The vanilla stallion, Buck, is leaning against the bar counter of their favorite hole-in-the-wall pub in Manehatten. He stares into his barely touched scotch as he lets out a sigh and seems lost deep in thought. Cloud Seed walks up next to him and flags down the bartender. “Hey! Barkeep! Appletini! Shaken, not stirred!” The bartender starts chuckling and nods before shaking his head lightly. Cloud Seed taps on the counter with a forehoof a few times to get his attention as he frowns. “I’m serious here! Don’t just stir that shit, it tastes differently!”

The bartender looks over at him, then walks over and grins at him. He points a hoof at Cloud Seed as he partially closes an eye. “I like that. A customer that knows exactly what he wants… Any preference on the vodka, or would you rather have gin?”

Cloud Seed sticks his tongue out. “Vodka. Of course… And… as far as which vodka…” He pulls out a pile of bits and drops them in the tip jar, far more than the drink is going to cost. He gives him a grin and wiggles his eyebrows. “Surprise me. I’ll trust ya… “

The bartender nods and bobs his head with his whole shoulders. “You got it!” Then he turns around and starts mixing the drink.

Buck looks at Cloud Seed sideways and lets out a sigh. “How do you do it?”

Cloud Seed leans sideways on the counter, with a foreleg elbow up on it, and looks at him. “Do what?”

Buck shrugs. “Stay sane. Stay happy. I mean why do you even do all of this?”

“I never claimed to be sane,” Cloud Seed says with a chuckle. Buck gives him a sidelong look and Cloud Seed leans towards him. “The more shit I go through, the less other’s have to.”

Buck shakes his head and watches as the bartender gives Cloud Seed his drink then walks away to the far side of the bar. “Yeah, but why? I mean, shit. How many times have you been shot?”

Cloud Seed grabs the drink with a wing and takes a little sip from it before looking at Buck and asking with a grin, “You asking about individual bullets, or number of incidences?” He gives a shrug. “Either way, I don’t know. Can’t even tell you how many days it’s happened.”

Buck looks opposite the counter at the shelves of liquor across from them as he says softly, “I just don’t see why. You’re damn sure not doing it for the glory. You make sure of that. You some kind of adrenaline junkie? You get off on the killing? I just… I’m just losing sight of everything. It never ends.”

Cloud Seed leans over to him and says softly, “Buck… Do you think quitting would actually help anything?” Buck just shrugs lightly, so Cloud Seed continues, “I hate the fighting. The death. Historically, killing hasn’t solved much. Littlehorn? War effort just grew exponentially. Hoofington burning? Recruitment and volunteers went through the roof. Even kids were trying to lend a hoof and getting sent away from the signup tables. And all killing zebras has done is increase their resolve as well.” Cloud Seed lets out a sigh and closes his eyes. “So I don’t if I can help it. All I want is for foals to be able to go to sleep at night, without being scared that something horrible is going to happen to them or someone they care about.” He leans over and wraps a foreleg around Buck’s shoulders. “I want the childhood our parents remember. Peaceful.” He pulls back and hangs his head as he closes his eyes. “Not filled with mutilated kids being thrown in stasis just to prolong their life.” He shakes his head. “That’s it. That’s all I want.”

Buck leans over and asks quietly, “Yet you got into this life?”

Cloud Seed looks at him sideways and asks, “If not me, then who? I didn’t start this war, but maybe… just maybe… I can help end it.” He downs the rest of his drink and frowns. “While there’s still somecreature left to save…”

Buck stares at him with his eyes wide open as he regards him. That apparently wasn’t the kind of response he was expecting from Cloud Seed.

“Hey… hey, you okay?”

Gearing looks up from the partially disassembled piece of technology on the table between his hooves. He blinks a couple times and asks, “What?”

“You okay?” Orchid repeats. “You’ve been staring at that thing for a while.”

Silver Shoes asks with her head propped up with a hoof. “Radio too much for ya to handle? It’s okay to admit it.” A wide grin crosses her muzzle.

Gearing looks over at Silver Shoes and shakes his head. “Wait… what? No. No way.” He starts putting the casing back on the desktop radio. “Sorry, gotta lot on my mind.” He puts in the last screw, spins it around, and clicks it on.

Instantly a buck’s voice comes across the airwaves through the speaker loud and clear. “- now children, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again-”

Gearing shuts it back off and pushes it with one hoof towards the center of the table. “See? Just got a couple wires knocked loose when it fell, apparently.”

Silver Shoes and Orchid simply sit there staring at it, with their mouths hanging agape, as a pair of other Freight Cars members spring over from the sides to look at it and comment simultaneously.

“Was that DJ Pon3?”

“It’s working?! It’s been busted for months!”

Sable gives a prim nod, in perfect mimicry of Nahlah, as she says, “Of course. My Gearing is a very talented stallion, after all.”

A unicorn mare pokes her conductor’s hat adorned head into The Depot and yells out, “Goldfish’s about to start her final fight! Goldfish verses Iron Hoof at Junction One. Hurry up or you’re going to miss it!” Then she just turns and runs off towards her next destination to continue spreading the word.

Most of the bar jumps up instantly and starts pouring out to try and get a good seat. Orchid and Silver Shoes stare wide-eyed for a moment before Silver Shoes asks, “Aren’t you going? Aren’t you friends?”

Gearing shrugs. “I’m not really one for fighting for sport… might as well save myself the hassle and let everyone else fight over the seats they want. I’ll just get whatever’s left.”

In under a minute the bar’s entirely cleared out, except for the five of them. Even the bartender bolted out with the rest of the crowd. Silver Shoes and Orchid look back and forth, rather anxiously, between Gearing and the door.

Gearing stands up and fishes out his cloak from his saddle bag, and then starts putting it on as he says, “You can go ahead if you want.”

Orchid frowns and shakes her head. “I’d get my head knocked off with a driving wheel if I showed up there for some entertainment and you weren’t around.”

Gearing gives his whole body a shake, dispersing the mottled ratty cloak before flipping the hood up and over his head. He smirks out at the pair from under the edge of the fabric with his one eye as he says, “Well, let’s get going then, or you’ll miss the show.” He turns and starts walking away slowly as he adds, “Go ahead and lead the way… we’ll get there faster.”

The two clamor out from behind the table and run around it straight for the door. With Silver Shoes leaping up and clear over Gearing as she makes for the exit with haste. Nahlah is quickly behind them, finding amusement in their overexcitement.

By the time Gearing and Sable get to the door, and start heading off the porch, everyone had already gotten out of sight.

Sable looks at Gearing and snickers as she asks, “How should we go about finding our escorts? Or did you intentionally do that for some other purpose?”

Gearing turns towards her and points towards the side of his head as he grins. “Nah. It’s a simple matter of following our ears. They’re anything but quiet right now.”

Sable nods and lets him lead the way, staying at his side as she continuously looks around at the ferroequinologist’s dreamscape surrounding them. She turns her eyes to look at Gearing, as she keeps her muzzle pointed away from him, and asks, “Relatedly, how is your hearing now, my love?”

Gearing turns his head to look at her for a moment, though his head is still mostly covered by the cloth. She’s about to repeat herself, fearing he didn’t understand her, when he finally replies, “Better. Much better. But, still not as it should be. I can tell the difference between the range in my left verses my right.” He shrugs and continues along as he comments, “Going to need to either see an actual doctor, or try something drastic, to get it any better. Probably…”

“What does my Gearing mean by ‘something drastic’?” Sable asks as she redirects her full attention to Gearing.

“I’d really rather not talk about it.” Gearing shudders with his entire body, and it’s visible even from under his cloak. “It’s nothing that can be helped at the moment anyway.”

Sable continues walking in time, her muzzle pointed straight at him, as she asks, “But, if it were something I could help you with?”

Gearing changes his steps just enough to swing in, and bump her hip with his own, before he says with a smile, “I’d say something… don’t worry.”

True to Gearing’s prediction, it’s not hard at all to find where this ‘Junction One’ is located. As it looks like the entire Freight Cars gang has shown up for the fight. And not a single one of them are being quiet about it.

The ring, if you want to call it that, isn’t in the typical round or oval shape one would associate with martial competitions. This one, in true Freight Cars fashion, is built on the tops of three, side by side, railway flat wagons. And, while Gearing and Sable are still walking up, a metal cage is brought over with a crane, and lowered into place over the fight ring. A few horns light up from the unicorns in the crowd as they help position it, as it’s a rather snug fit over the collection of flat wagons. But, with all of them working together, they get it into place rather easily and without incident.

Gearing walks by and taps on Orchid’s shoulder to get her attention. She looks back and tilts her head. He points a hoof off towards the cage and asks, “What are all those boxes attached to the sides of that cage for?”

Orchid grins widely and hops around as she replies, “Oh! You’re new, that’s right!”

Silver Shoes leans over and smirks as she interrupts, “We have a few fight ring styles. This one’s modeled after Hoofington Arena’s. The boxes have useful items in them-“

“But they’re locked and you have to earn keys from the audience by putting on a good show!” Orchid rapidly blurts out. Then she turns and sticks her tongue out at Silver Shoes for interrupting her.

Gearing smirks at their weird form of bantering with each other. He waves a hoof around at the massive crowd and asks, “So audience participation is big in this, huh?”

“It’s not necessary, but it certainly gives you an edge,” Silver Shoes comments with a shrug.

“But it makes it far more exciting, because you’ll never know what’s going to happen. A single item can change the whole fight. And it’s really something special if your key happens to do that!” Orchid chimes in as she sways side to side. Showing a level of excitement that Gearing wouldn’t typically associate with the more timid seeming green mare.

Orchid starts blindly waving a hoof at Gearing’s general direction, causing him to step back to avoid getting booped on the snoot, as she looks across the cage and says, “Ouu, Ouu! They’re about to start!”

Silver Shoes follows her glance and nods. “Better get a seat, wherever you can.”

Gearing trails his view over the entire area, trying to figure out where best to go. On the far side of the cage, Swift is handing over her various possessions to Handy. Saddle bags. Power Hoof. Clothes. Even her PipBuck. Which is removed using a gem encrusted key that a concrete gray unicorn stallion produces. Handy, wisely, quickly stores it on his person the moment it’s loose enough. His expression is hard to read from Gearing’s position. But it’s generally understandable that the default answer of ‘Not Happy’ would still apply.

The rest of the area has train cars of various types and sizes mixed in with scaffolding, walk ways, and shipping containers. Most of them, nearly all, have ponies seated and bopping along as they wait united in their enthusiasm.

One area that’s noticeably devoid of the typical cramped conditions is an open train car, where even the roof sits unoccupied. The only two individuals over there are Gauge and Glimmer, sitting and half leaning out of the open sided box car as they shamelessly cuddle. With Glimmer using a right foreleg to pull the smaller framed Gauge closer to her to the point that he’d be between her forehooves, if his left cheek wasn’t being smashed against her right cheek in a practically abrasive nuzzle.

Gearing walks over to some shipping containers, and hops up onto one of the smaller ones. Carefully choosing one that he knows should be structurally reinforced. Sable likewise hops up next to him. Before she sits down, she positions her minigun on her back, and uses a couple cables to securely hold it in place there, as she nuzzles in next to Gearing.

Nahlah lazily hangs over the edge of the large shipping crate behind and above them. She waves at Gearing as they take their spots and asks, “Why didn’t you guys get a seat closer? There’s plenty of room up there?”

Gearing tilts his head straight up to look at her. “I can see fine from up here. No reason to be in that crowded area. Besides, they don’t seem like they get much entertainment around here, if this gets them so excited.”

A panel opens in the side of the cage, on the side furthest from Gearing’s vantage point, and Goldfish, the orange mare from the lounge, leaps through. She runs around on the inside of the caged area, hopping around and waving to the other members of the Freight Cars as their cheering increases in volume.

As she’s still hopping around and soaking up the attention of her fellow gang members, the concrete gray unicorn stallion climbs up a set of scaffolding, and then leaps from it onto the top of the cage. Once on the top of the cage, he starts trotting around the top as his horn glows, and a moment later a cable comes out of his saddle bag connected to a microphone. Gearing realizes it’s not really a saddle bag, but one of the portable amplifiers that train personnel used every now and then when they needed to talk over loud crowds and get them where they needed to be. Namely off the station platforms and into trains.

The gray stallion brings the microphone to his mouth and grins as he slowly turns around and begins talking with a booming voice, “Hello, hello, hellooooo!” He waves with a hoof at the attendees as he spins in a circle. “How is everypony doing tonight!? Y’all excited?!” The crowd roars with cheers and hoof stomping applause.

He prances around the top as he says, “Now you can’t fool me. I know you all didn’t come out here just to see me.” There’s some snickers and out right laughter before he turns and waves dismissively at the most boisterous of the crowd. “Yeah, Timer’s not important enough for that… But...” He leans sideways and puts his hoof near his ear as he asks, “What could it possibly be… to get all of you degenerates out here at the same time?” He slowly looks around as they start going quiet.

It’s a bit that all of them know, but they enjoy it anyway.

His voice and volume grows into a rich bellow as he asks, “Could it be a fight?!” The crowd starts picking up in volume again, and he starts hopping around excitedly. “No, not just a fight, it’s the fight!” He spins around like a top on one of his hindhooves before coming back down and pointing down into the cage at Goldfish. “You see, our own Goldfish has gotten a hell of a fight on her hooves. She’s got her final challenger, and if she wins… well, she’s off to the arena in Hoofington!”

The crowd’s roar swells like an ocean wave and comes crashing down with an even louder, and obviously practiced, hoof stomping of applause synchronized throughout the crowd of Freight Cars members.

Timer puts up his forehooves, as he stands on his hind legs, then slowly brings them down at angles like he’s trying to pull down a stubborn rollup window shade. And the volume of the cheering drops down in response. He stands back up as he says, “And it’s not just any fight. Oh no. Our dear Goldfish has the singular honor of fighting… the one… the only… Irooooon Hooooof!” He spins and points a hoof down to the outside of the cage where Swift rocks side to side as she awaits her turn to head into the cage.

Surprising to everyone that accompanied Swift all the way here, the Freight Cars cheer almost as loudly for her as they did for Goldfish.

“There’s one more bit of surprise information I need to share before we get started though…” Timer says quickly before twirling the microphone around with his levitation field. After the area’s gone nearly silent, with no one wanting to miss what he’s about to say, and literally everyone turning to look at him, he finally finishes, “By the word of Big Daddy himself...” He points over towards a set of scaffolding where Conductor, Big Daddy, No Shoes, and a couple others look on from their comfortably elevated position. “The winner of this bout goes straight to the arena!”

The crowd roars again. And this time some of the voices can be heard. Mixed in with general uproar are different ponies cheering them on. Both of them. Shouting their names and congratulating them in advance.

Timer hops around and yells, “Will it be Goldfish?! Will it be Iron Hoof?! I don’t know! So how about I just shut up so we can get the real show started!” He points inside at Goldfish, “Eager to make her hoofprints in the Hoofington Arena, we have Goldfish already in the ring and awaiting her final obstacle keeping her from there.” He snaps the same hoof over and points outside of the cage at Swift. “At the gate, waiting for her time to shine, is the growing legend in the making, Iron Hoof Swift!” He beckons her inside, and the gate opens, allowing Swift to zip up and inside as Timer continues, “Now’s the time! Fight your heart out and may the best mare win!”

He looks over and nods up toward the scaffolding where the VIP section is located. Pickles leans over the side of the railing and smacks a large piece of rail track against an old train bell, creating a louder, deeper, sound than normally would have happened if they just pulled the cord.

Goldfish and Swift start circling and looking each other over as they keep their distance.

Several members of the crowd are already waving and trying to get the fighters’ attentions as they wave keys. But, neither of them pays the offers much attention.

Swift smirks and waves off to the side as she asks, “Why don’t you grab one of those keys and see what you get?”

Goldfish grins at her and shakes her head lightly. “Not a chance. If I gotta run for a weapon now, I might as well give it up… Why don’t you?”

Swift raises her left hoof and shakes it as she looks at Goldfish. “My hooves are my weapons.”

“I’m honestly surprised you’re not flying around the cage…” Goldfish comments as they circle in closer to each other.

“Well that wouldn’t be much of a challenge, would it? You can’t fly,” Swift replies

“Don’t let that stop you,” Goldfish replies. “It’s not cheating, it’s your body. You should be able to use it as you see fit.”

Swift shrugs as she grins at her, coming to a stop, and causing Goldfish to do the same. “I’d have to come down to the ground to pound you into it anyway… this just simplifies the process.”

Goldfish starts laughing and points at her. “I thought I was gonna like you. Nah. With an attitude like that?” She hops and practically trots sideways before spinning and turning, bucking in Swift’s direction as she screams, “I’m gonna fuckn’ love you!”

Swift’s eyes jump open partially, as the movements were so odd it almost caught her off guard. If she hadn’t known they were already going to fight, it would have. As it is she lowers herself on her forehoof, suspending herself on the single hoof for just a moment, before using it to spring back at an angle away from the strike coming at her.

Goldfish follows it up, without even pausing, and seemingly to curve in mid air at Swift, with a set of hoof strikes, one after another, from each of her hooves as she practically cartwheels after her. They catch eye contact in the middle of it and she laughs as she yells at Swift, “Damn, you’re fast!”

Swift keeps hopping and zipping around to dodge the strikes, a few times intercepting and directing them elsewhere as she yells back, “Funny, I was just thinking the same thing about you!” She leans back, letting a few of the strikes go over her before she springs her back legs up and tries to kick at Goldfish as she’s practically over her.

Goldfish spins like a cyclone, matching hoof for hoof as she keeps pushing herself away from the kicks until she’s turned into a practical tumbler. She rolls away from Swift, for only a moment. The next moment she’s planted her forehooves and bucked at Swift.

Swift, again, dodges, and gets a smirk on her face as she moves in to strike at Goldfish as she’s momentarily vulnerable and off balance from the missed buck.

But it wasn’t a miss, and Swift realizes the mistake a split second before she feels it.

Goldfish uses her torso like a spring, and brings both hindhooves back down, clopping the top of Swift’s head. Repeatedly. Causing her to stumble and try to wave them off. But they keep connecting with the top and back of her head until she intentionally drops down to the ground, and rolls sideways.

Goldfish spins around and starts hopping around again as she grins. “Come on, Iron Hoof… Where’s this challenge at? You can’t really be trying to let me win, can you? Fly! Grab a weapon! Something!”

Swift spits some blood off to the side and glares before she screams, “I got your challenge right here!” She stomps and scrapes her hooves against the ground before charging headlong straight towards Goldfish.

Goldfish actually frowns watching this, and shrugs before she starts spinning towards Swift. She comes back with another set of hard to follow hindhoof kicks.

But Goldfish isn’t the only one that knows a thing or two about feints and misdirection.

As Goldfish’s strikes are coming down on her, Swift redirects her pounce upwards, and over the legs coming down on her. She grabs Goldfish’s hind legs by her thighs using her forelegs, and spins around, slamming Goldfish down into the hard surface of the rings flooring. Goldfish doesn’t even have time to finish bouncing from the impact of being thrown into the floor before Swift is upon her.

For all of the dancing and spinning around at the start of the fight, it’s quickly evolved to an out right brawl. The two mares square off and throw blow after blow at each other. Some connect. Most don’t. But the ones that do hurt. And hurt bad.

While they are busy trying to knock the other one out, the crowd continues to cheer. They try to get their attention. But neither of them are paying anypony else any mind. Their entire world begins and ends inside of the cage at the moment. Some of the crowd gets so antsy that they throw the key they’d had into the ring. Hoping that they would use it. That it might give some exciting advantage.

But true to their opening boasting, neither one of them go for the keys. And they lay on the floor of the cage completely ignored by all but those that’d thrown them.

Goldfish manages a particularly good clop on the right side of Swift’s head, and was ready to capitalize. Except Swift uses the opportunity to plant a sequence of three different hoof blows into Goldfish’s side.

Goldfish buckles and favors the injured side, knowing full well she just felt, and heard, an unpleasant crack. She springs away with all of her strength, and hooves, but the landing is anything but graceful as the injured ribs give protest. She has just enough time to turn the other way, protecting her injured ribs, by giving up her uninjured side.

To a double applebuck kick from Swift that sends her flying against the cage and bouncing back towards the center a few feet from the impact.

Goldfish lets out a shrill cry, and rolls over as she holds her ribs with one foreleg and starts trying to pick herself up with her other hooves.

Swift looks her over as she’s approaching the struggling Goldfish. “I don’t think it’d be a good idea to keep going.” She spits off to the side, causing a red star splat on the ground from blood.

Goldfish groans and looks around as she says with a sigh, “I can’t just let it end like this… I’m so close.”

“Well I’m pretty sure I broke your ribs… and I’m not going to just let you win, that wouldn’t be fair, would it?”

“Fair?” Goldfish looks up at her and grins. “That’d fucking suck… and don’t you dare try that shit with me!”

Timer looks down from the top of the cage and calls in, without the microphone, “Goldfish…? What’s the verdict?”

Goldfish starts trying to push herself up with her hind legs, and having a hard time getting up. “I’m done, Timer…” She looks up at him as a few tears escape her eyes. “Looks like I’m not making it in anytime soon… she got me good.”

“You sure?” Timer asks as he brings the microphone to his mouth. Goldfish gives a light nod. Timer looks around and says into the microphone, amplifying his voice once more, “We have a winner here folks! With Goldfish no longer able to fight… Winner by submission is Irooooon Hoooooof!” With that, Pickles starts pulling the rope and making the bell ring out with its sweet chiming music to signal the end of the bout.

The crowd yells and screams in unintelligible nonsense as Swift helps Goldfish up to her hooves, and then uses her wing to steady her as the pair head towards the entry gate.

“You’re not trying to pity me, are ya?” Goldfish asks as she winces and walks slowly at Swift’s side.

“Nope. Fight’s over. I was having fun, not trying to kill ya,” Swift replies.

Goldfish chuckles then stops as she coughs and holds her side. “I was right. I like you.” She leans heavily into Swift for a moment, in a near side bump, as she says, “We should hang out.”

Swift grins. “Sounds fun.”

“No breaking my ribs this time though,” Goldfish says with a smirk.

Swift holds up a hoof and closes her eyes as she grins. “I promise to only break ribs during a fight.”

“Thanks, appreciate it…”

Once outside of the cage, they split off as they start getting tended to by various ponies.

“Well that was certainly something,” Nahlah calls down to Gearing from her perch above him. “Was that what you were expecting?”

Gearing shakes his head then shrugs. “Didn’t really know what to expect of it. They seemed damn right friendly. Even after beating the shit out of each other.”

“Of course. Rivalries are built on mutual respect.”

Gearing looks over at the voice, and finds Glimmer standing there with Gauge still in a practical headlock next to her.

Glimmer shrugs then looks back at the cage as she says, “Without that, there’s no difference between that and some alley fight. There’s plenty in the world to hate already.” She points a hoof off towards the cage. “This gives us something to appreciate… something to look forward to…” She shakes her head and looks at Gearing. “Even in defeat it’s something else. Something to be applauded and cheered.” She grins as she stares at Gearing. “It takes a lot of guts just to step hoof into the cage, after all. And that kind of courage should always be celebrated.”

Gearing looks back and forth between her and the cage before asking, “Why’s that?”

Glimmer shrugs. “Well it’s dangerous. Shit happens. Not really the goal, but it can.” She grins as she says softer, “So, win or lose, just making a challenge is amazing.”

“Amazing huh? Mmmkay?” Gauge asks as he looks up at her.

Glimmer looks down at him and grins. “Yeah… it is… mmkay?”

“Mmkay,” Gauge replies before leaning up and giving her a kiss square on the lips.

Glimmer actually giggles as she leans into it, then blinks and looks around as she feels Gauge suddenly pull away. He’s already a distance away as he yells back, “I’ll be right back, mmmkay?”

Glimmer waves at him and tilts her head with a grin as she says, “Mmmkay, sweetness.”

Nahlah calls down from her lazy perch, “Hey…” Glimmer looks up at her and scowls. But, Nahlah asks anyway, “Do you seriously like him, or was he just convenient?”

Glimmer frowns and asks, “What’s wrong with that? You saying I’m not good enough for him or something?”

“I’m pretty sure she’s simply surprised, and confused,” Gearing chimes in. When Glimmer looks over at him with confusion across her face, he adds, “Probably thinks your standards must be practically nonexistent to be interested in him.”

Glimmer steps back a bit, and looks between Nahlah and Gearing, before turning to look at Orchid and Silver Shoes. “I thought you were friends? That’s pretty damn harsh. What’s up with this?”

Nahlah shrugs. “I’ve known him longer than you. Of all of the things I’d use to describe him, ‘sweetness’ isn’t one of them.”

Glimmer sits down and folds her forelegs in front of her chest as she snorts. “Well he’s sweet to me!”

Nahlah grins at her, wide enough that her eyes close. “Thank you.”

Glimmer’s forelegs slowly droop as she looks around for some kind of sign of context. “For what?”

Nahlah tilts her head and smiles warmly. “For proving that there’s someone out there for everyone, regardless of who you are.”

Glimmer smirks and looks off to the side as she mutters, “Awww, shut up.”

Gearing looks around and asks, “Where’d he go anyway?”

Glimmer shrugs and points off to the side. “Said he’d be right back, figured he had to go do something.”

Gearing gets an itchy cold feeling between his shoulder blades prompting him to ask, “He’s not from here… what could he possibly have to do?” He looks around and asks, “What does he even know about here?”

“Besides how Ms. Bigacorn tastes?” Nahlah asks.

Glimmer’s eyes go wide and she flushes as she asks, “Wha- ?! What’d he tell you?! When?!”

Nahlah points at her and grins. “I know that look, sister. You’re not fooling anyone.”

Glimmer starts fidgeting with her forehooves as she tries to think of what to say and stares at the ground.

Gearing rolls his eyes then slaps a hoof over his face as he says with a grumble, “I have a really bad feeling about this…”

While this conversation is going on, and both Silver Shoes and Orchid are amusing themselves with the discovery of this new side of Glimmer, Gauge has zipped across Junction One. And, despite the crowds and noise, has managed to find his target.

Timer.

Gauge hops around the corner of a small shipping container, and finds the side of it has been cut away to make a small shelter with a desk. Pickles is sorting through a stack of papers when Gauge walks by, and barely pays him any attention as she’s busy organizing. But then, tragically, Gauge’s excitement gets the better of him.

And poor, poor Pickles.

As he’s passing her, and as she’s simply looking to see who’s walking by her, the gray buck’s dark gray tail ripples lightly. The only warning anyone receives before the noxious fumes slam into, and overwhelm, Pickles. Her levitation magic implodes as her eyes instantly water and she starts gagging. The papers she’d been carefully going over drop and flutter around haphazardly as she stumbles and jumps away. Pickles drops low to the ground and recoils as she puts her hooves over her muzzle, holding her conductor’s vest over her nose in a desperate attempt to filter out some breathable air.

She’s unable to say anything to him at the moment. But, in lieu of saying anything, she glares at him with murderous intent through tear blurred eyes.

“Timer!” Gauge calls out as he obliviously walks away from the suffering Pickles.

Timer spins around from talking to a few passing by Freight Cars members on the other side of the improvised structure. “Yeah? Oh, you’re one of Iron Hoof’s friends, aren’t you?”

Gauge nods as he trots up. “Yeah! Mmkay? If someone wants to fight in the cage, do they talk to you?”

Timer hops over nearly flush to him and grins. “You wanna fight?! Looking to make a challenge? Really!?”

Gauge nods and sits down as he waves a forehoof. “Yeah, I was thinking it’d be fun! Mmkay?”

Timer rubs his chin with a hoof as he mutters, “I did hear Big Daddy say something about wanting to see another fight… hmm…”

“Think we can schedule it for tomorrow? Or the day after?” Gauge asks.

Timer’s head whips up to him and his mouth opened a bit before he says, “Why? Big Daddy’s leaving in the morning, ya know?”

“Well,” Gauge starts. “It was a long trip… and I’m sore from… all of the…” He starts chuckling. It quickly turns into a fit of giggles as he gets a goofy grin on his face. “Exercise… it’s got me a bit tired right now, mmkay?”

Timer springs up as he yells, “Why didn’t you say so?! Is that all?!” He hops over to the desk and comes back floating a ceramic jug with a metal wire flip-top lever closure. “This’ll put the pep back in your step, buck!”

“What’s that? Mmkaay- Grggl blag!” Gauge asks before having the opened top shoved right into his mouth as Timer practically puts him into a headlock.

Gauge flops around bug-eyed for a few moments as the liquid goes down his throat and simultaneously soothes his pain, and catches his throat on fire. He hops up and starts running around in circles screaming before finding a rain runoff trough and dunking his entire head in the water. Even submerged, he continues to scream with his head under water.

Gearing walks up from the side, and his head quickly zips to Gauge’s shenanigans as he practically leaps into the water trough.

The little water that splashes by Gearing’s hooves kick his PipBuck’s radiation counter off a few ticks, as it lets him know the water is at least a little radioactive.

Gauge pops back up a few seconds later with a massive grin on his face. “Oh yeah! That’s the ticket! Let’s get to the fightn’ mmkay?!” He trots around happily, without a care in the world, and asks, “Where do I sign up? When can we get started?! Mmkay?!”

Pickles glares at him with her eyes still doing a decent impersonation of a Hoofington wet season rainfall. She glances around and zips a piece of paper up from the ground with her levitation magic in front of his face.

Gauge looks at it a moment then grins even wider. “Thanks! Mmkay!” He quickly grabs it and starts filling his name out on one of the charts.

Glimmer and Sable walk up as Gauge practically bounces in place.

Glimmer smiles while watching him, then it slowly dissolves as her eyes trail over to Timer. She watches Timer take a pull from his ceramic bottle, hop in the air with a hind hoof double kick, and replaces the lid. She walks over towards him and asks in a low, grumbling, voice, “Timer… did you give him some of that Barnburner cocktail crap?”

Timer looks over at her and grins as he waves it away. “Awww it’s fine, it’s fine. He just needed a little pick me up before his bout!”

Glimmer’s eyes go wide and she looks back and forth. “Bout? What bout?”

Timer points at Gauge and starts trotting in place excitedly. “We’re having a double header tonight! He’s signed up to throw his hat in the ring and be next up!” Not even the fortifying cocktail can save him from the withering glare Glimmer gives him. “I-It’s gonna be fine. Okay? No reason to worry.”

“Except you shoving that laced booze down his throat, I know how you are…” Glimmer continues with a practical growl.

Timer gives her a sheepish grin and waves it off before taking the sheet of paper that Gauge waves enthusiastically in front of his face. He directs his eyes to it as he takes it in his levitation field, and looks at it, and then at him, and his eyes bug out for a moment as he asks, “Are you sure about that?”

Gauge nods rapidly. “Oh yeah. I’m going to take that pot home. Just you watch. Mmkay?” He hops around and starts shadowboxing as he imagines his opponent has already stepped out of the door nearby.

Timer runs off quickly as he says, “Head over to Junction Three. It’s already set up and we can get this going quicker!”

Orchid and Silver Shoes come up from behind and start leading the way to Junction Three, with Nahlah close behind, as Gauge jumps around and shadowboxes nearly the entire way. As they start pulling away Glimmer says quietly, “I can’t believe he’s doing this just to try and impress me…”

Gearing turns to look at her with his good eye as he asks, “First time someone’s tried something like that?”

Glimmer shakes her head and chuckles. “Folks want to fight in the ring all the time. For their own reasons. Mainly just for the thrill of it. He’s obviously doing it only because he thinks I’ll like him more… He didn’t show any interest in it before…” She scrunches her shoulders to her head and partially flushes. “It’s… flattering… really.” She waves with a hoof and says with a giggle, “But if he wanted to get on my good side, I’d rather he just gave me another ride on the sweetness train.”

Gearing groans and rolls his eye as he arcs his head until he’s looking off in the other direction and shaking his head.

“If that is really your desire, then why don’t you tell Subject Gauge your preferences?” Sable asks from behind them.

Glimmer looks over her shoulder at Sable and smirks. “I don’t think that’d work as well as you think it would…”

Sable tilts her head. “Why not? You are already involved, are you not? Whenever I desire my darling Gearing’s affections, I just say so. And he always reciprocates, to some degree. Observe.” She zips out a cable and starts slithering it around on Gearing’s flank, squeezing on it and ending with a light pat over the cloak as they are walking.

Instantly a familiar whistling sound escapes Gearing’s hood before he whips his head around to look at her with his muzzle hanging open. “S-Sable! Come on, do you mind?!”

“Not at all, my love.” She grins at him and gives his flank another few squeezes for emphasis.

Glimmer’s face flushes as she watches the two and stammers, “I-I don’t think that’d be a good idea! I don’t think he’d like that.”

Sable looks over at her and tilts her head again. “Why not?”

Glimmer points a hoof at Gearing and comments, “Well… you’re… you’re embarrassing him… obviously…?”

Sable grins at her and gives Gearing a few more squeezes. “That may be true. But I know my darling Gearing.” She looks at Gearing’s cloaked form and grins wider. “If he truly did not like it, and did not want me to continue… he’d say so. And I would comply. He knows this.” She looks over at Glimmer and partially closes her eyes. “Therefore he must actually enjoy my random affections. Since he’s made no attempt to permanently put an end to it.”

Glimmer looks back and forth, and can’t help but grin as Gearing’s head dips down lower. Yet the whistling sound coming from his cloaked head becomes much louder and more pronounced.

Sable gives his flank a light pat again before retracting her cables. “I know, my love, tonight. I can wait.”

They gather up by the entrance to the new domed structure with Silver Shoes, Orchid, Nahlah, and Gauge.

The latter of which is still hopping around excitedly.

Gearing walks up to Gauge and asks with a sigh, “You sure you wanna do this? I don’t think it’s a smart idea.”

Gauge nods as he looks around. “Yeah, I’m feeling great. There’s no stopping me now! Why? You wanna go? Wanna go now?” He sits back and starts shadowboxing in front of himself in Gearing’s general direction.

Glimmer instantly gets a pronounced frown on her face as she watches the display.

No Shoes and a couple other Freight Cars members start walking by the cage as Timer walks up to join them all. No Shoes eyeballs the group, and his grin explodes as Timer looks over Gauge’s group. “Great! Get ready, the fight will be starting soon!”

No Shoes continues walking by as he chuckles. “This should be a real good show. Can’t wait!”

Timer turns towards Gauge and points over to the door. “Get ready to go in, you’ll be going inside first this bout.”

Gauge grins and hops around a bit more, before practically jumping over to the entry gate to the metal mesh domed structure.

Timer yells at him the moment he starts walking away. “Hey! You can’t take anything in with you!” He points at Gauge’s saddle bag.

Gearing takes it from him and slings it over his own shoulders. “Don’t worry. He’s an idiot, not a cheater. Honest mistake.” Gearing slips out his PipBuck master key and removes Gauge’s PipBuck. “I’ll give it back later. Don’t want anyone else getting their hooves on it.”

Timer scowls at Gauge and then rolls his eyes. “Obviously to the first… well... good luck, you’re going to need it!” He quickly runs away, trying to get distance between him and the near molten stare Glimmer is shooting him with.

Gearing and the others from the group head over to the side, and up to a nearby elevated set of seats on top of a shipping container. As he’s looking over this new fight arena, he asks, “What the hell’s with this set up?”

Silver Shoes leans back from her seat, which is a bit lower and in front of him. “This one’s Fillydelphia style. Modeled after the slave pit fights. It’s a nasty piece of work and takes a while to set up. But isn’t used all that often for various, but obvious reasons.”

Gearing points up near the roof of the dome. “And what’s in those?”

Silver Shoes shrugs as she shakes her head. “Hazardous waste, radioactive material, general hazards.” She turns back to Gearing and frowns. “Like I said, nasty piece of work.”

Gearing looks it over and raises an eyebrow. “Then why the hell would you have it in here?”

Orchid waves it away with a hoof. “It’s mostly just for show. Or adding a bit more excitement. Most of that doesn’t really ever get used. Not much more than dangerous decorations if we’re being honest.”

“Accidents do happen…” Glimmer murmurs as she looks over the fight arena.

Gearing watches from his spot as Gauge walks into the arena from the far side. All around him are various hanging containers and this is far different from the fight that Swift had had. It took a bit more time to set up, and the containers all seem to have a variety of gunk in them. From the light glow from a couple of them, at least a few of them are radioactive. Highly. The entire floor area looks like it came out of an abandoned factory with debris and rubble everywhere. Why anyone would want to choose to fight there, for sport no less, is beyond Gearing’s comprehension.

Gauge stays by the one side pacing back and forth as he waits for his competition to enter from their side of the arena. He randomly shadowboxes and tries to warm up for the fight ahead. All with the same stupid grin on his face he’s had for the last few minutes.

Gauge looks over at the crowd around him, and starts hopping around and waving his hooves in the air as he feels excited, and he wants to get them as pumped as he feels. It doesn’t seem to really work at first, but then the crowd starts screaming in a large uproar that actually catches him off guard. He hops around looking outside the arena with a grin on his face as he absorbs the attention. He absorbs their admiration. He soaks up their love.

At least until he realizes they aren’t looking at him, but through him to the other side of the arena.

A large dark gray earth pony stallion with a cropped black mane walks in and snorts as he looks at Gauge. The grin he’d had across his muzzle melts off his face as he sees his competition. He looks around quickly, and his eyes settle on Gearing. Up in the stands. He looks around and then over to one of the ponies that seems to be helping run the place as he points a hoof at Gauge. “You’ve gotta be kidding me… This punk challenged me? That’s not who I’m supposed to fight, is it?” No Shoes practically begs.

The pony with a clipboard looks at it, shrugs, and then nods a weak confirmation.

No Shoes rolls his eyes as he starts lumbering across the field. “I hope I can at least break a sweat on this little shit before I break him.” He seems entirely disgusted with the turn of events and, the moment the train engine bell rings, he charges across the field at Gauge to try and work out some of his own frustrations.

Timer, notably, decided to forego any introductions and just let the action play out as he hopes it’ll get it over quicker.

Gauge, despite all logic, actually charges straight at the larger earth pony, catching both No Shoes and Gearing off guard by the brazen act. He bounds and times his jump to get a good kick off on his swing to clock the black maned buck in the face with a forehoof. But the slick floor slides with him and causes his back legs to slide back and kick backwards, making him propel forward faster than upwards, and he winds up sailing straight under No Shoes as he comes down with both forehooves to smash Gauge. As he’s skidding to a halt behind No Shoes, Gauge doesn’t even get time to get all the way to his hooves, and off the ground, before the much more experienced No Shoes uses the same momentum from his strike to lean forward into a powerful buck, and follows through with it by hitting Gauge hard enough to send him flying.

Gauge instantly starts regretting his life choices as he starts picking himself up off the ground. Especially with the effects of Timer’s Barnburner cocktail seeming to either wear off or reach the limits of what it can override. “Ouuuhhh that hurt, mmkay.” He glances down and sees blood dripping from his abdomen and then looks up to find the culprit attached to the fence with some chains. Some kind of sharp farm tool that’s also dripping with his blood where he’d collided with it before bouncing back and falling to the ground.

He looks over in time to see a large metal drum get kicked at him, and he scrambles sideways to get away from it. He catches his footing enough to start running sideways and scrambles up the various debris and fencing up towards the hanging barrels. And actually makes it up to their level.

He hops from barrel to barrel, trying to get away from the large earth pony and figure out what the hell he’s doing here and why this seemed like such a good idea not too long ago. Through pure stupidity and luck, he not only manages to not fall into any of the suspended containers himself, but actually sends several of them crashing down towards No Shoes.

The dark gray stallion looks up and his eyes go to their fullest as his legs sprawl out in shock. It’s his turn to run for his life, and he ends up playing keep away, with his own body, from the various containers that come crashing down around him. Acids. Toxic waste. Radioactive material. It all cascades around him like a relentless bombing run. He’s quickly left in a panic to get away from it while trying to figure out a way to get at the little bastard making a mockery of him from above.

Gauge starts grinning again as he sees the panic he’s causing the larger stallion below. What’s more, the ground itself is becoming a major problem for No Shoes to even get around on. As the various splashing goop is a burning mess that nopony wants anywhere near them, let alone actually touching them.

Gauge climbs up near the fence area of the roof, actually looking for a way out, as he realizes maybe this really isn’t for him.

A smaller earth pony buck hops over to the fence and hands him a bottle of liquor with a rag in the top already burning as he grins at Gauge. “Here ya go, boiyo! Keep up the show you’re doing great!”

Gauge, not knowing what else to do and wanting to be polite, thanks the random pony and takes the flaming bottle. He doesn’t see anyway out from up here, and quickly loses his footing on the container he’s standing on as it starts tilting precariously. He slips and falls down, smacking off the claws holding it in place and grabbing hold of the one side to keep from falling down the rest of the way out of pure reflex.

A poor choice to say the least.

Gauge’s head is turned sideways as he falls and grabs ahold of the container, momentarily thankful that he’d avoided the full fall. He lets out a gurgle and coughs as he feels a sharp pain in his abdomen as his wound splats against the metal side. And around where the automated transport hooks stick out. But that relief, as mild as it was, dissolves as the container tilts sideways with his added weight, and splashes the liquid it contains on the side of his chest and forelegs before coming loose from its hook. He falls away, a moment before the container comes loose and falls as well.

The crowd watches on in shock as the fall seems to take place in slow motion. Especially the way the bloody grayish ropey material quickly unravels from his abdomen like some magic rope trick. It becomes painfully obvious, before he even hits the ground, that one of the hooks used to move and transport the containers had punctured his abdominal wall. And currently is in the process of using gravity to eviscerate him.

Gauge screams the whole way down, and the tone only pauses long enough for the impact with the ground to knock the air out of his lungs. But, he starts screaming even louder as the toxic sludge he lands in starts eating away at his flesh. However, that realization is only part of the reason why the pitch of his scream magnifies into a high pitch shrill wail. For as he fell, he still held the flaming Molotov. The glass bottle of liquid smashes into the side of his own skull, on impact with the ground, and while he was still holding it with a fetlock, releasing its contents.

At the moment of impact, the part of his body that touched the ground instantly began getting eaten away by the chemicals he basted himself in. Quite literally the rest of him gets enveloped in a fireball. A flame that begins cooking the rest of him as he starts flailing around like a living melting creature made of magma.

Even No Shoes has stopped his rampaging to look over in complete shock at the turn of events. The fire, being made of high grain alcohol, doesn’t last long. The dark gray earth pony walks over to look at Gauge with a combined expression of shock, disgust, and an ever so small amount of sympathy.

No Shoes avoids stepping in any of the puddles as he comes up behind Gauge to try and grab his hind leg. He intends to pull him out of the toxic mess, and at least let his final moments be as quick as possible. But most of Gauge is covered in things No Shoes wouldn’t touch even if he were paid. As he’s reaching for the stump that’s left of Gauge’s tail, with the rest of it having been singed off in the blast, Gauge bids farewell to Equestria with one final symbolic act.

By letting out one long, rancid burst of gas the likes of which he’s never done before, as his muscles loosen and his breathing stops.

Directly into the face of No Shoes. Point blank.

The earth pony stumbles backwards and gags as his eyes tear up and his tongue hangs out of his mouth. He shakes his head repeatedly then runs away and starts huffing toxic fumes in the corner to try and get the smell, and taste, out of his mouth. “Fuck you! I was just trying to make it easy on you!”

Nahlah leans over towards Gearing and points a paw at Gauge. “See… that’s what I’m talking about. Why’s he got to fart in everyone’s face?”

Gearing sits there staring at the scene in complete shock. Not so much from watching a friend die. He barely knew the guy and didn’t really like him. In fact, he was actively hoping he would get himself killed. But the way he died? Why the hell did he sign up for this? Even worse, why didn’t he just tap out instead of trying to use the place like a damn jungle gym? It’s mind boggling. His PipBuck chimes and he looks at it before looking over at Swift’s location, in the VIP box, and exchanging eye contact as she points both forehooves into the arena.

[Did you just SEE that?!]

[Yeah… that had to suck.]

[Yeah… he owed me 50 caps btw, in case there’s any in his saddlebag.]

Gearing can’t help but snicker before replying. [Dibs on the rest.]

[I wouldn’t want that smelly shit anyway.]

Morbid jokes got along well in the military. It’s one of the ways you’d cope with things. When you didn’t know who was not going to make it home that night. When that someone might be you. When you got tired of dragging body bags full of parts of ponies that used to be your friends, or at least someone you could tolerate and have enough trust in them to cover your back and provide support. It wasn’t funny. It was a coping mechanism.

“Honey, I’m sorry,” Nahlah’s voice draws Gearing’s attention.

He looks sideways, and sees Nahlah with her paw over Glimmer’s shoulder. Glimmer’s expression is hard to read. He can’t tell if she’s angry, upset, indifferent, or simply has just resumed her typical ‘resting bitch face’ that Orchid swears she has. But her body language is a bit more telling. Every muscle is tensed as she stares down into the arena. Not even the declaration of No Shoes as the winner, nor the roar of cheering that springs up when it’s announced that he’s going on to the Hoofington Arena, draws her focus away from Gauge’s burnt and disemboweled form in the middle of the arena.

“Are you going to be okay?” Nahlah asks as she gently rubs the practical granite that makes up the muscle mass of Glimmer’s shoulders and back.

Glimmer gets up and starts walking away as she says, “Fucking stupid…” before jumping down and disappearing into the crowd below.

Orchid looks up at Sable, Gearing, and Nahlah, and bounces her eyes around between them before she says meekly, “That… that’s never happened before. Not like that anyway.”

Gearing gets up and hops down as he shakes his head. “Let’s go link up with Swift and get our schedule sorted…”

Silver Shoes watches Gearing walking away from under her hat before she turns to Sable. “Is this going to cause a problem?”

Sable shrugs and shakes her head. “They were not what anyone would consider ‘good friends’. Dying in a fight is one thing. It’s sad… It happens… Dying for entertainment though?” She shakes her head. “I believe he is conflicted by the wastefulness of it all.”

Silver Shoes looks up at her. “But is this going to be a problem?” Silver Shoes repeats as she stares at Sable.

Sable waves it off and smiles. “No...” She shakes her head. “Of course not.” She looks in Gearing’s general direction. “I do not see why.” She tilts her head. “I don’t think… so… ?” She turns her head to look at Silver Shoes and Orchid.

They stare at each other for a few moments in silence.

Silver Shoes and Sable say, in unison, “I better go make sure.” Before they turn and run off after him, leaving Nahlah and Orchid sitting there in confusion.

Footnote: Diagnostic in progress. . . please stand by. . .

Massive Damage Registered. . . Hydra Matrix on Standby

Resuming reboot procedure. . . please stand by . . .

This chapter has several decisions, and repercussions. Some more immediate than others. And it features the first explicit loss of one of the original group.