The next morning, I awake early and my shoulder feels like it is on fire. Next to me, Archer is awake also. I climb out of bed and limp into the nursery to feed Millie. Magpie and Sumac are both already there. They both look sadly at me and Sumac asks, “Dear, you have so many scars already, why did you do this to yourself?’

I am just sitting down in the chair to feed when she asks me this. I close my eyes, look at the ceiling, and quietly tell her, “Ma, they have taken almost everything they can from me. My beauty was damaged long ago starting with my ear. The Expedition, well added many more, both physical and mental scars,” I move my muzzle toward my left shoulder as I continue, “This one, well this one I chose. I decided and I wanted to. I took back my body. It also will let any others who see it, know I was on the expedition.”

I open my eyes and I see a tear roll down Sumac’s face. She nods her head and tells me, “Dear, I guess I can understand it. But it just seems so extreme.”

I nod my head and I tell her, “Perhaps, but it also bonded me with all my troopers. They know I am proud to have been a part of CEF enough to mark myself with it.”

I see her shaking her head and she asks, “Well who else did you see there, getting themselves branded?”

I see Magpie's eyes go wide when Sumac asks this and from behind me, I hear Archer say, “I did also Sumac.” Then he puts a hoof on my non burned shoulder. He then continues on, “While I will admit I had a couple of ciders beforehand, I was not drunk when I did it, and our Mollygirl was completely sober. Nothing to deaden her pain.”

I see both of them shake their heads at us. He then kisses me on my cheek and heads out, but is soon replaced by Sutures who tells me, “Love when you are done, I want to treat both you and Archer.” Then she goes back out also.

Magpie has finished feeding Woodrow and as she gets up to put him away, she shakes her head and tells me, “Dear, I will always love you, but I just cannot get my head wrapped around why you did this.”

I smile at her and tell her, “My love, I do not need you to understand why just accept that I did and it was something I needed to do for me.”

As she gets next to me, she leans over and kisses me on the cheek and tells me, “That I can do. Now I best go get breakfast started.”

Soon I join the others for Breakfast. Today is a proper vegan diet again. I do notice Ginger pouting a bit in her chair but she does not complain. She just drinks her coffee and eats her oatmeal with apple bits.

Finally, as she gets up to leave the table, she looks at me sullenly and asks, “Ma, how come you and Papa Archer could get branded with CEF on your shoulder, but me and Xochitl were not even told about it?”

I let out a sigh and I see Sumac standing there with one eyebrow raised and an ear twisted like she is asking “Well?”

I then tell Ginger, “Dear you are too young yet. Once you are 18, if you want, I will not say a word if you want to. But until then, no.” I see her pout a bit more, but I think she realizes that she has already gotten as much out of me as she can.

I quickly finish off my tea and head out the door with both bucks right behind me. As we hit the farmyard I hear Ginger yell, “I am leaving for school Ma’s see you tonight.”

I look back and see her running down the steps and Xochitl running to meet her. Knowing how they are I look into the sky just above the horizon and I see Sunny flying just above treetops to catch up. I laugh lightly at it and then feel a touch of sadness come over me as I realize how much I will miss this in a few weeks.

Once at the stable we go our separate ways. As I get to my office Paper Work is there and he tells me that the Colonel wants to see me asap. All I can think of is what now? As I put my kit on its hooks, I begin to head out the door and Chain Lighting greets me. He shakes his head a bit with a half-smirk on his face. Then he asks, “Ma’am, are you limping a bit?”

I look at him and smirk back as I ask him, “That noticeable, huh?”

He nods as he falls in alongside me. “Ya know ma’am when I suggested that you not stop them, I really did not mean that you should join them.”

I look at him from the corner of my eye and I ask “how did you know?”

He laughs lightly and tells me, “Ma’am it already has gone out through the rumor mill about you joining in.”

I look down at the floor when he tells me this and I tell him, “It really was not that big a deal Chain. Heck, even you have done it.”

He looks at me and begins to laugh and then asks, “Major, were you really stone-cold sober when you did it?”

I nod my head as we continue on our way. Then I ask him, “Why would that matter?”

He shakes his head, “Ma’am, every other being I know who has done that was either drunk or had taken Med-X first. Even I was drunk. But not you, damn ma’am you are tough as nails.”

Still shaking my head, I tell him, “Really it was not that big a deal.”

He is still shaking his head as we get to the regimental HQ. The Sergeant Major greets us at the door and I notice him giving me the once over and he just smiles and shakes his head slightly. Then he tells me, “Major, the Colonel is ready for you in his office, please go right in. 1^st Sergeant, a moment of your time, please.”

I walk into the Colonel's office trying not to show a limp and keeping my head high. I get in front of his desk and he stands up. Looking down at me he asks me “Major Mollygirl, I am wanting to discuss this rumor I heard about last night.”

I keep looking him in the face with a calm expression and ask, “Yes sir, what rumor is that?”

He looks at me with anger in his eyes, then says, “That one of your companies had a party last night where they were branding themselves. Is this true?”

Still maintaining my bearing, I continue to look at him as I tell him, “Yes sir it is.”

If possible, he begins to get angrier as he says, “You knew? And you did nothing?”

When he says this, I shake my head slightly and I tell him, “Yes, I knew, and I did do something. I joined them as well as brought along an extra medic to make sure no one was too badly injured and that there would be no infections.”

He almost has steam rolling out of his ears and he then all but yells at me, “You should have stopped them, instead you act like a trooper and join them. Major, I am beginning to have my doubts about you.”

I continue to look him in the eyes as I respond, “Sir, if you want my commission, take it. Those troopers’ lives mean more to me than my own and I will not stand you ever suggesting that I am endangering them unnecessarily. In fact, give me the pen and paper sir. I will write my letter of resignation right here and now Colonel. Since I have been back you have lied to me several times. The biggest being about not being willing to deploy my battalion first. Sir, I know about Serenity Valley and while I like you, sir, that fiasco makes it very hard to respect you. Let’s talk about valuing my people’s lives sir, shall we.”

I swear at this point I watch his face go pale. He steps back and quietly tells me, “Major, get the hell out of my office.”

I salute him, then do a parade perfect about-face and I walk out of the main area of the Regimental HQ. As I go, I see Chain Lightning's eyes being wide open as well as the Sergeant Majors. It seems the Colonel had accidentally left his office intercom on to the Sergeant Major’s desk and they and a few others on the staff heard the entire exchange. Buck ‘em, I don’t care. I look at Chain and tell him, “Let’s go First, we have work to do,” as I walk past. I am halfway to my battalion’s HQ when I notice he is right next to me.

Neither of us says anything until we get to my office. I go in and he follows and closes the door behind me. I sit in my chair and put my head on my forehooves, and just shake my head.

When I look up a while later, he is standing there leaning against the wall, smiling. He shakes his head and tells me, “Major, remind me to never piss you off.”

I try to smile as I tell him, “Yeah, but I just hope that the Colonel does not take it out on our troopers.”

He smiles at that and tells me, “Ma’am, I do not think you need to worry about that. By now half the stable knows you just told the old man to go piss up a rope for accusing you of not caring about your people. I know the Sergeant Major was not a happy camper to hear what he heard. Now may I ask, how long have you known that your people were used for bait at the Valley?’

I shake my head again as I tell him with my ears tilted slightly back, “Since the stand down after we got back. Chain, one of my husbands is a troop commander for the 2^nd Regiment. Another of my best friends is one of the 2^nd Regiments battalion commanders. We only had to talk for a bit before I could piece together what happened. In fact, I really knew deep inside before we departed the Valley. I just did not want to think that the Colonel or anyone else in command would do that for no reason.”

I see a sad expression cross his face and his ears go down along his head. Then he tells me, “Ma’am, it seems that all militaries are willing to do that. I had just hoped this one was different.”

I sigh and look at him and tell him, “Same here Chain, same here.”

The rest of the day passes quietly with me and Chain making the rounds of the companies’ HQs as well as that of the Artillery and then the Engineers.

Whenever I see one of the junior troopers in the stable, I notice a look of near terror on their faces. The old hands all smile and salute me. Finally, after about the tenth time this happens, I ask Chain Lighting, “1^st Sergeant what is going on with all the junior troopers seeming to be afraid of me?”

I see him laugh lightly as he shakes his head and I hear him say under his breath, “Captain Dull Beak is right, she is a hoot to work with,” then he looks at me and tells me, “Ma’am, you really don’t get it do you?”

Slightly exasperated I ask, “Get what First?”

Still shaking his head, he tells me, “Ma’am word had already gotten out about how you got branded last night, stone-cold sober, with no painkillers, and did not let out a peep or a tear. Then you do not only show up on time, but you also show up early and while you are trying to hide the limp, it is noticeable. That is after giving birth in formation and then returning to ranks. Ma’am, you are downright scary, even to me. Now if they heard about your meeting with the Colonel, you stepped that up a notch.”

I shake my head, “Why, because I did what I felt was right?”

He smiles a bit more and I can tell he is trying not to laugh as he tells me, “Major, that is what is really scary. If you feel you are doing the right thing. Your reputation in the Regiment is of being a mare not to cross and look out if you do.”

I stop and look down at the ground blushing. Then I look at him as he stands next to me, “Is it really that bad?”

He chuckles lightly as he tells me, “Ma’am for a military commander, no. For a mare looking for a date, it would be. But from what I can see, you don’t need to worry about that.”

I blush again then smiling,I tell him, “No, I guess I don’t. Speaking of that, how has it been going with that friend you were talking about bringing over for dinner at the farm.”

This time I see him blush and look down. “Ma’am, we are currently working to get his status changed from PoW to immigrant. He and I talked about it and he wants to try and give it a go here.”

I nod my head and ask. “Is he going to stay a civilian then, or has he considered joining the Regiment?”

I see him smile, “Major that is a sticking point. He really does not know. He is tired of the military, but it is almost all he knows.”

As I think about this I ask, “Chain, has he thought of trying to provide private security maybe?”

Chain shakes his head, “No ma’am. That smacks too much of being a mercenary, and neither of us like that title.”

As we pass out the entrance and head to the Artillery park, we continue to talk about this problem for him. Once I get near the Gate for the artillery’s storage and maintenance, I see Archer working with the crews of his battery. He sees me and waves a hoof at me. When he does this, I see him grimace in pain, so I make sure to wave back to him. Finally, we arrive at Slide Rule's Battery. I have to smile seeing her four guns all undergoing some form of Maintenance. Two of the guns have their wheels removed, as well as those of their limbers, with ponies applying fresh grease to the hubs. The other two have their barrels removed and are disassembled down to the recoil mechanism. I see the crew members taking solvent to remove the old grease and making sure that there is no rust on the sliding parts.

From this crew, I see Slide Rule lookup. She has grease all over her face and forehooves. I am glad to see she is wearing a pair of coveralls at least so that she is not ruining a good uniform. She says something to those with her, wipes her forehooves on an old rag then comes over and salutes me.

As she salutes me and I return it, she asks, “What can I do for you, Ma’am?”

Smiling, I tell her, I was just stopping by to see how things are going with the preps and to see if there is anything I may be able to help you with.”

She nods at that and tells me, “Thank you very much, ma’am. I appreciate that. Right now, we are sitting pretty good. I am waiting to see what the quartermasters try to short-shift me on though.”

I nod my head and ask, “Is there anything you are short on right now?”

She smiles and tells me, “Well since you asked ma’am, we could use one more limber wagon as well as a decent issue of small arms for my crews when we deploy.”

I raise my eyebrow at this and ask her, “What is wrong with the small arms they are trying to issue you.”

She looks at me and tells me, “Ma’am, we are going to be setting up firebases to support your troops' positions. They want to issue us shotguns and pistols to defend those bases. Ma’am, I really would prefer proper long arms and perhaps a couple of heavy machine guns to defend my guns.”

When she says this, I cannot help but smile and I tell her, “You sound just like my husband Archer.” I see her eyebrow raise a bit and her ears shift back slightly, “I then continue, “That is a good thing, Captain. I will talk to the armorers and see what we can do. In fact, after I see the Engineers on my way back through, I will stop by and you can go with me to talk to Buckshot and them with me.”

I see her smile widen and her ears go forward some when I suggest it. Then she asks, “You really mean it, ma’am, you will do that for us?”

I sigh as I tell her, “Slide Rule, you and your gunners are now my people. Just like Archer and his were.”

Then I see her look at me out of the side of her eye, “Ma’am, I am not looking for a new partner, besides, you have enough already from what I understand.”

When she says this, my jaw drops, and my eyes go wide. “I, I, uh, Captain, that is not what I meant.”

Behind me, I hear Chain Lightning laughing out loud, and slapping his hoof on the ground. I look up and she is blushing. Finally, I stop blushing and I tell her, “Slide Rule, that is not how I work. Talk to Archer and he can explain it to you if you want. Also, I am not looking for any more spouses. Five is enough as it is.”

Now I get to see her blush and she starts to stammer, “I, um, I uh, I am sorry I misunderstood Major. Please forgive my behavior.”

When she says this, I laugh lightly myself and shake my head as I tell her, “Nothing to forgive Captain. It seems in my life, that must be a normal assumption. Believe me, you are not the first.”

“Thank you, Ma’am. If the offer to accompany you to the armory later is still open, I will take you up on it Major.”

I smile at her again and tell her, “We will see you on our way back. Besides, I have to pick up my own weapons before I head home for the night.”

I see her jaw drop open this time and I hear her quietly say, “Her own weapons home for the night?”

I nod my head, as does Chain Lightning, and I tell her, “Yes, I captured three weapons that I prefer to use during the expedition. This was shortly after I lost my previous pistol and SMG when I was captured,” without thinking I say under my breath, “They are still taking those out of my pay each month.”

I see her eyes go wide at this and Chain simply tilts his head in amusement. Then Chain Lightning quietly tells her, “She is a bit different to work for, but it can be fun. Ma’am.”

Then I look at my 1^st Sergeant and tell him, “Well, we best get going to see Lieutenant Bailey Bridge, so we can get done at a decent time. I will talk to you again in a bit Captain Rule.”

We then leave the artillery park area and head to the Combat Engineers compound. They have several buildings and bunkers that are fenced off from the rest of the base. As we reach the gate, I see one of Bailey’s engineers from the expedition is on guard along with a new one.

As we approach the guards, they both salute me and I am greeted by the one saying, “It is good to see you again Ma’am.”

I smile as I return the salutes and tell them, “You also trooper. Will you be heading out with us for the deployment?”

He nods his head and tells me, “Yes ma’am, both of us will. I have told him already how much of a fighter you are and how you were right there in the trenches with us at the Valley ma’am. I am a bit sorry though about touching off the Flamethrower so close to you, but I needed to suppress them quickly as I passed you.”

I shake my head, “No need to apologize for doing your duty. But I will say I thank the Goddesses you were there with it then. You were right where I needed you, when I needed you, so thank you.”

I see his chest swell with pride and I watch the new engineer look at him with almost awe at that point. I then ask, “Do you know if Lieutenant Bridge is available?”

The senior guard nods his head and replies, “He should be ma’am. He has not left during our watch.”

I nod my head, “Thank you, I will go see him. Have a good day.”

As we cross the compound, I notice that several of the bunkers are designed differently from the others and have warning signs mounted around them. I am just getting ready to enter the Engineer Company’s HQ when I hear Bailey Bridge call me from a door on the next building over.

I stop and trot over to him, Chain walking behind me in no big hurry. “Good Afternoon Bailey,” I tell him when I am close enough.

He smiles at me, gives a brief salute, and then holds out a hoof, “It is really good to see you again Mollygirl. You caught me just in time. I was just heading out to see Tar and Lil’ Broken.”

I shake the offered hoof and smiling I tell him, “Tell her I said hi and that I will be out to visit her on our normal day.”

He nods his head and replies, “I will ma’am, now what can I do you for?”

By now Chain Lightning has caught up to me and as he steps next to me I tell Bailey, “We were just out making the circuit and were stopping by to see how your preparations are going for the deployment, and to see if there is anything you may need our assistance with.”

He smiles at that and tells me, “Well ma’am we could use an extra wagon to move supplies with. That would make things a lot easier. Other than that, not too much. That is unless you can get us a medic assigned with my engineers also.”

I think about this and tell him, “Bailey, I will see what I can do about that in the next few days.”

“Thank you, ma’am,” he tells me, then he looks at his PipBuck, and asks, “Is there anything more you need me for?”

I shake my head slightly, “No Bailey there isn’t, but if you need me, let me know.” I tell him.

“Thanks, ma’am, 1^st Sergeant, it is good to see you again, but I need to get going so I can spend as much time with her as I can.”

As he says this I begin to turn and walk toward the gate and he joins in with me and Chain. Chain Lightning looks at him funny from the corner of his eye as we leave the compound and head back toward the artillery. As we watch Bailey Bridge trot off in the direction of Manesville, he turns back to me and says, “Ma’am, isn’t it rather odd for an officer to be so excited to see a traitor?”

I stop for a moment to collect my thoughts and I tell him, “Chain, I have a feeling that her life would have been a completely different story if it has been Bailey who had dated her rather than Broken Dreams. There was a lot going on that most do not even know. Besides, aren’t you friends with a couple of Dashites now?”

I see him Blush and he tells me, “Ma’am, you’re not supposed to know about that.”

I laugh lightly and tell him, “Chain, it is ok, remember, I have a Dashite for a best friend as well. With the Enclave defunct should I still worry about that?”

He shakes his head, “No, I guess not, but ma’am, the Enclave may be down now, but I would still worry about them.”

He says this just as we come to the Artillery Park and we are greeted by Slide Rule. I have to shift to what business is at hoof, but in the back of my mind, I cannot help to remember what he said.

With Captain Slide Rule with us, we change our subject of discussion to what she thinks she needs for her gunners.

“Major, normally I would not hesitate to let them all carry short-range weapons, but if we are going to be digging in for a while, that changes things.” Slide Rule tells me.

I nod my head, “Yeah it does, Captain. I just wish I knew where they were sending us. For all I know it could be west of New Appleloosa, over by Baltimare, or even on the plains halfway to Maripony.” I tell her.

Chain Lighting walks slightly behind us, and out of the corner of my eye, I can see he is paying attention to our conversation. Well, maybe he will catch something I am missing.

Once we get to the armory, I see Buckshot smile as I walk in. “Good afternoon Major, that time again?” he asks.

I smile, “Yeah, pretty much Buckshot, but I also have some business I want to discuss with you,” as I tell him that I see his smile falter.

He looks from me to Slide Rule then back to me, “Ok ma’am, what do you want to talk about.” He asks.

I sigh, and reply, “Now Buckshot, why do you have to say it like that? This is an honest request and we can see what we can do, ok.”

He sits on his seat behind the counter and crosses his forelegs, nods his head, and says, “Ok Major, let’s hear it.”

“Now I was talking to the Captain here about the upcoming deployment and the needs for our equipment,” I am in the middle of telling him this when he stops me by raising a hoof up and holding it in front of me.

“Major, no offense, but I am giving her the standard loadout as prescribed for an artillery battery by the command, upon the recommendations of your husband Captain Archer.” He tells me.

I close my eyes and shake my head, and I tell him, “Now I can understand that and respect it, but that was for an expedition where we were planning on being mobile most of the time. During our deployment, we are going to be establishing a fire support base and digging in. We want weapons that will allow us to engage any hostiles who try to assault the base and defend the guns.”

He shakes his head, “Ma’am, in such a case the gunners will be too busy operating their pieces until they get in close.”

I nod my head again, “I agree, but what about their pulling teams? They can defend the pieces and the base while the gunners operate them.”

I see him shift his muzzle and squint his eyes as if he is going to argue more, so I tell him, “Oh, and by the way, seeing Flechettes went with us last time and we are going to be gone for over a year, I have been considering requesting you to be our armorer for the deployment.”

I see him start to go pale at this. From off to the side I see Flechettes quickly put a hoof over his mouth to keep from laughing out loud.

“Now Major, that is not fair and you know it.” He tells me.

I tilt my head and look him straight in the eyes and I ask him, “And it is fair that me and my troops all have to go back out first. Really, because you are just about ready to have me go straight to the regiment and maybe even to the NRC regional commander to have your ass put on this deployment list. Keep Arguing with me, Sergeant.”

I see him cringe when I say this and under his breath, I hear him say, “I liked you better as a sergeant.”

When he says this, I quietly tell him, “So did I. In fact, a lot of ponies did. Now back to business. I am not asking for all of the gunners to be loaded with rifles. What I am asking for is some as well as perhaps a couple of machine guns, maybe a grenade launcher or two.”

Beside me, I see Slide Rule nod her head in agreement. Then she says, “That is all I was asking for, just some, not all. The rest can have SMGs and shotguns. I don’t care. But we need something to hold them back a bit too.”

I see him sigh as off to the side I notice Chain Lighting is talking to the pegasus armorer sergeant Air Burst. They are both moving their forehooves in an animated manner as they hover over the floor discussing something.

I finally see Buckshot sigh and give in. “Ok, I will, but please do not ask me to deploy, please?”

“Buckshot, you do this and we are square for now. Cross me though and by the Goddesses, I will have you on back-to-back deployments too.” I tell him as I give him the mare stare.

I see him visibly gulp and he tells the Captain, “Ma’am if you are willing, I will dig up an inventory of weapons we may have available for your troops for deployment.”

I nod my head along with Slide Rule. Then I tell her, “Ok, I am going to get my weapons and head home for the night. Use your PipBuck to contact me if you need, and also add my tag to yours and I will yours to mine.”

She nods her head and I see her fumble with her PipBuck, so I ask, “Slide, have you ever had a PipBuck before you came here?”

She shakes her head, “No, I only seen one or two until I got to Manesville Ma’am.”

I nod my head and turn to Buckshot as he returns with a printout of in-stock weapons and I ask him, “Buckshot one more favor, and I will owe you for this one.”

He nods his head and sighs, “Ok Major, what is it?”

“Please show the Captain how to use her PipBuck fully. It may be critical to all of us later.” I say.

I see a surprised look on his face and he nods his head, “Yes ma’am, I can do that.”

After he says this, I see Flechettes has brought my weapons out for me. He is smiling as he hoofs them to me and says, “Ma’am I would be happy to go with you all again, just so you know.”

I smile at him and tell him, “Let’s see, I would not mind having you with us, but it really should be fair for you too.”

I see a look of gratitude on his face as he says, “Thank you Major, you really are one in a million.”

After I put my pistol in my holster and the Doombunny on my back I notice Slide Rule look over at them and she quietly asks Buckshot something that I cannot hear. Then I hear Chain Lighting tell Air Burst, “Ok, thanks, I really would appreciate it,” as he flies over to me and then lands to walk alongside me.

As I leave the Armory, I happen to run into Doc Treacle. He sees me and smiles as he too is heading for the main tunnel exit. He speeds up a bit to catch up with me.

Once he is close enough, I greet him and he replies, “Good evening Major, are you ready yet?”

I smile at him and tell him, “Well, we are getting there. How about you.”

He nods his head in his way, “Yes, I just hope I am not as busy as I was last time.”

In agreement, I tell him, “I hope not either. Speaking of that, I was talking to Baily Bridge and he was wondering if we could get a medic permanently assigned to his platoon of Combat Engineers.”

I see him nod his head in thought and he tells me, “I will see what I can do, thank you for bringing that up to me. Now I best get going, I have a date tonight and I do not want to be late.” I smile at him and wave him off as we pass through the main entrance to the stable into the open air.

Chain Lighting is right behind me and tells me, “Have a good night ma’am, I am off to see Tail Spin again. Who knows, maybe we can have him deploy with us if I can talk him into it.”

I smile and tell him “Good luck Chain and for what it is worth, I hope so for both of you.” Then it hits me, this is the first time he has mentioned the name of his old friend. Well, I really do hope it goes well for him.

He smiles widely at me and tells me, “I will let you know Mollygirl, Have a good night ma’am.” And I watch him fly off as quickly as Sunny when he is late for school.

I beat both Archer and Badger home from the stable that night. As I am sitting on the porch waiting for dinner to cook and them to arrive, I see Sunset flying overhead and watch as he lands in the farmyard.

As he lands, I see him shaking his head. He continues to do this as he approaches me. “Howdy Sunset, good to see you again, come over and pop a squat,” I tell him.

He smiles as he climbs on to the porch and sits on my left side. Then he looks at me, “OK, Mollygirl, let’s see it,” he tells me.

Slightly confused I ask, “See what?”

He tilts his head as he looks at me with his ears to the side of his head. He is quiet momentarily then he says, “Your shoulder. It is the talk of the regiment if not the stable right now.”

“Oh, that,” I reply and I begin to take my uniform blouse off. Sumac comes out of the house from behind me and watches in interest also. I finally have the blouse off and then begin to slowly peel the bandage away from it. I feel the sting as the air hits the still raw flesh.

I hear Sumac suck in her breath and I see her put her hoof over her mouth. Sunset just grins at me and says, “Damn, you really did do it. I was wandering if it was just a rumor. specially because they kept saying you did it with nothing to cut the pain.”

From the doorway I hear Sutures’s voice, “That’s because she didn’t Sunset. I was there with her.” She walks closer and tells me, “Now let me see it. You should have left the bandage on for another day at least.”

She performs a quick inspection of it and asks Sumac, “Could you please bring me my saddlebags. I need to put some ointment on this as well as redress it.”

As she is dressing my brand Sunset is behind me and he asks me, “So Molllygirl, did you really tell the Colonel that he could take your resignation if he didn’t like it as well as call him a liar this morning?”

I feel myself blush as I tell him, “Well when you put it like that I guess so. He accused me of not looking out for my troops,” I stop and sigh as I look up at the sky and I continue, “I was serious. He can have my commission for all I care. He lied to me Sunset. He lied when he told me we would be the last to deploy. This from the buck who decided to use our CEF as bait at Serenity Valley.”

After I say this, I look at Sunset and ask, “I am sorry, I forgot my manners, would you like something to drink?”

He smiles and tells me, “Sure, if it isn’t any trouble.”

Sumac asks “Would you like a cider? I am sure we still have a couple or even a Sparkle Cola. I have some of those chilling in a bucket of water in the kitchen.”

I see him smile as he tells her, “Whichever is easier Sumac. Thank you, ma’am.”

After Sumac goes back inside Sunset then tells me, “Mollygirl, I am glad I am not in your shoes. Rumor has it he is fit to be tied.”

I nod my head as I say, “I am sure he is, but what is he going to do, ship me away for a year?”

Sutures then ask me, “Love, if you hate it so much and want to resign, why don’t you?”

I look at her pleading eyes and I feel like my heart is almost ready to break as I have to tell her, “Dear, this close to deployment, I can’t. Not and feel like I was doing my people right.”

“But Mollygirl, you got thrown into this position without warning, somepony else can handle it too.”

I shake my head, “Perhaps, but what if the right being is not there. I know Kettle Belle is good, but I don’t think she is ready. I know Dull Beak doesn’t want that yet.”

I see Sunset nodding his head in agreement with me. Then he says, “Mollygirl you did good when you had it thrown in your lap, but Sutures, not every pony can.”

She nods her head and says, “Yeah, I guess you’re right, I just wish she did not have to leave again so soon.”

I nuzzle her cheek when she says this and then tell her, “I understand dearest and I really do wish I did not have to. That is part of why I laid it on the line today with the Colonel.”

She leans into my nuzzle but stays off my shoulder in return, but says nothing, only giving off a gentle nicker.

Sumac returns with two colas and two ciders. She gives both Sutures and I the cola’s then gives Sunset a hard cider that I can see has been chilled also.

As we sit there enjoying our drinks and talking, we are joined by Xavier and Persimmon. Next, I look up and see Sunny in the distance, I know where Ginger and Xochitl are by where he is in the sky. Once they get close to the farm I can tell when Sunny sees Sunset and watch as he flies as fast as he can toward us. He doesn’t even land instead he flies right up to Sunset and crashes against him yelling, “Uncle Sunset, it is so good to see you again.”

This brings a smile to my face that is still there when a couple of minutes later Ginger and Xochitl come running up to us. I almost laugh when Both of them skid to a stop and give a salute to Sunset. Sumac and Persimmon are surprised but Sunset takes it fully in stride and casually returns it. “Good afternoon troopers,” he tells them.

“Good afternoon Sir!” they both echo together.

“How have you three youngsters been doing?” he asks.

“Fine sir, do you need us for another expedition?” Xochitl asks excitedly, Ginger nodding her head quickly beside him.

He laughs at that and holds out a hoof, “Whoa now. Sorry youngsters, but I am not going out this time. I have the rest of the scout company to look after. In fact, with all the regular scouts now, we most likely will not be hiring scouts anymore, except in special situations.”

I see the look of disappointment on all three of their faces when he says this. So does Xavier as he puts a hoof on his son’s shoulder and tells him, “See son, it is not just you. I would have to enlist also, and who is to say I would end up with the 1^st Regiment again.”

Sunset nods his head and tells them, “Xavier is right about that. Even with as fine a record as his and being a corporal in the militia, he would not be guaranteed it.”

“Awe, but I was hoping,” Ginger says in a moaning whine.

“I am sorry Ginger,” I tell her as I get up and go to hug her. “I wish I could have you with me too. I am so going to miss you and everypony else. And yes Xavier, you are included in that my friend.”

“Thank you Mollygirl, we will all miss you too.” Xavier quickly tells me, beside him I see Persimmon nodding her head.

I smile at all of them, “I am not gone yet, we still have a couple of weeks to visit, ok,” just as I finish saying this, I hear Millie begin to cry, soon she is joined by her brothers. “Speaking of spending time, I need to go take care of Millie and the boys, I will be right back.”

Sumac and Sutures both follow me in, and I see Magpie come from out of the kitchen. She sees Sumac going and tells her, “Dear if you want to take over in the kitchen for a bit, I will go get Woody.”

I see Sumac smile back at her and she tells her, “Ok, is everything in the oven already?”

As I go down the hall, I hear Magpie behind me tell her, “Yes, it should be ready in another fifteen to twenty minutes. But I wanted to keep an eye on it. This new batch of wood for the stove seems a bit wet still.” One more thing we need to worry about.

Once I get to Millie it seems she is not hungry or needing a change, she just wanted some attention, which I am more than happy to give. I grab her with my mouth and I carry her back out to the porch with me. As I get there, Ginger looks at me and says, “I bet you can’t wait till she can ride on ya like I do Ma.”

With my mouth still full I smile and tell her, “Ya, it ill ve a lot easier.” Then I set Millie down on the porch and lay down next to her. She quickly comes over to me and begins to try and climb on me.

As we lay there, I look up and see both of my bucks coming down the road together. Once they get to the farm, they both take a minute to put their saddlebags inside and to take off their uniforms before rejoining us.

A little while later both Sumac and Magpie come back out carrying little ones and join me and Millie with the others. As the foals are playing and the adults are talking, I look up toward the barn and on its peak I see a single black crow watching us. Part of me starts to worry but instead I smile. Xochitl notices me looking at something and turns his head and then waves to it. I am almost surprised when the crow bobs its head like it is nodding. Then after a little while, I see it fly off, just as Sumac comes to the door and tells us, “Supper is ready, let’s get cleaned up everyone.”

Sunset then gets up and tells us, “Well I best get going, I just stopped by to chat.”

Sutures and Archer both look at him disappointed so he then tells them, “I have to get back to Manesville all, I'm supposed to take Pages out for dinner tonight.”

I step up and give him a brief hug and tell him, “Have a good night and a good time Sunset, and thanks for stopping by. I am going to miss your visits.”

He smiles back at me and tells me, “I will miss our talks too Mollygirl, I will see you again before you leave though. Have a good night and thanks for the offer of dinner.”

Behind me, I hear Sunny talking with Ginger and Xochitl, “Oh, that means I am late getting home, sorry guys, I will see you tomorrow,” he tells them and he takes off flying just above the treetops for home.

With that, we go inside and continue on our normal evening routines. That night I am laying in bed with Sutures while Magpie is with Woodrow. “Dearest, I am sorry about everything, especially if I have let you down by having myself branded,” I tell her.

I feel her hoof alongside my face and she tells me, “Dear, I only wish you did not feel you had to hurt yourself to feel like that. I even understand the why, I think. But dear, you have done so much and been through so much. I do worry about you.”

I lean my head against her hoof as I tell her, “Thank you, love.”

She smiles at me and as my hoof rests against her stomach I swear I feel something. I am not sure so I say nothing, but it does bring a smile to my face. I then gently kiss her belly and tell the little one, “I am sorry dear that I will not be here for your arrival, but I will come home to see you as soon as I can.”

After I say this, I see the shadow of Sutures head move as well as her hoof and she says to me, “Wow, this little one sure can kick. I think it was letting us know that they are going to hold to that promise my love.”

I then cuddle up next to her and nuzzle her some. Shortly afterward we are joined by Magpie. She climbs into the bed on the other side of Sutures and nuzzles her too, as she asks, “So how is our next mother to be doing?”

I hear the smile in Sutures’s voice as she replies, “Even better now that you are both here with me, but still tired.”

We all lay there cuddled together until we fall asleep. Shortly before I fall asleep, I feel Sutures tossing and turning, then I hear her quietly talking in her sleep and then crying. While I cannot make out all of what she is saying, I do hear enough to recognize that she is dreaming of Targhee again. I hold her close and run my hoof through her mane as I quietly tell her it is alright now. I feel a tear form in my eye and run down my cheek as I slowly put another stone in my saddlebag knowing I did this to her. Inside part of me wonders, what will I have to do to no longer feel the guilt that has come from doing my duty?

The rest of the week goes fairly smoothly. The Colonel and I successfully avoid each other. I see Dull Beak a couple of times during this week. Once when he stops for dinner with us, the other time I am heading over to visit Trouble and Blondie. I see him flying slowly by overhead in the direction of White Cloud. He lands briefly and we chat for a bit until I get to Troubles place. Then he tells me, “Tell them hi for me and let Sunny know I have another trick I want to teach him this week while I am on leave. Something I learned when I was about his age.”

“Ok, I will do that Dull Beak, enjoy the rest of your leave,” I tell him as he lazily flies off continuing his trek toward White Cloud. Then I turn and head up to the front door and knock.

“Hold on a minute, we're coming,” I hear Trouble say. After a couple of minutes of waiting, he finally opens the door. His mane is mussed and covered in dust as is the rest of him.

“Afternoon cous, what can I help you with?” he asks as he indicates with a forehoof for me to enter.

I step in and remove my hat, “Hey Trouble, I just wanted to stop and visit with you and Blondie for a bit while I still had the chance. I hope I am not interrupting anything.”

He laughs lightly, “Nah, Blondie will be down in a bit. We were just clearing out some of the upstairs rooms we had not gotten to. Thank the Goddesses that we did not find any more bodies and no ghouls.”

I nod my head, “That bad eh?”

He nods his head in agreement. “Yeah, I think some survivors were hold up in here for a bit, then decided to move on. Really, I could not blame them for it back then. It did help to explain some of the boarded-up windows upstairs. The attic is next though. I really want to be able to use the observation room up there.”

As he is saying this, I hear Blondie coming down the stairs. She calls out while still on them, “Who is it Trouble?” When she gets to the bottom of the stairs, she looks surprised. “Oh, Hi Major. You’re not here to recruit scouts are you.” While she says this lightly, I notice a bit of nervousness in her body language.

I shake my head no and I see her visibly relax. “No, I just wanted to visit while I had the chance before we ship out,” I tell her.

“Well, in that case, it is good to see you, would you like something to drink?” She says with a relaxed smile.

“Sure, if it will not be too much of a bother,” I tell her.

“How does some tea sound? I was going to make some for Trouble and me before you knocked.”

“That would be perfect. Would you like me to help?” I ask.

“No, why don’t you and Trouble just grab a seat at the table and I will be back in quickly.” She says.

A couple of minutes later she comes in with a teapot of hot water and some sassafras roots. I would have been in awe of how quickly she got the water heated if I had not learned about that trick from Doula.

As we sit there talking, Blondie asks me, “So Mollygirl, have they told you where they are sending all of you to yet?”

I shake my head and realize I must have a worried expression on it as they both look concerned suddenly and I tell her, “No, not yet. That is part of what worries me. I mean if I knew, I might be able to find out some information to help us in that area.”

Blondie nods her head, and then tells me, “Well if you can, get yourself a good copy of the Wastelands Survival Guide. I know it isn’t fully up to date, but it should give you a head start. I mean even what Trouble and I knew is now old information.”

I nod my head. “Yeah, I know. I just hate going into something like this blind.”

They both nod their heads. Then Trouble looks at first Blondie, then me, and tells me, “Mollygirl, once you get to where you are going, send us a letter, we will write you back and pass on what we know from before to you. Ditzy is good, but she can’t put everything down in her book. Who knows, maybe we can give you an inside on dealing with some of the locals where you end up.”

I see Blondie nod in agreement and she says, “It’s times like these that make me wish I was a pegasus instead so I could fly down to you if needed.”

I then sigh and tell her, “Yeah, so do I Blondie,” then I laugh to myself and when I notice Trouble's raised eyebrow, I tell him, “I often wished I had wings too. Different reasons then some others though.”

He nods his head in agreement, then we shift the topic back to more pleasurable subjects. I sit and visit with them for an hour before I notice the time. Trouble looks at the clock and nods his head. “Excuse me for a second,” he tells me as he gets up, goes to the porch, and yells out “Sunny time to come home.”

He calls out a couple of times and then comes back in. Just before he closes the door, I hear a double rifle crack in the distance. I see Trouble shake his head as he looks up at me and tells us, “I am sure he will be here in a bit. I think the youngsters just got another radhog.”

About fifteen minutes later Sunny comes flying to the porch. “Sorry Ma, Sorry Pa. I was out hunting with Ginger and Xochitl. It was my turn to be the markspony.”

When he says this, I see Trouble and Blondie both look at him, “OK, where is the rifle, because I know you did not have enough time to clean it,” Blondie tells him.

He looks down embarrassed, “Ginger said she would clean it, so I could get home on time.”

They both look at each other, and Trouble says, “Ok, son, time for you and I to go over to the Major’s place so we can get that rifle clean. You shoot it, you clean it. Your ma and I both taught you that.”

As they get up so do I and I follow them to the door. Blondie tells them, “Boys, while your gone I will start on dinner.” Then she tells me, “Major, it was good to see you again. Thank you for stopping by.”

“Your welcome, I will try to stop by at least one more time. Take care Blondie and thank you again for the tea.” I tell her as I step out the door and follow Trouble and his son back to my house.

By the time we get there, I see Xochitl and Ginger have a smaller size radhog on a sledge and are dragging it back. Ginger still has her SIR slung across her back. I stop them and tell Ginger, “Dear, head on back to the house, for now, Trouble wants Sunny to clean it since he shot the hog.”

“Ok ma, I just thought I would do it especially since I will again anyways, just in case. Besides, Xochitl needs help pulling the radhog back.”

I smile at this and I tell her, “That’s ok dear, I will take your place,” then I take the pulling harness from her and put it on, and drag it the rest of the way. Once we get to the yard, I see Xavier waiting there with a block and tackle ready in the normal tree. He helps me hang it and we begin the process of preparing it for later use.

Once we are finished, he, Xochitl, and I both head into our homes to a late supper. As I am eating Sumac tells me, “Dear, I have water heating on the stove for you to bath in. You really need it tonight.”

I blush a bit, “That bad?” I ask.

She nods her head, “Yes, especially if you are going to be sharing a bed tonight with anypony.”

That makes me look into the parlor. I only see Magpie in there so I ask, “Where are the others?”

She answers, “Ginger is in bed already. Sutures is out on a call with Doula. A mare north of the old school,” she tells me, then she adds “Badger is covering at the stable for the night for another company commander in his regiment, and Archer has his normal duty tonight.”

“Shoot, I forgot, thanks for reminding me,” I tell her.

I take off the apron I had used for butchering and look at it, as I do so, Sumac tells me, “Throw it in that bucket of cold water, it is going to need to soak some and then we will have to try and use some strong soap and perhaps a bit of bleach on it.”

I nod my head, “Thanks for letting me use it. I would have hated to have ruined a good one.”

She nods in agreement and tells me, “I am just glad I saved that one. It never was one of my favorites, but still.”

After I bathe and am cleaned up All three of us take care of the foals for the night. As I read to them, I have to smile as Bucky and Woody both lay alongside Millie with their eyes wide and ears forward, slowly falling asleep together. It is moments like this that I am going to miss so much. If only Ginger were still awake too, it would be perfect.

After they are asleep, I get up out of my rocker and turn down the lantern in their room. As I climb into bed next to Magpie, I notice Sumac is on her other side cuddled up to her and asleep already. I give Magpie a gentle kiss and enjoy her kiss back. Then she rolls over so she can wrap her hooves around Sumac and I can become the big spoon to her. I take the opportunity and do so. As I fall asleep I breathe in deeply of her scent.

As I notice both of their breathing shift to that of a deep sleep, I think back on the last six months and all that has happened. Of watching first Archer officially marry Sutures with her father walking her down the aisle. Then a few days later all of us went to the courthouse to be legally bound. I still love my little Magpie, but I also love the rest of my family, and I will miss them. At least after tomorrow, I will have one more week with them.

Dear DJ Pon3,

This week I did something I never imagined myself doing. I Had myself branded on purpose. It was with the initials of the CEF. Some of my friends and my parents have asked me why. All I can tell them is that those initials stand for those who became my brothers and sisters through shared spilled blood, and is a way of letting the world know they are my family. Perhaps they could better understand through the words of a song. Could you please play Rose Tattoo for me as well as the others who now wear the brand in memory of each other and those we lost?

Sincerely

Rosemilk,

Corporal, 6^th squad, H troop, 1^st Manesville Regiment, NCRA.

For those who feel a special bond, they often will mark themselves permanently. In the US military, it is often frowned upon for officers to get such markings themselves and at least as of the early 1990s was held against them in their annual Fitness Reports.

For those who would like to listen to this chapters dedication song, the YouTube link is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2QluqPvZYs