifted. Everything had rebooted... and I don't know why."

I hung my head down. "I might have an idea."

"Oh?" He raised a brow.

"There was an EMP around the Saddle area, when I was... around. There's a very good chance it hit your stable."

He nodded slowly. "Hm... Seems viable." He seemed to be regarding the shirt that was tied all around my head. He must have seen it along the bottom of my chin, seeing as my helmet was still on.

"Oh..." I smiled nervously, removing the helmet, and then the shirt. "Yeah, had a run in with something..." His eyes grew wide at the wounds in my head.

"I see..."

"I'm fine. Hurts a little, but it's nothing fatal."

"Hm..." He looked around the room for a few seconds, before turning back to me as I put the shirt back on, and then the helmet. It needed readjusting, anyways. "Would you like me to check up on you? See how you're holding up? After coming all this way, you may as well get something out of it."

I shook my head, smiling faintly. "No, it's okay." I think I knew why he was asking that... I definitely didn't want him checking up on me now.

"Fair enough." He took another deep breath as he made his way for the wall closest to us, slowly.

"I came here with a filly, but she teleported, and I don't know where she went off to. Can you help me find her?"

He sighed and coughed for a short while, before speaking. "Damn sorcery... Yeah, I'll help you." He paused, then looked at me. "But only if you help me."

"Well, that's what I came here to do." I smiled faintly. "I don't have a whole lot of fight left in me, but I can try."

He nodded, then looked down at the floor before him, behind a crate. "I suppose now that the power has been restored, and everything is reset, there is something that needs to be done about it." He coughed a bit, before getting to work on something on the ground. "We can't contain anything anymore. And turning the power off would be all but useful... So I have another option."

"What is it?" I stood up, almost taking a step forward. The pink cloud escaping from his nasal passage brought me to a sudden, alarming halt.

He looked back at me after lifting a custom made suit that looked like it belonged out in the wasteland above us. It bore white linings all along the sleeves and body. Even the neck. There was a metal helmet resting on the crate before him, with a blank, horizontal visor, and a dual respirator where the mouth would be. He looked back to the wall as he got dressed in the gear, then slipped the helmet on. The lining of his suit lit up in green, just like the upgraded machines that wandered this stable.

Finally, he looked back at me and spoke in his simple voice, as if what he was saying was perfectly normal.

"We're going to have to detonate Stable 32."

Author's Notes:

Sorry for the long wait again. I was busy with a lot. Oh, and pain. Lots and lots of pain. That's what I get for not getting proper sleep and working 9 hours a day... even though I'm trying my best to sleep more. Anyways, this was chapter 8. I hope it was worth the wait. I had a lot of fun writing this one, and the ending of this chapter was originally going to be in chapter 9, but it felt wrong. So Pines and I changed some things up, and agreed for this to be in chapter 8 instead.

Oh, and Pines hasn't heard of The Last Unicorn. The movie, or the book. Someone slap him. Slap him hard. Slap him with a paperback version of The Last Unicorn, and then slap him again with the DVD case.

Also, it's rather unfortunate to say that Pines and I are no longer significant others. I won't go into details, but despite our break up, we're still working together on this project, and we're still friends.

Anyways, special thanks to Kkat for making Fallout Equestria, very special thanks to Somber for making Project Horizons, Pines for being a good collab partner and working with me on this, and special thanks to Alchestbreach for hating the radios.

Also, I finally finished reading Project Horizons. Now I'm depressed, because the story ended. So I'm gonna let Pines take over the rest of this A.N.

And now, a word from Pines.
Pines:
You know, I never understood why Handy's were called Handy's. They seem to make things worse over them giving a "hand." They either get in the way or are the problem. But hey, what do I know? I'm more of a Botanist than an Engineer.

MMBT: Handy's can be helpful... At killing. ;)