While Swift and Priest walk down the center of the street on the way to Chapel’s namesake, Swift keeps a keen eye on their surroundings as they continue talking quietly into the night.

“… well, if that’s the case, he’d be happy to know that she made it out of Brimstone’s Fall and is doing far better now. She was just here, you’re group only missed her by a matter of hours,” Priest comments before coming to a halt and looking back over his shoulder from where they’d come. “Do you believe telling him that would help pull him out of it?”

Swift stops and slowly shakes her head. “I don’t know. But somehow I doubt it.” She lets out a gushing sigh and looks back at the building where they currently have Gearing stashed at. “I don’t think it’d be a good idea to tell him right now. Honestly, the last thing we need is for him to go stampeding off to try to help in whatever state this is that he’s fallen into.” She shakes her head. “It’d do more harm than good for sure.”

Priest raises an eyebrow without even looking at her, and keeping his focus off towards where he knows the gold and green traumatized buck is currently cowering. “Do you have some plan for bringing him out of it?”

“Well Handy’s working on Gearing’s wings at the moment.” She shivers and flutters her own wings in painful solidarity as she continues, “I can’t believe he’s just laying there and letting Handy break his wings over and over… But, apparently that’s what needs to happen to get his wings to heal right. That’s what they had to do before. Break off the fused points and let the other parts heal back together correctly.” She looks over at Priest and adds, “And Gearing seems to be lost in his own thoughts trying to work through things on his own. All of that mumbling and muttering is confusing. But Handy seems to get at least some of it… so…” Swift throws her forehooves up in the air at her sides in a lackadaisical shrug. “Wait until morning and see if he’s any better, I guess?”

“And if time isn’t enough?” Priest asks as he swings his focus back around to look at her.

Swift instantly avoids eye contact with him and sits back on her haunches as she starts slowly tapping her forehooves together. “I have a couple ideas… yes…” She gives him a sheepish grin as she says quietly, “On a related topic: if a gang of raiders or anything attacks in the night, tell Gearing as quickly as you can. That might just be enough to snap him out of it by itself.”

Priest looks her over then asks with only a hint of it being an actual question, and far more understanding in his calm voice, “He has a protective personality, I take it?”

Swift nods and looks off to the side. “Especially when it comes to foals, or youth in general, yeah.” She shakes her head. “He doesn’t even have any of his own, but seems to have a fierce paternal protective instinct that’d make an Ursa proud anyway.”

He frowns and slowly shakes his head. “I would prefer if his recovery didn’t involve bloodshed and the loss of life… but I’ll keep that in mind.” He nods off towards the side as he adds, “Make sure to get some sleep yourself. Your care for your friend is admirable, but you two are going to need rest as well.” He gives her the faintest smile as he says, “You won’t be able to help take care of others, if you’re too tired to even take care of yourself.”

Swift nods and turns to go back towards where Handy is working on Gearing. “Will do. Thanks for letting us stay the night, Priest.”

Priest gives a slight nod before turning and heading towards the chapel. “It’s the least I could do given your friend’s state. Perhaps Luna will guide him back to us during the night. I’ll check in with you in the morning, sleep well.”

The next morning shines as bright as any other Hoofington sunrise. That is to say it’s as dreary as can be with clouds that threaten to rain at any second. And just as disappointing as the weather is what Swift discovers after waking up and checking on the only non organic member of her current entourage.

Gearing apparently hasn’t moved at all since Handy called it a night and went to bed with her the night before.

The building that Gearing is currently performing a statue impersonation in is one where the residents of Chapel don’t actually sleep in. Not regularly anyway it seems. The space has a variety of items, and as Swift walks in, a couple of the young residents of Chapel go about their business of disassembling some items for their components and separating them out into other boxes for resale at Charity’s. From Swift’s perspective it’s as close to a workshop that they have here, with random fasteners and bits of metal or plastic scattered across the floor as the youths noisily go about ripping apart one item or another.

But Gearing pays them no mind. All he seems to be able to do is sit on top of a metal steam chest, curled up on top of it with all four of his hooves digging into the side of it tightly, as he stares off into space at a wall directly across from him. He’s bundled back up with his cloak, but not nearly as tightly as he was originally. Despite his wings being mostly fixed and actually properly folding at his sides again. It took a minor miracle to get him off that supply shipment and into this room, but Swift can’t help but wishing for it to be okay to ask for another one, and for him to snap out of it finally.

But, no dice.

Her waving her hoof in front of his face produces nothing. Not even flapping her wings and forelegs millimeters from his face, strong enough to make the cowl blow off his brow from the breeze they create, causes him to so much as blink.

Feeling utterly defeated and frustrated she heads back out into the street and starts slowly walking towards the Post Office. She slowly takes in the view of Chapel during the morning light, and finds that her gaze is brought up to the church once more. She looks up at the stained glass picture of Luna, with her warm confident smile, and can’t help but smiling herself in return. And while it draws her focus a feeling spreads over her that causes her to be pulled to it as she changes direction and starts walking towards the image. She’s not sure why she is drawn towards it so strongly, although, as she apparently has the princess’s attention, she can’t help but muttering, “Too much even for you to do in one night, huh?”

But Luna simply smiles back without any comment.

Swift’s eyes lose focus as she looks at the stained glass picture, and her eyes slowly stop seeing Luna, and instead start seeing the various blurs of color. The stained glass work as a whole draws her mind’s eye and a moment later she remembers the short conversation she had with Gearing at this very spot the night before.

‘Coming in, or deciding if you want to make one too?’

Gearing had been so focused on the picture that she couldn’t help but finding it so endearing. He’s a private individual, she knows that much. So to see him so openly reacting to the image of Luna was a refreshing tidbit of information for her. And, apparently, it embarrassed him as he quickly turned around and muttered his reply.

‘No, to either… I’ll be out here…’

A smile slowly crosses Swift’s lips as she tilts her head and stares at the stained glass icon. “Oh… you’re goooood…”

She abruptly turns around and smiles widely as the various ideas swim around in her head, and she mentally thanks Luna for the insight: Gearing likes making and fixing things. He likes being, or at least feeling, useful.

Especially when foals are concerned.

Stable 68 and this entire journey is a pretty clear indicator to her for the lengths he’s willing to go for kids. Both figuratively and literally. Even kids that aren’t even his.

She hops into the air and quickly starts flying around. It doesn’t take her long to spot her target, and she lands next to the gray colt as he’s picking up a box from the pile that Gearing had been lording over the night before.

“Hey!”

The colt jumps up in the air, sending the box that was on his back soaring, as he squeals in surprise. He flips around and glares at her as he crouches down. “What ya want I ain’t done noth’n and I ain’t got noth’n!”

Swift catches the box in mid air, and plops it back on the ground, right side up, in front of the gray colt as she grins at him. “I gotta favor to ask.”

The colt eyeballs her suspiciously before he asks, “What kinda favor?”

She zips over next to him, warps a foreleg around his shoulder, and quickly starts chattering quietly in his ear.

The gray colt tenses up for a moment, then goes through a roller coaster of emotions as he isn’t entirely okay with randomly being grabbed by some strange mare. But, just as quickly, his facial features warp into various stages of confusion and curiosity as she mutters into his ear. After she’s apparently done breathing down his neck she pulls back with a grin and asks, “Well?”

He rubs the side of his neck with a hoof as he thinks it over for a few moments before he shrugs. “Uh… yeah… I’m sure they would…” He looks at her and tilts his head as he asks with blatant suspicion oozing from his voice, “Wwwwhy though? That’s all kiiiiinds of weird?”

“Well, he’s weird, and I think it’ll help.”

The gray colt shrugs then points off towards the post office before he says flatly, “You’re still gonna have to talk to Charity if ya wanna pull it off.”

Swift nods and quickly trots off towards the Post Office as she says, “I was heading there next. Go get any of your friends that’d be willing to chip in and I’ll meet you out at Charity’s.”

As Swift walks into the Post Office, the gray colt trots in behind her and sets the box down that he’d grabbed by the counter before walking off and grabbing a few items off the ground as he talks to the other youth that were busy sorting through various salvage.

Charity looks over at Swift as she’s walking up to the counter and leans sideways on it with a foreleg as she asks, “You here to let me know you and your friend are leaving to go take care of our agreement?”

Swift gives her a warm smile before sheepishly rubbing her neck. “Yeah, about that…”

“He still hogging up my floor space?” Charity asks as she narrows her eyes at Swift.

“Sorta… but… I’m working on getting him out of there… speaking of which, can I get some Sparkle Cola? And whatever sugary snacks you have?”

“They for him?”

Swift nods. “Hopefully it’ll be enough to get him-”

“A hundred caps each!” Charity snaps as she slams both forehooves onto the counter.

Swift’s eyes go wide as she asks, “Each?! Why?!”

“You said they’re for him. If he’s going to be a rude jerk than he can pay the Rude Tax! And the Annoying Charity Tax! And if he doesn’t hurry up and get out of there I’ll start charging him by the square foot for space he’s taking up and money he’s costing me!” Charity quips as she screws up her face in pure annoyance.

Swift looks around the store in pure shock, as if she’d just had a bucket of cold water dumped on her, but then a mischievous smile crosses her lips before she says, “Oh, they aren’t for him to eat.”

Charity narrows her eyes before she asks, “What?”

Swift points back towards the door and starts giggling. “I’m going to load up a bunch of kids with sugar, and send them after him. Weaponize that foalish energy into waking his ass up and get him moving.”

Charity unwraps a sucker as she stares at Swift. She pops it into her mouth before she asks, “So your plan is to annoy him into leaving?” Swift nods and grins even wider. “And who are you going to get to do this?” Swift points over to the gray colt, who’s actually stopped to pay attention to the conversation. Charity looks at him for a moment before nodding towards Swift. “She serious? You know anything about it?”

He nods. “Yeah, I think it’s bonkers, but,” he shrugs, “If she’s goin’ to buy me a buncha sweets in advance, I’m not gonna complain.”

Charity looks over at Swift and asks, “You gonna pay in advance, or expect me to add to your tab?”

Swift pulls out a bag and jingles the caps inside a bit with a wing. “I’ll pay in advance. Don’t worry.”

Charity grins as she says, “Well, in that care… I’ll charge the normal rate…Just to get him out of here.” She points at the gray colt. “But they take it… it’s for them not for that rude jerk, okay?”

Swift nods and starts forking over caps as the other kids run over and start taking items that Charity sets on the counter. After the group of youths skitter off, a group that had actually grown in size while Swift was still in the act of trying to pay, Charity takes the substantial amount of caps and puts them in a container behind the counter. As she’s peeking over the counter at Swift she asks, “Why would you pay so much to try and get him to leave?” She directs her muzzle back down as she mutters bitterly, “Jerk like him ain’t worth it.”

Swift leans over the counter as she says, “He’s not a bad buck, honestly.”

Charity’s head jumps up and glares at her before she says, “I should charge you a stupid tax from now on…”

Swift smirks and says, “He’s really not. I don’t know what that yesterday was about.” She grins and tilts her head as she asks, “Maybe he just needed a nap?” To the bewildered look Charity gives her Swift giggles and adds, “Hey, it was practically a foalish tantrum he threw… I’ve got three, I know… There’s just no logic to it sometimes…”

Charity rolls her eyes and goes back to sorting her newly acquired caps. “He’s too big to be acting like a foal.”

“You’re not wrong… Thanks Charity, I’ll go see about getting him moving again,” Swift comments with a wave of her wings before heading back out the door.

“Yeah, well, if it doesn’t work I am charging you a stupid tax! And don’t keep my help busy all day, they got work to do around here, ya know!” Charity yells as Swift is leaving.

Swift quickly meets up with the group of small ponies as they are already divvying up the various goodies and starting to snack. The gray colt looks up at her with his mouth full of a carrot filled buck cake before he asks, “Ought mow?”

Swift looks around and grins as she watches the kids excitedly munching on the various snacks she’d purchased. She squeezes past and peeks in through the door, only to sigh as she sees Gearing is still sitting perched on top of the metal crate. And, obviously, hasn’t moved a millimeter since she’d last checked.

Swift looks around at the kids, then points in at Gearing, “Okay, so… just do like I’d mentioned before… Talk, ask questions, be loud, whatever…”

A younger filly sipping on a Sparkle Cola asks, “What if he gets all mad though?”

Swift smiles at her and shrugs. “That’s fine. I’ll deal with him. I just need him to wake up first.”

The gray colt points at Swift as he looks at the little filly. “See… so go ahead!”

Swift sits down next to the door as she waves. “I’ll just sit right here and keep an eye on things.”

The kids clamor into the building, drawing stares from the pair of little ponies that were already in there, as the group spreads out and starts bouncing around. The other two ponies stop work, and join in on the fun, and feasting, as the kids spontaneously play in the makeshift workshop. It doesn’t take long before the sugar to start kicking around and the kids to all start bounding and bouncing around. The building starts turning into a rather loud obnoxious party as the kids run around enjoying the sugar high.

But despite their loud sugar induced obnoxious behavior, Gearing doesn’t move.

The gray colt walks up to Gearing as he’s drinking from a Sparkle Cola, and then asks with a chittering voice, “Hiya, so, like. Want some?” Gearing keeps staring off into space and the practical foal starts slowly rocking the bottle back and forth in front of his eyes, at increasing speed. But, still nothing. “No? Who doesn’t like Sparkle Cola?! You’re like.... Weird! Why are you so weird? Here, have some!” He tilts the bottle towards Gearing, but, still, nothing.

The gray colt slowly turns his head towards the front door and his ears flop down as he sees Swift has the same downtrodden expression across her face that he does. Because it just doesn’t seem to be working.

“Hey! Hey mister!” a filly’s voice squeals from behind Gearing. They all look on, and several stop frolicking as their eyes go wide, as the small filly from behind him climbs up next to Gearing, then starts hoping and bouncing around on Gearing’s back, in short, but high, bounds as she makes her way up to his head. She jumps onto his head and starts pouncing up and down as she giddily squeals, “Hey, hey mister!” She flops down onto his head, between his ears, and sprawls out over his head so she can look at him eye to eye from inches away. “Hey, shiny butt! Fix my dolly!”

The others look on in horror as the little filly uses Gearing’s head as a perch and stares at him eye to eye, upside down, and asks with a high pitch filly squeal that seems to echo off Gearing’s face, “Hellooooo, anypony home shiny butt?”

Swift slaps a hoof over her eyes as she groans and realizes that, yes, she really did just ask them to subject Gearing to this kind of treatment. But can’t think of anyway of rephrasing it without causing any further problems.

“Wh-what Plum Pie?” Gearing’s voice comes out weakly.

Everyone goes from staring at the audacious little filly laying across Gearing’s head, to his mouth as they try to figure out if that was really him that broke through the noise they were all creating.

“I’m not a plum pie!” the little filly says with a scowl as she reaches down and grabs Gearing by the muzzle. “Fix my dolly, shiny butt!”

Gearing slowly blinks a couple times, increasing in speed with each cycle, before he actually focuses in his eyes at the filly that has her own eyes inches away from his. “What? Dolly?”

The little filly flicks a purple stuffed unicorn that she’d had held with her tail, catches it with her forehoof, and holds it up as she keeps hard eye contact with Gearing. “You fixed his wagon, you can fix my dolly, right?”

Gearing’s eye slowly drifts over to the little purple plushie before he asks, “Wh- what’s wrong with it?”

The little filly waves it around violently, causing one of the legs to eerily flop around before she says, “It’s broken. See.” She drops it on the ground in front of him a short distance from the box before she says, “You can fix it, right?”

Gearing slowly slides off of the box, putting one hoof tentatively onto the floor of the workshop in the process. He pushes on the floor a bit, testing the hardwood slates, before applying more and more of his weight. With one slow hoof step at a time he slides out from under his cloak, and off of the crate, as he steps closer to the treasured toy of the filly riding on his head. “L- let me see…”

After climbing off of the box, and out of the cloak, he curls up tightly into himself on the floor with his legs, and starts slowly looking the plushie over by manipulating it with a wing.

While he’s still examining it with a few careful rotations the little filly asks, “You fix ‘er?”

“That’s me,” he replies quietly.

The filly giggles and rocks side to side before pointing a hoof at the doll. “Well? What take so long?”

Gearing pulls out a metal Mint-al container, and opens it up. He carefully pours the contents out onto the floor, river water and all, and then fishes out a needle and thread from the inside of the puddle.

The other kids crowd around and chatter loudly as they watch Gearing get to work repairing the loose seams and stitching of the small plushie doll. The gray colt looks over at the door in time to see Swift practically vibrating with excitement with her hooves on her own cheeks. After the pair locks eyes she nods rapidly and shoos the colt towards Gearing without saying anything. After he goes over to join in on the rather loud conversations taking place all around Gearing, Swift leaves and does a quick victory lap around Chapel as she squeals with delight at her own cleverness.

But, giving credit where credit’s due in her opinion, she stops by the chapel and pays her respects to the one who gave her the idea as Gearing slowly starts climbing back out of his mental shell.

Going under the assumption that Gearing would seek them out when he was ready, Swift and Handy kept themselves busy with their own affairs and plans. But when an older colt that they don’t quite remember seeing before zips near them, and starts rummaging in a box near them they can’t but hear him muttering, “What else is broken around here?”

Swift walks over near the box and asks, “Why are you looking for broken stuff?”

The colt looks up and grins as he says, “That gold buck is fixing pretty much anything we give him. And he’s got some great stories!”

Swift shares sideways glances with Handy before asking, “Stories?”

The colt rummages in the box some more as he says, “Yeah, comics, Equestria, all kinds of stuff… ah hah!” He grabs out an old battered mining helmet, and runs off with it. “This should do!”

Handy and Swift look at each other, before Handy rolls his eyes, smirks, and waves a hoof in the same direction. “Go ahead… It’s only going to take one of us to remind him that we got places to be…”

Swift flies and follows the colt after giving Handy a quick peck on the cheek. She lands at the door right behind the excited colt, and catches the door as it’s swinging closed, preventing it from coming to entirely. She pokes her head around the door frame and looks in, watching with amazement as the kids, even as over sugared as they have to be, are all calmly sitting around Gearing in a huge semi circle watching and entirely enthralled as Gearing slowly works and talks with them.

Gearing uses a screwdriver in his mouth to make a couple turns on something held tight, and hidden within, the confines of his forelegs. Then lifts back, and reveals a small Griffonchaser toy as the kids look on with awe. He uses a hoof and pushes on the little toy to make it roll forwards and backwards a bit in sequence. The action of the oversized wheels cause the propellers to move as the toy’s apparently been brought back to life again. He hands it over to one of the surrounding kids, and they start passing it around as other small ponies bicker over what they want to have him fix for them next.

The little filly that had been bouncing on his head earlier has slide down to the middle of his back and starts slapping him on his side. “Hey, shiny butt.”

“Yeah?” Gearing asks as he slowly turns his head to look back at her.

“Why don’t you like… have your cutie mark on your armor?” she asks as she stretches out and slaps at the side of his haunches with a forehoof.

“Huh?” Gearing asks as he blinks with obvious confusion across his face.

One of the other colts looks Gearing over and shrugs as he says, “I bet he just don’t want anypony to know who he is. Lots of bads like to cause you grief if they know who you are.”

Another colt adds, “But the Steel Rangers at least have their markers on the armor, don’t they?”

The little filly lying across Gearing’s back asks, “Don’t have it here cuz you don’t want the badduns to see it and know?”

Gearing looks around at the group surrounding him, then says softly, “Oh… it’s not there… because…” He slowly looks down at the ground as he seems to run through his mind on what he wants to say. The ponies present all start leaning closer, interested in the actual answer, including Swift who actually stretches into the building a bit.

Gearing shrugs and looks back at the little filly before he says, “It’s not there… because I don’t have one.”

The gray colt spits out his Sparkle Cola that he was just sipping from before he asks, “You don’t have a mark?”

“What happened to it?” another colt asks, and instantly gets bonked on the head by a filly sitting next to him.

She hisses at him as she says, “That’s rude to ask!”

Gearing looks at them and shakes his head. “No, I didn’t lose it… I just haven’t gotten mine yet.”

Swift practically falls in the door, having to quickly stumble to keep from face planting on the hardwood floor, but the noise is covered up by the sound of the collective gasps from the younger ponies and instant burst of questions.

“How do you not have one yet?”

“How’s that possible?”

“Aren’t you a bit big to not have your mark?”

The little filly laying on his back leans back, rubs a hoof over where his mark would be if he’d had it, and asks, “Are you really a blank flank too?”

Gearing looks at her and smiles weakly as he says, “Yeah… I am.” He shrugs. “I’m just a late bloomer, I guess.” He lets out a sigh before he closes his eyes and says softly, “That’s what my mom used to say anyway…”

“Your momma?” the little filly on his back asks as she crawls around and looks at him in the face. Gearing nods and she asks, “Where she?”

“Gone,” Gearing hangs his head as he replies. “My mom’s gone…”

“Gone where?” the little gray colt says as he tries to drink the last of his Sparkle Cola, but then ducks down, squeals in pain, and drops it as he’s hit on the top of the head by the older filly sitting next him.

“As in dead, rocks for brains…” the offending pony snips quietly at him.

Gearing looks at them, then slowly nods as he quietly confirms, “Yeah…”

The little filly stretches up and gives him a hug from behind around his neck as she says quietly, “My momma’s gone too…”

Gearing looks at her sideways, then reaches around and wraps a wing around her and gives her a gentle squeezing hug in return.

The gray colt, rubbing the top of his head and wanting desperately to try and change the topic asks, “Sooo… you ever think about what your mark’s gonna be?”

Gearing looks over at him and smiles as he asks, “Yeah… don’t you?”

The chattering picks up as the new topic is fully accepted by the group and they start passing Gearing one thing or another to fix again as they all start talking again. But, as the topic picks up, Swift takes her leave, and silently closes the door behind herself. She’s glad that he’s getting back to his old self. And he seems to be enjoying himself. But out of everything she’d thought she’d run into with this situation, the knowledge she just out right stole via eavesdropping was not in the same plane of existence. It’s inconceivable to her. And all of the implications therein. She actually starts feeling a pit in her stomach, with a creeping crawling dirtiness that she can’t shake. That wasn’t meant for her ears and she knows it. It’s likely he wouldn’t have said anything at all if it wasn’t for the state he’s in. And she realizes that despite fixing things and engaging in conversation, he’s still not back to his old self. How slowly he’s doing everything, even talking, is another indicator of it as she actually thinks about it. So she decides she’s going to give him all the time he needs to get fully back into his own headspace.

But, on the way back to Handy, she can’t help but sitting in the middle of the street and looking up at the cloudy sky above as she mentally asks for clarification on what she’s trying to come to gripes with. Gearing doesn’t have his mark. His phrasing implies he just hasn’t gotten it yet. Like he’s expecting to get it at any time. So exactly how old is he? Is he even younger than I am? How is that even possible?

The implications are making her mind reel.

She tries to cast off all of the unpleasant and mind boggling thoughts by giving herself a violent full bodied shake before following a marker on her EFS. As she’s walking into the Post Office, both Handy and Charity turn to look at her as they pause their own conversation.

“You’re stupid super sugar plan work, or is he still sitting in there taking up space?” Charity asks with a frown.

Swift rubs the back of her neck with a forehoof as she says, “Sorta… he’s up and talking now at least.”

“Can’t he go and talk somewhere else?” Charity asks as she narrows her eyes at Swift. “What’s he still doing in there?”

Swift smiles at her and shrugs as she says, “He’s fixing things for the kids talking with him.”

Charity rolls her eyes as she says, “Great, so now after all of his talk about money being evil, he’s setting up shop in my workshop and not only distracting my helpers but making money off them too.” She ducks down under her counter as she grumbles, “I’m gonna charge him rent! By the square foot! I’m not running a charity here…”

“He is,” Swift says with a coy smile.

Charity’s ears jump up and she looks back over the counter at Swift before she asks, “What?”

Swift shakes her head and adds, “He’s not charging them anything. He’s just fixing things for them.”

“That’s stupid. Like… a new level of stupid tax kind of stupid… Why would he do it? What’s he get out of it?” Charity asks as she leans over the counter and looks at Swift suspiciously.

Swift shrugs as she says, “He’s doing it because they ask… and he likes helping… that’s all.”

“Uh huh,” Charity mutters as she glares at Swift and doesn’t buy it for a second.

The colt that Swift had fallowed earlier comes running into the Post Office with the mining helmet he’d found on his head as he giggles and laughs. He hops over to the counter, flicks his head, and the helmet lands on the counter right next to Charity, who doesn’t even flinch as she watches it come to a clanking stop next to her. The colt rears up and puts his forehooves on the counter as he says, “Hey, lookie! That busted old helmet’s all fixed!” He reaches over and hits the button near the small lamp on top, turning the light on and off quickly as he grins. “See! It even works now!”

Charity stares at it, and her eyes settle on the logo on the side of the helmet for an ancient coal mining company that went out of business suddenly when the world ended. “That hunk of junk? I thought I told you to throw it away in the scrap metal pile?”

The colt hits the button a few times again, scoops up the helmet, and puts it on, as he says, “Well, yeah, but I dug it out and that big colt fix it up good as new!” He starts heavily walking back and forth as he says, “I bet this’ll be great for digging in some of the ruins. Keeps your mouth free for picking through things!”

“Big colt?” Charity and Handy ask at the same time.

“The gold one?” Swift asks as she raises an eyebrow.

The younger colt nods rapidly, causing the helmet to rattle on his head before he says, “Yeah, he’s pretty good at fixing things!”

“Big gold colt?” Charity asks as she raises an eyebrow.

“He’s talking about Gearing… the one you want to evict,” Swift says with a sheepish smile.

“But, colt…?” Handy asks as he goes from looking at her to the helmeted colt parading around in the Post Office.

“Long story, Handy. I’ll explain later…” Swift says with a frown that lets Handy know he’s probably not going to like what he hears later.

Charity rapidly taps on the counter before she asks, “Hey, lemmie see that. How much he charge you for fixing it? Did he use our supplies or what?”

The colt flicks the helmet back over to Charity, who catches it mid air and starts closely examines it instantly. “He didn’t charge nothin’. I just asked him if he could fix it, and gave it to him. And he didn’t even answer. He just gave it back to me fixed.” He hops over and points at the lamp. “He used a busted flashlight to fix the lamp part. And I don’t know how he fixed the holes in the helmet part, but he did.”

Charity turns the helmet over a few more times before she says quietly, “I can actually sell this as more than scrap metal now… a lot more…” She looks over at the colt and asks, “He fixed other stuff too?”

The colt nods and points down the road to where Gearing is hiding in the building. “Yup. He’s just sitting there fixing stuff.”

Charity looks between the three before she takes a helmet and stores it behind the counter. “Well… he’s still a stupid jerk with the sense of a stable pony… but at least he’s not useless…” She ducks down behind the counter as she grumbles. “Fine. He can stay if he needs.”

Swift hops over and grins over the counter as she asks, “What was that?”

Charity peeks up over the edge of the counter at her and grumbles, “I said since he’s being useful, he can stay…” She hops up straight and waves a forehoof at Swift as she adds, “But if he starts annoying me again he’s getting taxed with everything I can think of!”

Swift nods quickly as she says, “Thanks. We’ll get going as soon as we can. I promise.”

Charity frowns as she replies, “You better… we got enough crazies coming through here lately…”

Swift and Handy quickly take their leave before Charity changes her mind and starts charging them simply for taking up floor space. And as they are crossing the road, they are intercepted by Priest.

“I hear your friend is up and about now, I’m glad to hear it.”

Swift nods as she replies, “Yeah, he’s talking and working again, but I don’t think he’s quite ready to go yet.”

Priest looks off towards the bridge to the core as he says, “Understandable given what he’s been through. And I know you two are in a rush, but it might be best to wait a bit longer before pushing on if you can. He’s managed a return trip from the bridge, and that’s no small feat. But even so he didn’t manage it unscathed. His scars are going to run deep from that.”

Handy looks back and forth as he lets out a long slow groan. “Well, I guess we can wait another day… after that we’ll have to at least go and see if we can get this done on our own without him. But what are we gonna do while we wait?”

Priest regards him for a moment before a warm smile spreads across his lips. “Well… the church is always open to those in need.”

That afternoon, while Handy, Swift, and Priest are deep in conversation as they sit on the pillows of the floor of the church, a meek voice breaks through and draws all of their attentions to the front door.

Gearing, out of his cloak, stands just outside of the threshold, looking in, and repeats a bit louder now that he actually seems to have their attention, “… I need to go…”

The three all get up and Priest motions inside as he says, “You don’t have to stay outside. All are welcome here.”

Gearing looks at him, then around at the interior of the church slowly. He stares up at the ceiling for a few long moments and then slowly shakes his head before he says, “Not me…” then slowly takes a few delicate steps backwards and away from the door frame.

Having lost sight of him, they head outside and find Gearing sitting in the middle of the road a few paces away from the building, but staring at the ground.

“What’s wrong, Charity say something to you about staying out of the buildings?” Handy asks as he frowns.

“You can go in the church, Priest is a good buck,” Swift adds. Then she chuckles as she waves a hoof around, “He won’t bite…”

“No… I just need to go…” Gearing repeats. Then he looks up at Priest and says softly, “Thanks for your help. I appreciate it.”

Priest gives him a warm smile before giving him a slow nod of acknowledgement. “It was my pleasure… and thank you for changing your mind about the bridge.” Noticing Gearing’s focus instantly jumping to the ground, and avoiding the topic, Priest asks, “Are you sure you’re feeling up to leaving? You don’t have to if you aren’t. Rest if you need it.”

Gearing shrugs and replies while still looking at the ground. “I need to get moving. Staying still is bad. I’ll get stuck. I don’t want to be stuck. So I have to get moving again.” He slowly looks up before he says, “I have a promise to keep. I can’t if I get stuck.”

Handy slowly looks Gearing’s brass form over and lets out a sigh as the strange speech pattern strikes an unpleasant cord with him. “Lodestar’s in no real rush. We can go when you’re ready.”

Gearing shakes his head quickly and replies, “Gotta go. Can’t stay or I’ll get stuck.”

Swift walks over and sits down in front of him as she stretches out a wing and gently wraps it around him. “Gearing. You don’t have to force yourself. We can go when you’re ready. You know that, right?”

Gearing slowly looks up at her, then darts his focus from one of her eyes to the next before he says in a much firmer tone. “I have to go… I need to do this, Swift. If I don’t keep moving, and stop fighting, I might get used to giving up. There’s too many counting on me for that. I’m not the fastest. I know this. But as long as I keep moving. Keep putting one hoof in front of the other. And never give in to the temptation. I know I can do it. I can keep going. I just need to keep my momentum. Or I’ll get stuck. And if I get stuck, I’ll die… And I have too much left to do to let that happen.”

“You’re devotion is commendable,” Priest says softly. “But are you going to be okay continuing on so soon?”

“Yes,” Gearing replies flatly. “The alternatives are worse.”

“So, looks like we’re heading out sooner than expected,” Swift says with a massive grin across her muzzle as she looks at Handy. She glances sideways at Gearing and asks, “When you want to head out and get started?”

“Now,” Gearing replies flatly before turning and starting to walk out of town towards a marker displaying on his EFS.

Swift looks at Priest and shrugs before taking flight. “Seems like we’re heading off now, we’ll be back later.”

Priest watches them leave, and then slowly turns his eyes towards Handy, who’s still near him, and asking, “Are you not going with them?”

Handy chuckles before he says, “Yeah, but I was just thinking how weird it is that I wished we’d be able to hurry up and just go. And… here we are, trotting off shortly after…”

Priest raises an eyebrow before asking, “Why would that be a bad thing, you got what you wished for didn’t you?”

Handy looks at him sideways and smirks before he says, “As long as it isn’t in a ‘careful what you wish for’ type of scenario, that’s fine.”

“And?”

Handy chuckles and starts following the other two before he quips, “If you knew our luck so far, you’d see the problem...”

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Footnote: !!!WARNING!!! Breech detected!

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Next Chapter: 69 Down the ‘Rabbit’ Hole Estimated time remaining: 16 Hours, 24 Minutes