Chapter 75 On the Road Again.

It is shortly before my alarm goes off on my PipBuck that I wake up. I feel my hind leg being shifted and hear Woody telling Millie, “Mills help, hungry.”

I smile and gently move my legs and both of them start to feed, roughly as I am still laying down and it is harder for them this way. Against my back, I feel Badger and on the other side of the foals is Sutures with Archer. As I raise my head, I see I am the only mare that they could get at easily. I gently shake my head and smile as I enjoy this last feeding.

When my alarm goes off, both foals jump in surprise then go back to what they were doing. I feel Badger begin to move behind me and hear Sumac tell him, “I will go make coffee.”

As she says this, I hear Magpie on the other side of her tell her, “I will get Bucky for you.”

Everypony begins to get up and get moving. Sutures finally gets up and as she is stretching says, “I will help with breakfast once I put my leg on.”

“Mollygirl, do you want me to bring you your uniform?” Archer asks me.

I smile and give him a brief kiss and tell him, “No, I best get it. I want to make sure I don’t forget anything.”

He nods his head and he and Badger go into the bedroom and put on their uniforms for work today.

As she stands there feeding Shadowbuck I see her smiling sadly at me. “You know dear I am really going to miss you love.”

I smile back at her and tell her, “So am I my love, so am I.”

Then she asks, “Dear, about what time are you all supposed to leave the base?”

I smile at her and tell her, “Sometime between 8:30 and 9 this morning. Why?”

As we are talking, I begin to smell coffee and bacon in the air. Then she tells me, “Because we would like to see you off as you leave. I hope you don’t mind.”

I shake my head, “No love, I do not mind at all. In fact, I would really like it.”

After we finish feeding the youngsters Magpie and I head to the bedroom so I can get dressed and make sure I did not forget anything. As I am going through my saddlebags, I feel Ginger tug on me. When I look over, she has a plain hardcover book with her, I notice a pencil is sticking out of it. And she is holding it in her mouth for me to take.

I take it gently and set it on the bed and open it and notice the pages are blank. She smiles at me and tells me, “Ma, I bought it for you so you can have a journal, just like great-granny Millie had.”

I smile and give her a hug, “Thank you very much, Ginger. I never even thought of it. But this is great.”

I have my hoof around her and can tell she is smiling when she tells me, “Your welcome Ma.”

After we release the hug, I put the journal inside my saddlebags along with some writing papers and a cheap novel I bought off of one of the Thunderheaders. I also make sure I have my extra uniforms as well as some other minor personal items. When I leave the room, I take them with me and set them over by the door.

Breakfast goes quickly and when I finish, we all stack our plates by the sink. Sumac tells us, “I will wash them when I get back. Today, they can wait a bit.”

After she says this, I put on my saddlebags and grab all three of my weapons. I see Badger smile when I grab for Sacrifice, but I also see a look of worry come over both Archer and Sutures. The latter comes over to me. She kisses me on my cheek and tells me, “Please be careful love, I will worry about you the entire time you are gone.”

I kiss her back and tell her, “And I will worry about you. Especially with you still carrying our foal. I am so sorry I can not be here for you.”

She smiles and nods her head, “I understand though dear. That is why your weapons are named the way they are.”

We leave the farm as a family. Xavier and Persimmon wave goodbye to me. However, Xochitl joins my family in escorting me to the Base and the Stable.

As we walk I have Millie Riding on my back as well as my saddlebags Badger and Sutures both are holding my tail. I have to smile seeing Magpie and Sumac flanking Archer, both of them are carrying their little ones too. Finally, just ahead of us are Xochitl and Ginger.

As we are walking, I see the normal morning hoof traffic as those who live in the surrounding countryside return to the base for the day. I have to smile when I see Choo Choo fly over us and wave. Then she hurries on her way ahead of us.

Once at the gate, I give all of my spouses a hug and a kiss. Our foals, I hug one last time and kiss on their forelocks. I tell each of them goodbye and I will be back home as soon as I can. When I get to Millie, I see her tears forming and she calls out, “No weave, no weave mama, I good fiwy, I good.”

I almost break down in tears and I hug her and tell her, “You are a good filly, but I have to. I am so sorry.”

As I tell her this Ginger comes up to her and tells her, “It’s ok Mills, I will miss her too.” Then I am stunned as Ginger gets down and has Millie climb on her back like I did for both of them.

Ginger smiles sadly at me and tells me, “Bye Ma. I love you. Please come home.” Then she carries her younger sister back to the others.

Badger and Archer both go through the gate with me and we then separate to go to our own units.

Shortly after I am through the gate, I hear Kettle Bell call me, “Hey Colonel, slow down ma’am.”

I slow down and she catches up to me. As she gets next to me, she asks, “Are you going to be ok?”

I nod my head, “Yeah, yeah I think so. How about you?”

She nods her head, “Yeah, I am, I guess. I am just so going to miss them,” and as she tells me this, her voice cracks.

I head into the stable with Kettle Bell through the rear entrance and head straight for my office. I am met there by Chain Lighting and Paper Work. Most of the necessary items are already gone. Packed for transport. We make one more check around and then I head with them to the Armory.

As I enter, I see Buckshot is very busy along with the other ordies. He comes over to me and asks, “The normal loadout Ma’am?”

I nod my head. Before he begins to go, he turns and tells me, “Flechettes is already with the supply train for you. Otherwise I am sure he would be happy to help you too.”

I smile and I tell him, “That’s ok. I will see enough of him for the next year I am sure. But it also allows me to say goodbye to you too.”

He nods his head, shuffles into the back and returns with the normal loadout minus the helmet and weapons which I already have. He helps me put on my battlesaddle and mount my Doombunny and sword on it. He notices my pistol in my right hind leg holster and tells me, “Ma’am, I have a left forehoof holster if you would like.”

I smile at this and tell him, “No, that’s ok Buckshot. But I do appreciate it. And again, thanks for everything. I will see you next year.” I tell him and I head back out past the troopers who are coming in for the weapons and ammo still. From there I head to the drill field. We attend the normal formation with the rest of the troops from both regiments. Only we have all our equipment, wagons and artillery with us and ready.

Colonel Chappy and both of the Overs give a small speech to us and wish us well. After that I give the order. “Companies, by fours, from the right to the right, March!”

The order is repeated and we begin our deployment. I give the orders to the lead company that will take us out the main gate towards Manesville and down to the docks.

As we march through the front gates I am stunned. Lining both sides of the road are not only my mares and foals, but all of the family members of the troopers who are going with me.

As I pass my family, I hear Ginger cry out “Bye Ma. We love you.” I see Millie on her back yelling out to me too. I notice Xochitl next to Ginger and I see him salute me with tears in his eyes. I return his salute and smile for him and my family. Then we are past them and heading to the Manesville Waterfront.

Once there, members of the MP company begin to guide us to the riverboats and barges that we will be loading onto. I see many of the supply units and civilian unicorns using their magic as well as cranes to load our equipment. I also see my troopers by companies and platoons loading onto them.

I, along with the rest of the headquarters unit are guided unto an old steamer that I notice has S. Glimmer painted on its bow and on the side wheel covers. I am led to the upper decks along with my staff and officers. There we are given staterooms. After I drop off my gear, I return topside and am met by a grizzled old yellow stallion. I smile at his dark blue captains’ hat, as well as his white beard and graying mane and tail. He extends a hoof to me and tells me, “Good afternoon Colonel. I am Captain Rough Water.”

I smile at that and realize where I have heard his name before. I shake his hoof and tell him, “It is a pleasure to finally meet you Rough. Grey has mentioned you before. I am Lieutenant Colonel Mollygirl.”

I see him smile at that, “Ah, I was wondering if you were kin or not. I usually am not here in Manesville too much, I can’t earn money if I am sitting pier side.”

I nod my head and tell him, “My husband Captain Badger would love to be onboard, He used to sail on an ocean steamer.”

I see his eyes get wide, and he tells me, “Well when you get back from this little vacation you will have to introduce me to him. I would love to swap stories with him. Oh, speaking of captains. You should let all of your officers who are army captains know that they will be breveted by all those on ship to Major for the duration of your time onboard ship, as there can only be one Captain aboard any ship.”

I smile at him and tell him, “Thank you for the reminder. Badger told me about that last week. I better make sure the others understand.”

He nods his head. Then he tells me, “Ma’am, as soon as all the ships and barges are loaded, we will get underway. One of the Manesville river squadron patrol boats will lead us to your landing point. Another will cover the rear of the convoy. Both will help us if there is any trouble.”

I nod my head again and tell him. “Thank you, Captain. I appreciate it. Please have someone let me know when we are ready to depart.”

He nods his head and tells me, “I will do that. Also, you will hear us let out a long blow on our steam whistle when we get underway ma’am.”

I then head back down to see the rest of my staff. I find that Dull Beak and Bailey Bridge are sharing the stateroom next to mine. Paper Work, and Specs, and the MPs are billeted with the rest of the enlisted in a general berthing area. Lieutenant Summer Solstice is assigned the stateroom across the hall from me.

As I come down inside, I ask my officers to join me on the top deck when we get underway to wave goodbye as well as to observe the proceedings.

For the next three hours, we are topside watching the loading of our battalion and support troops. The loading of the troopers goes fairly well. What takes the most time is the loading of the wagons and artillery. We also take an additional five days’ worth of rations for all of us on board so we do not have to break into those in our supply wagons.

Once the last of our equipment and supplies are loaded. I hear the engines of the ship begin to move. I watch as the ponies on the piers take the ropes tying us loose. We are down to the last rope when I feel us moving slightly, then I watch as the last rope gets tossed into the water and pulled up. When this happens the captain, true to his word lets loose with a long blast on his steam whistle.

Ahead of us, I see the first patrol boat leading us. I then watch as the rest of our boats and barges are set loose and begin to make their way down the river. I notice on all the boats and barges are built up positions in certain areas along with a couple of automatic anti-machine rifles and other heavy weapons.

I ask one of the riverboats crew as he is walking by about them. I am almost insulted feeling when he smiles at me in a patronizing way and tells me, “Well ma’am, the river highway is not always safe, so we have these to fight back against raiders, pirates, and the like.”

Then I realize how true that must be and wonder if I should supplement the crews on these positions. I will have to ask the Captain later. I watch as George and a flight of pegasi fly low over us waving and then they continue on down the river on their morning patrol.

I lean on the rail at the stern and watch as the Manesville docks get smaller behind our small convoy. Finally, we round a bend in the Hoofrock river and I can no longer see Manesville at all, and it fully hits me that it will be at least a year until I see this place again.

I sigh and begin to head back towards the stairs, or ladder as the crew calls it, back downstairs. As I am walking that way Doc Treacle catches my attention, so I divert over to him.

Once we are close, he smiles and salutes me. “Good afternoon Colonel. I wanted to say hello to you and see how you are doing.”

I smile back at him and reply, “I am doing fine Doc, and when not on duty, please, just call my Mollygirl.”

He nods his head, still smiling, and then tells me, “Oh, Mollygirl, just so you know, I was able to permanently assign a medic to the engineers as you requested, so don’t be surprised when you see her.”

“Oh, thank you very much Doc, I really do appreciate it. Is she anypony I may know?”

I see him grin and nod his head as he says, “Oh yes, Specialist Osteotome, I only felt it appropriate that she also be deployed. Especially since I personally made sure she had been pregnancy tested along with the rest of the females for our deployment. Needless to say, she is not a happy pony right now. It seems she had planned on getting married next month. Such a pity.”

I cannot help myself; my jaw drops open and I begin to laugh. Finally, when I stop, I shake my head as I tell him with a smile, “Yes, it is such a pity.”

The voyage is quiet for the first couple of days. However, just before we leave the Hoofrock and enter the big river things become a bit more interesting. I have been invited by the Captain into the pilothouse for the shift of rivers.

Once I arrive there, he tells me, “Well Colonel, thank you for joining me. It is a rare treat for me when I get family to sail with me anymore. I hope you do enjoy the view.”

“My pleasure Captain. It is wonderful. I hope you do not mind my having brought my XO with me?”

He smiles at me, “No, not at all, I have not gotten to sail with a Griffon before. Besides, I appreciate his suggestion of supplementing our ships' defense by having some of your fliers on standby,” he then turns to Dull Beak and tells him, “Also sir, you may want to make sure they are ready, occasionally we get some pirates who get grand ideas and decide to try their luck in capturing a riverboat.”

Dull Beak nods his head and types out a quick message on his PipBuck. He then tells me, “OK, I alerted Summer Solstice, she has put her scouts on alert.”

I nod my head. Unfortunately, we are back to only officers and NCOs having PipBucks again. Most of the other troopers do have radio headsets though, so communications are still not too bad.

We are about an hours sailing time from the fork of the rivers when the convoy starts to take fire from the shore banks about three-quarters of the way to the rear, which is several kilometers behind the S. Glimmer. I watch as our lead patrol boat peels away and heads at full speed to support the attacked barge and tug.

It gets around the previous bend in the river and we are going around the next one when we see several half-sunk barges blocking most of the river. Rough Water then says to no one in particular, “Huh, well that wasn’t here the last time we came through.” We then find out that there are also several smaller boats hiding behind them as we come around that bend. They spot us and begin to move towards us firing as they come.

I hear Rough Water cuss under his breath, then he calls down to the engine room to start building steam pressure. He smiles grimly and tells me, “We have steam pipes along the sides for anti-boarder protection, you may want to send your fliers up and have your troops get their small arms ready.”

I nod to Dull Beak and he gives the orders over his PipBuck. Then I tell Rough Water, “Badger told me about having operated such a system before,” he nods his head and I continue, “Where are the handwheels in case we need to use them?”

He is still watching ahead as he tells me, “My crew will handle them, but we have one on each side, down on the main deck right in front of the side wheels.” He pauses for a second and gives the order, “Full right rudder, Full ahead port wheel, full astern on the starboard wheel.”

As the riverboat sharply turns to the right my troops and his crew have one whole side exposed and can open fire. He nods and tells me, “Give em Tartarus!” Then he orders his crew. “All stop both engines, Rudder amidships.” And we drift sideways at the barges.

I give the order and the entire side seems to disappear in flame and smoke. And I watch as several of the pirates are either hit or they dive for cover. In the opening of the barges, I see a large chain hanging. I yell to Rough, “Captain, they have a chain in the water blocking the opening.”

He smiles back and yells back to me “I know, I am going to put us alongside that barge on the port side. We will have to cut those chains so the rest can get through.”

I nod my understanding and call over my PipBuck, “Bailey Bridge, can you read me, this is MG1.”

I hear him call back, “MG one this is Sapper one, I read you.”

“Sapper one, we are going alongside those barges, I need a team to cut that chain,” I tell him.

“Roger that MG one, I got just the toys.”

I watch as several of my troopers firing from the upper works are wounded as we drift down the river. Many of their buddies risk their lives to grab them and drag them to cover. One of the small boats comes close to our side and starts to throw grappling hooks so they can try and board us. Their crew is keeping a heavy fire into us so that we can not fire on them easily. It is then as they are starting to try and climb aboard that I hear Rough give the order, “Activate anti boarder measures!”

As he screams this I start to hear a slight hissing that quickly grows into a scream as loud as the steam whistle then I hear it joined by many more unequine sounding screams as the crew members of that boat are hit by the newly released 30 psi steam which is at 274 imperial, or 135 metric degrees. The side of our ship is covered in a white fog. The captain of the attacking boat quickly attempts to back his boat away and I watch as it begins to drift with the current as my ponies and cattle begin to take it under fire again.

Above us, I watch as Summer Solstices fliers begin to strafe first the attacking craft, then several of them shift to the barges as we get close. From my PipBuck, I hear the captain of the first patrol boat report that they have taken fire and have wounded on board, but are heading back to the head of the convoy.

As we close on the barges, I look upriver and see most of the convoy has slowed and gathered closer for mutual support. I watch the patrol boats come racing forward. The water spraying from their bows and their guns blazing at the other crafts on the river. I watch as I see one of the pirate craft explodes and begin to sink in flames as its crew leaps into the water.

The Glimmer keeps drifting closer to the barges as we exchange fire with those on them as well as on the river banks. I am starting to worry but then Rough calls out, “Port Engine back one third!” and we begin to twist to the left.

Rough Water smiles at me and tells me, “Colonel, I am going to put the port bow alongside that barge and drop the loading ramp. Have your troopers that are going after that chain meet my crew and stand ready.”

I call down to Baily and let him know. Then I see movement on the bow as the forward cranes start to lift the ramp and shift it into position.

I hear Rough giving the orders that bring the ship gently to rest only meters from the barges. The bow ramp drops and I watch as Bailey Bridge leads his team of engineers and the civilian sailors at a gallop across them and towards the chains. On their way, they are engaged several times. I see several ponies go down. Some theirs, some ours. Then I am shocked to see the engineer’s medic is with them and she is taking care of them under fire.

Bailey first rigs the chain with demo charges then I watch as they fight their way to the other end of the barge and rig another two sets of charges on the deck mounted cylinders that the barge uses to tie it to the next one. After they have finished, they run back to the bow ramp grabbing the wounded and assisting Osteotome move the patient she is working on. We leave none of ours behind.

Once they are back on board the Glimmer, Rough gives the order, “Full astern both engines.” As we move back from the barges, I listen to him give the commands that move us back a good fifty meters from the barges.

As we reach that point Bailey Bridge arrives at the pilothouse. He quickly says, “Captain if you could please move us back another seventy-five meters. Then I will set off the charges.”

It seems to take forever for the Glimmer to back those last few meters. We are firing suppressive fire at the barges to keep them from reaching the explosive charges we have placed. The Pegasi, having been warned of what we are doing, also back away and fire at the river banks or return to us.

Then Bailey says, “With your permission Captain.”

I look forward and see several of the pirates running forward towards the barge and chain. A group of them reach the first one and I see a pony reaching for one of the charges. I turn my head to say something and I see Rough Water give an evil grin as he nods his head and tells Bailey, “Permission granted.”

Bailey pushes the red button on the radio detonator and then I hear a series of explosions from the barges as the chain is blown loose from the barge on our side of the river and the barge that it had been attached to has both ends blown away. Its wreckage floating downstream as it fills with water. Slowly sinking lower in the water.

Then I see the first patrol boat take the lead again and Rough gives the command, “All ahead full,” as he guides us through the gap. The gunfire from the pirates that remain on the shore begins to fade as they see their gamble has failed and we sail quickly past. I look over at Rough Water and see him smiling as he pats the window frame of the pilothouse gently and under his breath, I hear him say, “That’s my girl, you never let me down Starlight.”

I return my focus on the rest of the convoy and watch as each of the barges and riverboats make it past and soon, we are past the fork of the two rivers.

I smile at Bailey and tell him, “Great Job. Thanks.”

He smiles and tells me, “Ma’am, how about you come down and tell my people that in person. They really earned it.”

I agree and I head below decks with him. When we get to the team who were with him, I see the medic is still working alongside Doc Treacle on a wounded sailor. Once I hear them say he is stabilized I nod my head and then I clear my throat. This gets most of their attention. Those who it does not are tapped by others and soon they are all looking at me. I then tell them, “Excellent work. Those of you who were with the CEF, you performed to your normal high standards. For those of you who are new, you performed as well as my old hoofs, and for that I thank you.”

I see several of them smile and others simply nod. I am about to leave when the medic comes over to me and says, “Ma’am, I owe you a huge apology for last year. I am really sorry, I cannot imagine going through that normally, much less pregnant.”

I smile ruefully and tell her, “It's ok Specialist, thank you for the apology.”

As I turn away, I hear Doc Treacle tell her, “Specialist, that was nothing, it was just a skirmish.”

I look back and see her go pale as she realizes what he has just said. Then she asks him in a shaky voice, “It gets worse?”

I am heading out the door as I hear him say, “Ask some of the old-timers about Serenity Valley or Targhee.” Then I am out the door and I feel myself begin to shake at the mere mention of those names.

We travel down the river sticking to the middle of it for the next day and a half. Again, I am near the pilothouse as we approach the landing. Bailey Bridge is standing there next to me. About two miles downriver we can see the remains of the bridge at Good Doer. Bailey and I both shake our heads at the memories there. Then Rough Water calls out the window to us, “Colonel, we could take you further but some idiots decided last year that it would be a good idea to drop all the bridges for the next fifty kilometers.”

As he says this, I see Bailey cringe some, and I have to put a hoof over my muzzle to keep from laughing. Instead, I play it off as a cough and I tell Rough, “We understand Captain. Thank you for the ride though. I hope to see you again on our way back.”

He smiles and calls back. “Well I hope I get the contract for it. Who knows by then maybe some more of those engineer ponies can clear a path that we can sail through?”

I see Bailey nod his head and he quietly tells me, “Too bad we don’t have any balefire eggs we could use. I bet those would clear that wreckage out quickly.”

I cannot believe he says this, so I decide to get his goat. I smile at him grimly and I tell him, “Bailey, I know you like big bangs, so if you ever say something like that again, I will tell Kettle Bell you are interested in her.”

I see his eyes go wide in fear and he replies, “Ma’am, are you talking Captain Kettle Bell. The cow who hooked up with a brahmin?”

I nod my head. “Yes Bailey, her.”

I hear his voice crack as he tells me, “Colonel, for the love of all that is holy, please don’t do that, she may think you are serious and try to make good on it.”

Oh, this is going to be a fun deployment I tell myself as I simply smile at him.

Then I hear Rough give the orders to prepare the bow ramp and I feel us slowly glide to a stop near the landing. Once stopped both of the bow ramps are dropped down and we begin to file off of the S. Glimmer. Bailey hurries off to join his platoon and I stop by the pilothouse one last time.

I knock on the door and am told to enter. As I go in, I approach Rough and I extend a hoof which he takes and shakes. “Thanks again, Captain. It was a pleasure to get to know you over the last couple of days.”

He smiles back at me and tells me, “Likewise Colonel. And for what it is worth, thanks for the talk about Millie. I have heard Grey talk about some of it, but not all of it. Next time I am in Manesville I will have to stop in the library.”

“Sounds good, tell Magpie you are a Water and that you and I have talked and she will hook you up with the journals at least.”

He smiles again and tells me, “I will do that. Be careful out there and I expect to see you in a year, now get going, we need to clear this berth.”

I smile and head down to my stateroom. I put my journal and pencil back inside my saddlebags. It seems I have had a good start on it already. Once I have everything, I look over the room one last time. I gently pat the door frame and say, “Thank you old girl, you got us through.” Then I turn, leave the stateroom and its comforts as I leave the ship and go back to the world of being a grunt.

It takes until the next day before all my forces are unloaded from the transports. The bodies of the three troopers we lost in the battle with the pirates are wrapped up and loaded onto the patrol boats to be returned to Manesville. I have Specs wire in the casualty report to the Regiment and the regional commander along with a brief contact report. I have to shake my head less than a week out and I have already lost three troopers, and to river pirates of all things. Well at least it will make my journal more interesting, I guess.

We camp at the landing for the next night but will wake at dawn and begin our march south. Several of the scouts begin to laugh when they hear some of the old hoofs warn them about chitterers, until I walk up to their campfire and tell them that not only are they true, but I tell them about how Blueberry Crisp had to use armor to set up a fake camp in an infested woods and they still tried to attack.

One of the young scouts, A bright green unicorn named Sparkle Apple asks me, “Ma’am, why would you need to do that anyway?”

I look across the fire at them and I tell them, “We had just lost most of our officers and were being chased by Silver Spite and his forces. We needed a diversion so we set up a fake camp for them to attack.”

Sparkle Apple then asks, “So what happened Ma’am?”

I smile, and I guess the firelight must have really added to the effect as I see a look of terror come over their faces when I tell them, “According to Captain Sunset who watched it, it was better than an artillery bombardment as they hit the decoy they were attacked by hundreds of the chitterers. Remember, not only are they giant ticks, but they communicate with each other using that chittering sound.”

Sparkle Apple, Lieutenant Solstice, and several of the others all look at each other nervously now and Trooper Apple asks, “LT, what do we do if we find them?”

Out of habit I almost answer, but Summer Solstice does instead and tells him, “Avoid them and let me know.” Then she looks at me.

I nod at her response and tell them, “She is right, keep away from them and let us know. I will send up the Engineers with a flamethrower.”

Behind me, I hear our Sergeant Major say, “Ah yes, the old kill it with fire method. Usually very effective.”

When he says this, it lightens the moment for everypony and we all laugh lightly and go on to lighter subjects.

I make my rounds of the camps and finally find the Door Kickers. At their headquarters I find Broken Hills and Cloudy Day along with their 1^st Sergeant Bullet. As I approach, they notice me and Broken Hills asks, “Ma’am, are we having officers call before we march out?”

I nod my head as I tell him, “Yes, I plan on maintaining the same operating procedures as before,” Then I ask him, “So how is the unloading coming for you?”

He smiles as he answers, “Already done ma’am, It is mainly the artillery and a few supply wagons that are still offloading, When I was down there an hour ago the last two barges were being offloaded.”

I smile as I tell him, “That sounds good. If they need a few hoofs to finish unloading don’t be afraid to send a few troopers to assist them. Just like last time, we are all in this together.”

I see Broken smile at this as he replies, “I won’t forget it Ma’am. None of those who were in the CEF will.”

Beside him I see a look of slight bewilderment come over Bullet’s face as he looks between Broken Hills and me. Then he asks, “Ma’am, Sir, what exactly happened on the expedition?”

We both look at him and I tell him quietly, “Dad, it was the stuff of nightmares, but together we survived it.”

Beside me, Broken Hills sighs and nods his head, “1^st Sergeant, no offense, but that little buck Xochitl, having been on the expedition makes him more of a veteran than most of the troops in the old CDF. It was a fight for our lives the last half, and any of those there I will trust with my back anytime.”

I see Bullet looking a bit concerned at me, then he nods his head in understanding.

I then decide to move on, but before I leave, I ask, “1^st Sergeant, where is the first squad? I would like to say hello to a couple of them.”

Bullet smiles and tells me, “Follow me, Colonel, I was heading to their part of the camp anyways.

Chain Lighting and I follow him over, and soon I begin to see some members of the old squad. I can not help but smile as I see Pearl and Woodrow sitting side by side along with Dusty, Prairie Fire, and Diamond. When they see me, they all begin to stand and I use my hoof to tell them to stay seated, as I tell them, “Remember we are back in the field no standing, no salutes out here.”

From the side, I hear a familiar voice ask, “Why not? I thought you all respected her.”

I then hear Woodrow say, “Nightshade, that is a great way to get an officer killed out here. You jump up like that or salute, that means we have someone in charge and that draws attention. Believe me, in a combat environment like the wastelands, the last thing you want to do is draw attention to yourself or those around you.”

In the dark just outside of the firelight I see a shadow I assume is Nightshade nod. I see two other earth ponies I am not familiar with sitting next to him. Pearl sees me looking at them and tells me, “They are the new recruits in my section ma’am. That one there is Duct Tape,” She says pointing at a grey mare with a black and white mane and tail, then she points to a yellow stallion with black mane and tail and says “And that one there is Fiddle. He brought one with him and you should hear him play.”

I have to smile at that and I tell her, “I would love to. Maybe in the next couple of days though. I am just making my rounds of the camp and checking on everyone.”

I see the one she called Fiddle, look around and then he asks, “Colonel, Ma’am, would it be ok if I played a bit for my squad tonight?”

I smile at this and tell him, “It should be ok. Just don’t get too rambunctious and if anypony tells you to stop, listen to them, there is probably a good reason, ok.”

I see him smile like a young foal as he nods his head, “Thank you, Ma’am.”

“Your welcome trooper, now have a good night all. I need to get moving. It is good to see all of you again.”

I am just moving on to the next campfire when I begin to hear a fiddle being warmed up in the distance. I smile to myself and just relish the feeling of camp life again. Beside me I see Chain smiling too as he listens to the sounds of the camp and he looks over at me and asks, “Was it like this last time?”

I smile back and am honest with him as I answer, “Sometimes. This is the part I miss.”

I see him nod his head, “You know Colonel, the largest force I ever come ground side with when I was in the Enclave was a platoon. Never this many at a time. It is both reassuring and nerve-wracking for me.”

I nod my head in understanding. “Believe me Chain, the expedition was the first time Manesville ever sent out this large of a force, so I do understand. In the pale moonlight, I look across the river and just a bit downstream. I point in that direction and I tell him. “Last time we came out I had one of my civilian scouts show me the remains of Stable 4. It is over that way.”

I see him look that way and shake his head, “Another dead stable. What killed that one?”

I give him a sad smile as I tell him, “I found the Overcows journal, they were found by the Steel Rangers. They called for help from Stable 4B in Manesville, but it never came. I wish our Stable could have helped them.”

I see him look funny at me and he asks, “Ma’am, I only thought there was Stable 48 in Manesville?”

I nod my head and I tell him, “So did I Chain, so did I.”

He then asks me, “Those things were usually built near a town, what was the name of this one?”

I smile Sadly and tell him, “Good Doer. It was almost as vibrant as Dairyanne or Donovan, but raiders overran it when we were coming back. We only found a school teacher and a half dozen of her students still alive there, along with the pegasi that live in White Cloud. You know Sirocco and them.”

He nods his head, “So that is the place. I have met little Good Doer. She is a real cutie, smart too.”

I smile, “Sounds like you knew them before.” I tell him.

He nods his head, “Well some of them. I never met Sunset until we were down here. But my brother was married to Blue Skies, his sister. So, I have got to know them a bit.”

I look over at him and ask, “Chain, what happened to her husband? I never got a straight answer.”

I see him shiver and he looks me in the eyes, “Ma’am, he volunteered for a special project that would increase the fighting abilities of the pegasi. I have heard rumors of what they did and if they are true ma’am, then as far as I am concerned those who ran that program were guilty of crimes against equinity.”

I nod my head, “Ok, that is a bit more than I have gotten before. Thanks for sharing that much with me.”

He nods his head and tells me, “Colonel, your welcome, but please do not ask me about it again. I really do not want to think about what they could have done to him.”

I put a forehoof on his shoulder and I tell him, “I won’t. I am sorry I even asked now.”

I see him straighten himself back to normal and he then says, “Well ma’am, shall we go visit the Belles next?”

The road south is uneventful for the next few days. We continue on the typical pattern of marching we used before. Keeping pace with the wagons and artillery. Each night we set up camp a couple of hours before sunset. I have Summer Solstice’s Scouts make sure we are clear for several klicks around us before we set in for the night. It is funny how the old habits came back though. As soon as we stop for the night the old hoofs start to dig their fox holes. The next thing you know they are joined by the youngsters. After the third day, it has become routine for everyone.

As we pass the wreckage of the bridge across the river to Two Step, I am saddened to see that very little is left of what was once a surviving community. I am walking next to Clock Work and Trip Hammer when we see it.

I see Trip Hammer’s head go down and a few tears form in his eyes. Then he looks ahead and keeps going past the village that was once his home.

I see a couple of others of my Enfield’s who are the same way. Each turns in to themselves and says not a word, but keeps marching.

We are just past the bridge when I hear Trip Hammer begin to sing in a deep mournful voice,

Sweet Holly, Sweet Holly it’s for your sake alone. I've left my old Father, my village, and my home. I've left my old Mother to weep and to mourn I am a Co-op soldier, and far from my home.

I can hear the pain in his voice as he sings and soon more of my Enfields join him as we march,

It’s rifles and carbines and the cannons lumber loud. It's many a mangled body, a blanket for their shroud. It's many a mangled body left on those fields alone. I am a Co-op soldier and far from my home.

I can feel the raw emotions in their voices as they continue to sing. I then notice Clock Work has joined them.

Here’s a good old cup of brandy and a glass of fine wine. You can drink to your true love and I will drink to mine You can drink to your true love and I will lament and mourn I am a Co-op soldier and far from my home.

I continue to march alongside them feeling these emotions myself. I even feel some tears in my eyes. But I do not let them fall.

Build me a castle on some green mountain high Where I can see Holly when she is passing by. Where I can see Holly and help her to mourn, I am a Co-op soldier, and far from my home. I am a Co-op soldier and far from my home.

As the song winds down, I am still next to Clock Work. I see his face and I know that while Two Step was not his home, he is seeing the one that was in his mind. I tell him, “I have not ever heard that song before.”
He nods at me, “Ma’am, I am not sure which one, but one of my troopers wrote it a while back.”

As he is saying this to me, Summer Solstice lands next to me and I see tears in her eyes. She looks at Clock Work and me and says, “You need to teach us that one too. My scouts all feel that way right now.”

As he looks at her with a sad smile and nods her head. I hear Trip Hammer begin the next song and we continue on as he and his troops start

Celestia Bless and Luna defend,

The fight will continue until our end

We march and we fight and we trot some more,

Cause that is what we are all here for.

Soon the entire column has joined them as we force ourselves to keep moving further from our homes and those we love.

The next day we approach the railroad beds that we fought over the year before. We are through the Canterlot Mountain gap. I decide that this is a good spot to stop for the night and we begin to set up camp.

I have had Specs send my message out to Manesville to let them as well as the NCR know where we are at. I am just sitting down to relax for the evening after our officers call and my normal camp tour when I see three shadows coming out of the dark up to the HQ fire. Without thinking I have my SMG drawn and trained at them.

From the dark, I hear a mare’s voice say, “Yep, that’s her, that is the old LT I know.”

Then I hear a stallion's voice say “Well it's not like she hasn’t pulled a gun on us before. At least this time you are not tied up.”

From next to them I hear another stallion start to laugh and say, “No way. She didn’t?”

I then realize who they are and put the weapon away, “Come on in Blackberry, Chip. Good to see you again.”

From next to me I see the Sergeant Major get up with an expression like a foal on Hearth's Warming Eve. As he heads towards the third voice and I hear him say “Tail Spin, it is so good to see you, dear.” And I watch as they hug and exchange a kiss. I even find myself feeling jealous, not because of who is doing what, but that I don’t have my loved ones here to do it with just hurts.

After they let go, they all come and sit down at the fire with me. Blackberry then tells me, “Ma’am, I was wondering if you could wait a day or two before heading on. You see we are going back under the mountain. It seems the President wants us to contact Side Track and talk with him about getting this portion of the line operating again as well as having him help teach others to maintain both the rails and the rolling stock.”

From a couple of ponies over I hear Paper Work ask, “Is that the same Side Track that was engaged to Choo Choo?” When I look at him his ears are laying down along the side of his head.

I nod my head yes and tell him, “Yeah, that would be the same one, why Paper Work?”

He looks up at me and tells me, “Ma’am, considering his feelings for her, and my feelings for her, I am sure he would not be too happy to have me around.”

Chip looks at him and tells him “Well if you meet him, just don’t bring it up, ok.”

Paper Work looks uncomfortable but then says, “Ok, if you think that will work, I will try it.”

Finally, I ask, “So when are you going to go in?”

I see Blackberry Pie smile at me, “Actually ma’am, it is we. We are to go in come morning.”

I look at her and I hear the irritation in my voice, “What do you mean we? I have a battalion to lead.”

I see her smile as she uses her tk to pull an envelope out of her saddlebag and she passes it to me. I read it and am stunned. It is orders from the Commanding General of the NCR Army, telling me that I am to accompany these agents in making contact with Side Track for the betterment of the NCR. The note also says that we are also supposed to verify that the Doorway is still there and safe.

I look up from the letter and tell her, “Ok, so we than. Dull Beak, you got that?”

I hear him laugh lightly, “Well I guess nothing can be easy with you ma’am, I got it.”

I then turn back to Blackberry, “Ok well how about we call it a night then,” as I get my bedroll out and begin to get it ready. Then Chip asks, “Ma’am, one more thing, what do you think about having an escort squad for us, just in case of ferals or such?”

As I stand up, I tell them, “Yeah, your right, let me head on over to the Doorkickers. We might as well make it a reunion.”

Once I get over to D troop, I first find Captain Broken Hills and I tell him what is going on. He nods his head, and then asks me, “Ma’am are you sure you only want the 1^st squad?”
I think about it for a bit and tell him, “Yeah, I do not want to weaken your company too much while I am gone.”

He nods his head. Then he looks over at Bullet and tells him, "1^st Sergeant you and the 1^st squad will escort the Colonel. I know a portion of your squad were with her last time. Listen to them if they make suggestions.”

He nods his head and gets up and heads back over to the 1^st squad to let them know, while he is doing this I head over to Bailey Bridge and ask for one of his squads.

“Ma’am, why can’t I go, I would love to see the work under there.” Bailey Bridge asks me.

I smile at him and tell him, “Bailey, I understand, believe me, but I need you out here with the rest of your platoon.”

When I say this, I can see him accept the answer, but I can tell he doesn’t like it. I hear him sigh and he tells me, “Ok Mollygirl, but please be careful. Tar would never forgive me if something happens to you.”

I put a hoof on his shoulder and tell him, “I will be, and when you write her next, tell her I said hi and that I miss her too.”

I then head back to my headquarters group and we settle in for the night.

When morning comes, I hold officers call early and inform them that Dull Beak will be in charge until I get back. As I say this I see Kettle Bell chuckle. So, I ask her, “Ok Captain, what’s so funny?”

She smiles at me then tells me, “This situation reminds me of last year is all. When Quick Trot went with Dull Beak. Too bad no brahmins are around this time.” She says jokingly.

Beside her I see Bailey Bridge look uncomfortable when she says this and I look at him and give him a wink. Then I watch as Kettle puts a hoof around him. I immediately see him go pale and I have to fight a laugh myself. Yes, this is going to be a fun deployment I tell myself again.

After we finish officers call, my team assembles to go inside. I have Paper Work come with me also as well as the engineer squad and the 1^st Squad.

As we get ready to go inside, I have Woodrow take the lead followed by Nightshade and the rest of 1^st Squad. I am in the middle, and the engineers bring up the rear. I look up at Celestia’s sun as it rises higher into the sky and let out a breath I did not know I was holding. Then I give the order. “Ok, let’s go,” and once again I am entering under Canterlot Mountain.

Dear DJ Pon3,

Today my crew and I dropped off the members of the NCRA who are deploying from Manesville. They all are volunteers but I know how hard it is on them to leave their home once again. They are yet days into this deployment and already have seen action along with me and my crew. I cannot help but think of what may be ahead of them as I watch them march away from the landing. For them could you play Over the Hills and Far Away.

Thank You

Captain Rough Water of the Riverboat S. Glimmer.

Once again Mollygirl and crew have left home and are back in the field. The goodbyes are not easy for either the servicemembers or their families. There is also the uncertainty of when or if any of them may return again in their minds as even during peace, accidents do happen.

For those who would like to listen to this chapter's dedication song the YouTube link is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9cblEly5Qo