While Gearing is sifting through a box of parts from a wide array of equipment, looking for anything he can use for the skywagon sitting half disassembled nearby, an echo tears through the night of a rifle’s report. Gearing’s ears zip around back and forth as he looks in the general direction of Megamac’s front gates. “That wasn’t aimed at us, was it?”

“I do not believe so, my darling Gearing.” Sable says as she turns her head and slowly looks back and forth into the gloom of the night. “There was no localized impact, nor air disturbances to indicate a near miss.”

Gearing shrugs as he pulls out a pair of capacitors and starts scrutinizing them. “Would explain the new fortifications.”

Sable keeps staring off towards the front of the town as she comments, “I do not understand why they would attempt to do such a thing in the middle of the night. The likelihood of inflicting any fatal injuries is negligible. And judging by the sound, they are taking the practical blind shots from a considerable distance. With weapons not designed for such.”

Gearing shrugs and tosses the capacitors back into the box as he keeps rummaging around. “I think it’s more of a fear tactic. Maybe trying to screw with them. Or, maybe just trying to get lucky… Even a broken clock can be right twice a day. They need to get rid of who’s ever doing it before someone gets seriously wounded. Or killed.”

Another report greets their ears, followed by a quick few more.

This time there’s a scream of pain, from nearby, that follows echoing out and kicking off a variety of commotion near the main gate.

Sable tilts her head and says softly, “It appears my statistical analysis was in error…”

Gearing tosses the piece he’d just picked up back into the box as he rolls his eyes. “Nope. Long shot odds can still happen.” He lets out a long sigh as he turns and starts walking towards Sable. “It’s amazing I can get anything done with the constant interruptions and Celestia’s horn buried so far up my ass.”

Sable’s eyes go wide and she leans back to look at his flank as she says, “I do not see any evidence of a horn…”

Gearing waves it off and smirks at her. “Would you sort through those boxes and try to find another capacitor that’s compatible with the skywagon? If you can find the other parts I’d mentioned earlier, while I’m gone, that’d be helpful.”

Sable nods and looks him over as she asks, “Are you going to be okay?”

Gearing looks at her, and sees the concern in her eyes. He leans over and kisses her cheek. “I’ll be fine.” He flares his wings and mutters, “I just need to work out some frustrations at the moment… and feel like I’m actually being useful for a change.”

She watches him take to the air and quickly disappear into the night sky. She lets out a sigh and shakes her head before turning and beginning to sort through various boxes simultaneously as she mutters, “You don’t need to justify your existence to anypony, Gearing… and shouldn’t have to justify it to yourself.” She looks up towards the direction of the front gate and frowns as she murmurs, “Be safe, my love.”

At the front gate the guardsmare with a gash on her jaw hunkers down inside of her bunker as she screams, “Where the hell’s that coming from?!” Several more bullets impact into the fortification and into the wall behind her as she stays low to the ground. “Fuck, this is bullshit!”

A scream coming from her left side draws her attention as another volley of bullet reports make it to the wall. She watches Pile Driver, who’d been poking up to try and spot where the shots were coming from, taking a round that ricochets off the concrete in front of him. He falls back and sideways into the lane as a hoof quickly comes up and holds onto the side of his neck as he yells in both pain and anger.

She hops up as she screams, “Pile’s hit!” She jumps her focus up towards the tower, and watches a few impacts hit up there too as she screams at them. “The fuck are you two doing up there?! Drop them already!”

“I can’t get a shot!” a mare screams back.

“By time I line up on the muzzle flash they’ve already moved to a new spot,” a buck’s voice replies.

A flash of a florescent green blur draws her attention back towards Pile Driver, and she just gets her muzzle pointed in that direct in time to watch Pile Driver get thrown at her. She jumps to the side to avoid getting pinned, and comes back with her rifle at the ready towards whoever this new attacker is.

But they aren’t there anymore.

“Hey! Gimmie your knife,” a voice says from behind her.

She spins around and sees a dark figure, with luminescent green wings that seem to practically glow in the low light provided by the electric lamp in the pit with her. “Wha- who the fuck are you!?”

Gearing snaps a wing out, deftly yanking out the combat knife from her shoulder holster, before turning towards Pile Driver on the ground. “Asking stupid ass questions when Pile Driver’s life’s in danger. Damn, Swift must really have gave you some brain damage with that jab earlier.”

She was about to shoot him in the back, but lowers the rifle as she raises an eyebrow. “Wait… what? How’d you know…?”

The light suddenly goes out with a shower of sparks as Gearing rips it apart to get at the internal electrical components. A moment later the knife he’d taken starts glowing a cherry red as it sparks from the wires attached to it. He steps over to the thrashing Pile Driver and almost lays on him as he holds him down and shoves the buck’s hoof out of the way. “This is gonna suck, but you’ll thank me later!”

Pile Driver’s eyes go wide, and then he lets out an even louder scream as the cherry red blade is introduced to the side of his neck. Partially cooking and scorching fur, hide, and flesh simultaneously. But stopping the flow of blood as well. Gearing pulls away, and rips the wires from the knife as he looks at the mare who stares at him in disbelief.

“Hey, brain-dead, can you carry him?”

She blinks a few times then nods. “Hell yeah I can.”

Gearing nods towards the front gates. “Get him inside then. And don’t let him move. I’ve cauterized the wound, but he needs proper treatment. That scab comes off and he’ll likely be dead in minutes.”

She jumps over and starts beating on the gate. “Open up! We’re coming in, Pile Drivers hurt!” As the gate starts opening she turns to say something, but her eyes bug out as Gearing charges forward, on his hind legs, while carrying Pile driver completely aloft with his wings and forelegs. He shoves her back into the town, practically depositing Pile driver into her lap, then spinning around and snapping his wings. Disappearing into the night again. She stands there gawking as the gate shuts again and she asks, “What the fuck?”

Several other guards come over with a stretcher from a side building and they start loading Pile Driver onto it. The muzzle gouged mare pats him on his chest with a hoof as she gives a soft smile. “You’ll be fine, Pile Driver. Just hold on. We got you.”

Around a low campfire a group of dirty ponies wearing wagon pieces as armor sit chuckling in the remains of a collapsed building that’s little more than the outer shell. Beyond the low light provided by the small fire, darkness is complete and they can’t see much. But they already know there’s not much to see beyond their little haven. The area’s been picked clean already and infuriatingly barren.

A mare unicorn holds up her rifle and giggles. “I can’t believe those dumb asses thought that bit of dirt would protect them from me. Me of all ponies! Baddest shooter in the whole gang!”

“Yeah, baddest is right… you used what… two magazines to get a single hit?” A buck says with a laugh before taking a pull from a dirty beer bottle.

An earth pony mare uses a piece of leather to clean and sharpen her knife as she says glumly, “Not saying much considering how few of us are left.”

The mare with the rifle glares over at her gangmate. “Gotta try and drag us down with that shit, huh?” She raises her rifle and grins. “I took that big bastard down. Shoulda seen him rolling around in the road.” She looks at the others one at a time and nods her head. “Once word gets out… our crew will grow again. Only eight of us?” She waves a hoof and laughs. “Just means bigger shares of the loot! But with Pile Driver gone, that town’s going to be easy pickings now. He coulda been a Reaper if he wanted. A few fights up in Hoofington and he’d be a shoe in.” She starts laughing again. “But the idiot decided to stay here and die instead!”

“Actually, you ran off too soon.”

They jump up to their hooves and look at the dark figure just inside the door of their little refuge as it slowly walks in further, but barely makes a sound.

The light just barely glints off of a few parts along the edges as he continues, “Flesh wound really. They’ve already got him inside and taking care of it.” He steps a few more times until he’s practically being flanked by the nearest two as Gearing’s grin becomes just barely illuminated in the campfire light. “He’s going to be just fine.” He looks at the unicorn mare with the rifle sideways as he asks, “Bit full of yourself, aren’t you? Taking practically blind pot shots in the middle of the night from outside of your rifles effective range? Then trying to boast about it like you’re some kind of elite sniper?” He shakes his head and chuckles. “You got balls.”

“So do you… walking into our camp like that. Who the fuck do you think you are?” the earth pony buck on his left asks as he taps on his own shoulder with a spiked club.

Gearing looks sideways at him and grins. “Nopony special… just somepony who was trying to get a wagon fixed for a trip in the morning, and was very rudely interrupted by some dumbass taking pot shots near me.” He looks over at the mare with the rifle and frowns. “You’re really screwing with my deadlines and timetables…. You know that?”

The stallion with the club looks over at the unicorn that still has her rifle lazily pointed to the side and asks, “What kinda dumbass tries to work on a wagon in the middle of the night?”

The mare on the far right with the knife she’d been sharpening drops it as her mouth goes slack. “G- guys… green wings…” Her eyes go wide as she starts backing up. “Green wings!”

Gearing grins and wiggles his eyebrows at her. “… Clever girl…”

An earth pony mare jumps out from the shadows to stand in front of Gearing as she pulls out a pistol from its holster and brings it up towards him. Simultaneously Gearing turns sideways, bringing his right wing around and hitting the buck with the club, right across the throat with his wing’s edge, and bucking the mare that was on his right with his back left leg in her side. The buck drops the club, and starts gasping for breath and holding his throat as the mare gets sent flying backwards into the wall nearby. Gearing grabs her hind hoof with his left wing, before she’s fallen entirely to the ground, and completes the spin by throwing her through the air to crash into the unicorn mare with the rifle, sending the rifle skittering off into the darkness and both of the mares tumbling across the ground in a heap.

The mare that’d jumped in front of him manages to level her pistol at Gearing’s head, but didn’t expect him to lean into it.

He bites the end of the small pistol, practically looking like he’s trying to kiss her around the gun. His wing comes up and hits the magazine release, and then starts yanking the magazine away as she fires the first round. He twitches and lets out a grunt as the pistol discharges into his mouth. He managed to steal the magazine, but not before it chambered a second round. The second round fired makes him recoil, but he has a firm grip on the pistol and yanks it right out of her mouth.

Along with a few of her teeth.

He flicks his head, sending the pistol flying off into the darkness before he turns back around and glares at her. Her eyes go wide as he practically growls. She watches in horror as he spits out the first bullet, which is massively deformed and mushroomed, right back into her face. And her jaw drops in disbelief as he spits the second bullet out, and bounces it off the headband she’s wearing on her forehead. Right between the eyes. Then he tilts his head and spits the rest of a bunch of tiny bullet fragments off at one of the bucks that had run up to hit him with a sledgehammer that has saw blades welded to the sides.

But, seeing Gearing practically eat the bullets, he slacked his swing and actually jumps back and away from him as he hesitates getting within range of him.

Gearing looks between them as he smacks his lips and shakes his head. “Bleeegh.” He uses a hoof to rub on his tongue a bit before he looks at the mare that’d tried to shoot him in the face. “Have you ever cleaned your gun? I can taste the residue buildup, it tastes like sadness!”

“What the hell are you waiting for!? Get him!” the unicorn mare yells as she jumps back into the light with her rifle and brings it up to aim at Gearing.

“Whoops, look at the time! Gotta go!” Gearing yells with a laugh as he springs over, shoves the still stunned, and partially toothless, mare back and out of the way as he hops over the fire then zips straight up and out with a few quick pumps of his wings.

A variety of weapons discharge after him as the group crowds around the fire to unleash a volley and hopefully knock him out of the air and bring him back for them to finish off. But he’s apparently made good on his escape into the darkness beyond.

The mare that’d gotten knocked over after having her gun taken from her shakes her head and starts picking herself back up as she looks where he’d gone. She trails her eyes over the fire and tilts her head as she asks, “Hey, who threw the cram can in the fire?” The others look down at the fire, watching the old paper label burn off.

The explosion that follows sends a fireball shooting up the cement walls and into the night sky. In the next instant the camp fire’s been extinguished, and the only movement within the walls is the slow patter of various debris.

After a few moments of silence, a small portable emergency light kicks on as Gearing steps back into the building from where the side door used to be. He surveys the damage and grins as he sees a green ammo container along the wall. “Thank you for your donation to the stable defense fund…”

As Gearing is putting the last couple items he’s recovered from this raider camp onto his pile of equipment, salvage, and supplies in the corner, his eyes regularly jump towards a segment of broken exterior wall. He starts bundling up the various items, putting like items together, and organizing the whole cache for transport.

He grabs a large sheet and starts loading it up like an improvised bag as he turns his muzzle towards the gap in the wall and calls out, “Alright, MoM… You just going to sit out there, or you going to come in and say something?”

No response comes from anywhere in the universe he can detect.

He drops the bag onto the ground with a half throw as he turns and faces the gap. “Look, dumbass, I have excellent night vision… and in case you missed the PipBuck, I have E.F.S. too… I can see you.” He sits down and waves a hoof at the gap as he says, “You gave me all those warnings about raiders and slavers and bad ponies, and said you’d be in touch when I told you I’d get to raking the muck…” He folds his forelegs and glares out into the pitch blackness of the night. “So why are you acting all shy now?” He grabs the rifle that the unicorn mare had been using and waves it with a wing as he asks, “Or do I need to scrap that sprite bot to prove the point? I mean, I will if you want, but I’d really rather not damage government property…” He puts the rifle back down and waves a hoof dismissively as he groans. “Paperwork… soooo much paperwork.”

Still no response.

“Come on, MoM, what’s your deal?” Gearing asks with a huff.

“I’m not your mother, Gearing,” a modulated voice comes out as a hovering sprite bot flutters into the building with him through the gap in the wall.

Gearing looks the bot over then lets out a huff. “So you’re not the Ministry of Morale… Well that’s concerning…”

“Why would you think I’m with the Ministry of Morale?”

“Well, I was contacted a few days ago by MoM and asked to take care of a few things. A loooot of bad ponies need to be…” A grin crosses his muzzle as he tilts his head and stares at the bot. “Punished… And you’re currently using a Ministry of Morale sprite bot to talk to me… so it should be an understandable assumption to make.” He waves a hoof and frowns. “Though… if you’re not with the ministry, that means you’re using unauthorized access… and that part I find very concerning…”

There are a few moments of silence as the operator of the bot seems to think the situation through. Then it asks, “Gearing… What year do you think it is?”

Gearing lets out a sigh and folds his forelegs in front of himself. “I’m not some mental case. I know it’s been two hundred years. I’m very much aware that everypony’s dead.” He looks off to the side and lets out a hard snort of disgust. “I don’t need some hacker to remind me that while everyone else fought and died, I was too busy napping to do anything.”

“What?”

Gearing glares at the bot and screams, “The fuckers caught me napping, alright?!” He points with both forehooves to the right side. “One day I’m doing my job.” He brings both forehooves to point to his left side. “The next I’m coming out of stasis two hundred years later.” He shakes his head. “I don’t expect you to understand how fucked up it feels to know so many died while you were asleep somewhere safe.”

There’s a long pause before the voice comes across softly, more like the transmission was accidentally done and not done closely to the microphone, “…Probably more than you realize…”

Gearing waves it away with a hoof. “Know what. Never mind. I’ve had enough kicks to my brain recently.” He shakes his head and asks with a slight frown, “What do you want? If you aren’t with the Ministry, are you the one that’s been stalking me? I’ve seen sprite bots watching me from a distance in several locations. It’s not a coincidence. I figured MoM was just keeping tabs on my work… but if that’s not the case… then what?”

“Trying to figure out what kind of pony you are.”

Gearing smirks. “Could just ask.”

“That doesn’t usually go over too well,” the voice laughs through the bot.

“Well I’m the kind that, given this situation,” He motions between the two with his wing, “I’d be more than happy to explain a few things about myself and what I’m willing, and able, to do… but first… how much do you know about me?”

“I think I have a pretty good grasp by now. You’ve intervened in multiple raider attacks. Took out an entire slaver encampment, and rescued the ponies they had enslaved there. You left them the supplies that the slavers had, instead of taking it yourself. And, at least as far as I can tell, you haven’t actually done any of it for any kind of payment. So as skilled as you are, you’re not some kind of mercenary.” There’s a moment of silence before the voice adds, “You’re an oddity in the wastes.”

“That’s all you know about me?” Gearing asks as he raises an eyebrow.

“Well, I’ve seen more of the same. Pretty predictable pattern of behavior really. Why? Is there something else?”

Gearing taps a forehoof on the ground as he stares at the sprite bot and wonders how much he can trust such an anonymous individual. He waves up towards the sprite bot as he says, “Well, you’re obviously in the Ministry’s networks… you’re telling me you haven’t come across any files on me in their databases? At all?”

“I don’t have that kind of access, Gearing. The sprite bot Node network is separate from everything else.”

Gearing points up with a wingtip, then lowers it to point at the sprite bot. “Ahhh… but you managed to get into that network… didn’t you? Which means you could have gotten into other networks… other databases… potentially.”

The bot remains silent for a long few moments, and Gearing quickly loses patience with not even a denial.

“Well… I said I’d tell you just how I operate…” An unsavory grin crosses his muzzle as he says, “So here goes…” He takes in a deep breath then the mirth disappears like smoke as he narrows his eyes at the sprite bot. “If you happen to come across certain files on me, you’ll know what I’m about to say is the truth. And if you happen to come across them… keep it to your damn self.” He points a wing at the sprite bot. “I don’t give a shit if you’re in the system and using it to watch out over Equestria. That’s kind of what it was designed for. Whether you’re getting your jollies watching the blood bath, peeping on fillies taking a bath, or whatever. I don’t really care. However, if I find out you’re using the system to cause harm to innocents. If you sell out defensive information so raiders can attack towns. Attack caravans. Aid slavers stealing and raping children. Any of that abso-fucking-lutely horrible shit that’s been going on by the train load now?”

Gearing shrugs and actually chuckles a few times. “Ooohhh ho hoooo boy… I’ll bring a level of hell down upon you that you can’t even imagine.” He stands up and starts walking towards the bot as he growls. “Just a hint… part of my job was exposing and dealing with leaks… and traitors… In my entire active career, not one of my assigned targets got away. Some took longer than others, but I always got my mark.” He lifts up a wing and counts off with feathers, “I don’t sleep, I don’t stop, and I never give up.” He pokes hard with a wingtip at the bot and scowls. “And I really don’t give a rat’s ass who it is. A general in the middle of a secure base? Been there. Done that.”

Gearing starts chuckling as he sits down and waves dismissively. “I really don’t even care if you’re some giant dragon hiding in a cave somewhere, makes no difference to me. Wouldn’t be the first dragon I’ve brought down. You cross me. You lie to me and send me after innocents to do your dirty work. I find out you’ve been fucking over the foals I’ve been trying to help. Or you end up being a truly rotten pony.” Gearing shakes his head and stares right at the sprite bot. “You’ll be signing your own death warrant…”

He rolls his eyes and waves a hoof. “And before you give me some shit about ‘Well hur hur if you’re all that, why didn’t you kill the Caesar?’ get your facts straight… I had more than enough opportunities to do it.” He shakes his head. “Killing the Caesar would accomplish nothing, and those in Equestrian high intelligence knew it. He’d just be replaced, quickly, and probably with someone even nastier.” He glares at the bot and narrows his eyes. “I was under strict orders not to kill the Caesar. Period.” He points a hoof at the sprite bot as he says softly, but with a growling menace, “So factor that into your decisions…”

“Wow… that’s… I mean…” There’s a slight pause before the voice says, “I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who’s been so candidly and openly hostile with me, that actually took the time to explain it, instead of just shooting the bot and running off with the scrap.”

Gearing shrugs. “As you said, my motivations lead to some pretty predictable behavior… So… you pretty much know how I act and why now… are we going to have a problem… or not?”

“I’m not sure if this is going to work. You’re not exactly what I’d expected,” the sprite bot admits.

Gearing raises an eyebrow. “What, expected me to just run around fixing all of your sprite bots so you can keep spying on ponies?”

“Actually, I was hoping you’d be willing to do more of what you’ve been doing…” Gearing raises an eyebrow and the bot comments as the operator notices he’s earned a bit more attention, “Rescuing ponies… stopping raiders and slavers… that sort of thing.”

Gearing waves a hoof. “I’m happy to lend a hoof where and when I can… but… a wise friend told me long ago… If you’re really good at something, never do it for free when you can get paid for it.”

“I thought you weren’t a mercenary?”

Gearing grins at the sprite bot and shakes his head slowly. “I’m not talking money. Money’s usefulness is rather limited… I need assurances, and information.”

There’s a pause before it asks, “What kind of information?”

Gearing points at the bot and frowns. “You need to promise not to tell a fucking soul about me. Not to boost morale. Not to let them know I’m on the way to help. Not even to let them know that I did anything to help them.” He shrugs and waves it away with a hoof. “I don’t do this for recognition. Never did. Never wanted that. I do it because it’s right. Because there’s creatures out there that desperately need help, and aren’t getting it.” Gearing taps on the floor repeatedly for emphasis as he scowls. “Right. This Second…” He waves it away with a wing and scowls. “And my job’s just going to get harder the more is known about me. So keep my goings on to yourself, and definitely out of the ears of whatever radio announcers there are.” He waves it away with one slow sweep of his wing. “Don’t need that kind of shit in my life. Let that ‘Security Mare’ and ‘Stable Dweller’ have all the glory. I don’t do well in the spotlight.” He looks at the bot and grins. “Please and thank you.”

“That’s easily enough done… but what information did you want?”

Gearing smiles widely. “Targets.”

“Targets?”

Gearing holds up his PipBuck and points out the map and a few points of interest he has yet to visit. “You have the bot network, you can find the trouble spots easier than I can, so I could make detours along my path to deal with whatever I can along the way… it’d make things far easier…” He lowers his PipBuck as he looks the sprite bot over. “By the way… what do I call you?”

“You can call me Watcher…”

“Watcher, huh?” Gearing asks with a smirk. He smiles wide enough that his eyes close before he says, “You know what, call me ‘Fixer,’ and thank you for your patronage…”

Breaker Bar pulls back the cloth curtain partition that is currently surrounding the bed Pile Driver is laid out on. He steps up to the bed and partially closes the curtain back, separating it from the rest of the storage container turned medical clinic as he asks, “How ya feeln’, buck?”

Pile Driver opens an eye and looks over at him. He closes it back and grins as he says, “Awww shiiiit… If you’re here, than either I’m in hell… Or I’m still kickn’… you tell me.”

Breaker Bar gives a snort and looks around as he says softly, “Well… I know I ain’t dead yet, so that limits your options, don’t it?”

Pile Driver snickers then opens his eye again and sees the look on Breaker Bar’s face. He closes his eye again as he lets out a snort. “I’m fine old timer. Just feeling a bit tired…” He reaches up a hoof and gently rubs the bare patch of skin where the fur had been completely burnt off then magically healed. “And a bitch itchy where that crazy bastard took a hot knife to me…”

Breaker Bar nods and sits down next to the bed as he gently reaches up and starts rubbing on Pile Driver’s foreleg. “Yeah… But according to the doc, that crazy bastard saved your life…” He shrugs lightly. “Bullet nicked the artery… Blood loss is why you’re so tired.” He pats Pile Driver’s foreleg a few times as he brings his gaze up to meet his eyes. He reaches over and ruffles Pile Driver’s mane. “Doc said the treatment took care of the damage and you should be fine after a couple days rest. You’re out of the worst of it.”

Pile Driver follows Breaker Bar’s hoof from the top of his own head up to Breaker’s eyes. “I’m not a foal anymore, Pops. I’m a grown ass stallion.”

Breaker Bar leans in and scowls. “I don’t give a rat’s ass if you’re older than Celestia and Luna combined, you’re still my buck, and will always be my son.”

Pile Driver chuckles. “Well, of course… That’s where I get the stubbornness from, obviously.”

“That’s your mother’s side showing. That’s what that is.”

“She’d have to be, to put up with your sorry ass.”

“Both of our asses, really,” Breaker Bar says with a chuckle.

“Yeah.” Pile Driver lets out a groan as he stretches out and looks up at the ceiling before sighing softly, “I miss her too, Pop.”

Breaker Bar reaches over and rubs Pile Driver on the chest gently before giving it a pat and saying with a sigh, “Well… don’t be in no hurry for the family reunion. Plenty of time for that later.”

Pile Driver chuckles and rubs a hoof through his black mane. “Not planning on it… But I’m definitely going to go deal with these fuckers.” He shakes his head. “Shoulda done it when they pulled that shit on the second night. Was only a matter of time before they got bold, or lucky.”

“Hey, what’s all the hubbub, bub?” They both turn their focus and see Gearing poking his hood covered head around the curtain. He grins at them and asks, “This a private affair or you charging admission here too?”

Pile Driver chuckles and shakes on the bed a bit as he beckons him in. “Nah, I’m off duty, come on in.” He looks him over as he’s walking in and asks, “So, who are you and what do ya want? If you’re wanting to report something, I’m off duty. Go to the guard shack.”

“Just checking on my hoof work.” Gearing walks in more, and throws back the cloth that’s over his head as he grins. “Was pretty sure it’d work, but should and do are two different things.”

Pile Driver looks him over, taking note of the large mottled gray and black thick cloak, that at one point was probably a blanket, and the bulges at his sides that indicate some rather heavily laden saddle bags. Then his eyes settle on Gearing’s bright brushed copper eyes, and his own jump to their fullest as his hoof instinctively jumps to the location of his bullet wound. “It’s you!”

Gearing nods and waves with a hoof towards him. “Yup. Sorry for the rough treatment. Neither of us had a lot of time… You needed to not bleed to death, and I needed to get to tracking as soon as I could.”

Pile Driver gives a chuckle then waves towards him. “Hey. No offense taken… Although, I got to ask… why’ve I never seen you in the ring?” He notices the raised eyebrow glance from Breaker Bar and points at Gearing as he explains, “The buck picked me up and practically threw me without so much as a grunt of effort. If he could handle me like that, he’d probably win the Crater Tourney.”

Gearing shakes his head. “I only fight when I need to. With purpose. Not interested in posturing nonsense. That’s Swift’s mindset.”

Pile Driver’s eyes go wide at her name, as he makes the connection and it fully dawns on him who this is. He looks Gearing over again then asks softly, “What the hell’d you do to yourself? Get blown up? I can smell the residue?”

Gearing waves a hoof and says dismissively, “Naaaah. Just got a little annoyed of being so easily spotted.”

“…So easily recognizable,” Breaker Bar says softly as he looks him over. Gearing locks eyes with him for a moment before giving the comment a shrug.

Pile Driver smirks and shakes his head. “Well, you wanna come along with me in a couple days? Those assholes have gone and fucked up. Now I’m pissed. Going to go take them out.”

Gearing rolls his eyes as he lets out a long sigh, “Weeeelll…”

Pile Driver waves it away with a hoof. “Nah. I get it. Don’t worry. I won’t think any less of you. It’s a job for the guards. Just figured with your muscle you’d be good in a fight.”

Gearing taps on his muzzle as he thinks it over. “No, it’s not that…Gee… how do I put this…?” He looks sideways at Pile Driver and asks with a raised eyebrow, “Remember when I said raider nests were great for filling the saddle bags?” Pile Driver nods and raises an eyebrow. Gearing gives a sheepish smile and says, “Hate to beat you to the punch line but…” He lifts both of his wings, lifting the improvised cloak up and off of himself at the same time.

Without the cloak over him it’s plain to see the reasons for the bulges. Both sets of saddlebags are crammed full of various salvage, mostly equipment, and look like they may be on the verge of ripping. A few smaller cloth bags are tied onto the side of them, and hang down, with a couple rifles and lengthier weapons bundled up to the side for transport.

Pile Driver starts laughing loudly, hard enough that he’s bouncing on the bed, and every now and then lets out an ‘ow’ as the act of laughing so hard actually hurts. “Well, I guess you weren’t lying about it, were you!”

Breaker Bar flops down on his rear as he laughs hard. He holds his sides for a moment as he looks at his son, and it’s hard to stop laughing when they both are so deep in giggle fits. He looks at Gearing and chuckles, “Fixer strikes again!”

Pile Driver stops laughing instantly and his eyes go wide as he puts it together. “Wait… You’re-“

Breaker Bar puts a hoof over Pile Driver’s muzzle and leans towards him as he snickers, “Yeah… and he’d like to keep that little tidbit under his hat as long as he can.” He raises an eyebrow and glances over at Gearing before he comments, “It’s probably the reason for the new paint job.”

Pile Driver pushes Breaker Bar’s hoof away and asks with a hushed hiss, “Iron Hoof and Fixer are out and about? Together?! Sweet Celestia, that’s an eight hooved wrecking crew!”

Gearing shrugs. “I’d prefer the narrative to be more like Iron Hoof and Company.”

Breaker Bar shrugs, “Easy enough to pull off with how social she is.”

Pile Driver grins and nods as he comments, “And it doesn’t hurt that she’s a damn looker too.” He notices the scowl from Breaker Bar and rolls his eyes. “Hey, I’m not blind, and I’m just saying!” He waves it off. “It’s just a fact of life that’s as plain to see as the clouds in the sky… I’m huge. He could probably bench press a wagon.” He points at Gearing. “And Iron Hoof’s fucking gorgeous.”

Gearing narrows his eyes and sighs. “And she’s married too, so don’t get any ideas, or she’ll knock your block off for real. She’s dedicated like that.”

Pile Driver waves it off dismissively. “Nah. Only thing I’d want to get from her is a good sparring match. Not really my type, but has earned my respect as a fighter regardless.”

Gearing nods then turns to leave as he says, “Well, if you’ll excuse me, I got a few more things I wanna get done before morning.”

Pile Driver laughs then shakes his head as he asks with an eye partially closed, “Do you ever sleep?”

Gearing looks over at him for a moment before giving a slight shrug of his shoulder and snickering. “Sometimes…” Which just makes Pile Driver laugh louder, so Gearing continues on out.

“Hey, Fixer,” Breaker Bar calls after him quietly.

Gearing frowns and rolls his eyes before turning around and looking at him around the curtain. “Yeah?”

Breaker Bar dips his head low and says softly, “Thanks for saving my boy’s life.”

Gearing looks him over then sees the look of shock on Pile Driver’s face as he stares at Breaker Bar bowing. Gearing waves it away with a hoof as he says, “Yeah, no problem.” Then starts walking away as he says with a grin, “What are friends for?”

Breaker Bar hops up to his fullest height and grins widely before turning and looking at Pile Driver. “Hey, hurry up and get me some grandfoals. I wanna tell them I’m friends with Fixer.”

Pile Driver raises an eyebrow. “You’re too old to be getting excited about somepony saying they’re your friend.”

Breaker Bar ruffles Pile Drivers mane. “Awwww is somepony jealous that they don’t have a famous frieeeeeend?”

Footnote: Error detected: ‘Hydra matrix’ system corrupted, please stand by. . .

Running Recovery Protocols: Purging ‘Hydra Matrix’ system, please stand by. . .

This chapter starts a bit of escalation with a few conflicts, while giving a few more peeks into certain aspects of the story. It also features the first appearance of everyone's favorite dragon computer hacker. Though, because of differences in backgrounds and situations, doesn't really go as many would expect.

Gearing's reasons for his apparent hostility and abrasiveness will become better understood later. Much later, admittedly, but all in good time. He alluded to a bit of it during the conversation though.

The next few chapters we're rather rough from a pacing and technical standpoint. But I think they'll be fine for release. On time.

I'd like to thank my beta readers and helpers who've given me input along the way and have helped make this story what it is. You all are awesome!

Comments, questions, and critiques welcome as always.

-Quillsy