"That's a lot of books," Crimson comments as he watches Moonlight pack her light blue saddlebags.

"What's wrong with books?" she replies incredulously.

"Nothin'. I've never been against a good read, but I don't think those-many books are gonna be fun to carry around."

"We are going to be on the train for hours, Crimson. Why wouldn't I bring something to spend the idle time with?"

For a moment, Crimson tries to come up with a response, moving his eyes between her and the four novels that she shoved into her bags. He realizes that, while he might not be able to read several books in a span of few hours, maybe she can. And maybe she will. She also doesn't seem to care how heavy her bags will be, so with that, he submits voluntarily, "Good point."

Moonlight flips up the hood on her robe with her magic, getting her horn through the hole at the top and shaking her head to make it sit. She then fixes her saddlebags around her waist, tying the belt over her belly to keep it snug. With a deep inhale to supply her fortitude, she looks up to Crimson. "Ready to go?"

Though he sees the apprehensive energy in her eyes, he simply nods, "Sure am."

"Follow me."

Moonlight makes anxious haste through the Castle with Crimson following behind her. Very much like the first time Moonlight paraded him through these royal halls, the stares from ponies around are heavy and abundant.

Crimson finds something peculiar about this round of eyes though. Unlike before, they aren't coming off as judgmental or cynical, or at least, they don't feel that way. Whether it be a maidmare or stallion in a tux, interest is present in the faces of those around. Although the hesitation to openly approach him or Moonlight is still there, they certainly seem less oppressive. Whatever it was that changed, he hopes that it stays that way. It'll be easier to move around Canterlot without everyone looking ready to cry wolf.

This phenomenon even follows him outside of the Castle walls. Pedestrian ponies of all sorts wandering about the city cease their morning movement to stare at him, whispering to each other with raised brows. It's easy enough for him to ignore as they make their way through the marble streets.

Once Moonlight and Crimson arrive at the station, the train awaits them with an open boarding door, in part by Moonlight's expert timing. She pays for two pony tickets, allowing access to herself and the human with her. They both board the fairly-occupied train and get situated at the back of the cart where fewer ponies sit, with Crimson taking up a fair chunk of the room next to the window and Moonlight taking the isle seat.

Stares from passengers in other parts of the cart are definite, but at least they're not trying to physically interact with him. It's also apparent that Moonlight isn't too keen on taking her hood off with all of these ponies around, and with the notion that none of them seem to know who she is, she might keep it that way for the rest of the ride.

The train begins to move when the doors close and the whirling whistle outside chimes.

Crimson feels a nudge at his side, followed by Moonlight's softly-whispered voice, “Eat this.” She takes out an oatmeal bar from the small pouch on her saddlebag and levitates it to him. He takes it and unwraps it. “Our destination is the White Tail woods. ... And before you say or do anything, I highly advise taking a nap. I neglected mentioning this yesterday in hopes that you would get proper sleep last night, but you look even worse today."

"M--" Crimson halts himself from using her name overtly. "... I'm fine, don't worry about me," he mumbles, taking a chunk of the oatmeal bar into his mouth.

"No. You're not. You look absolutely ghastly. You and I need to have a talk about this when we get back. Please... take a nap. If not for yourself, then for me.”

Crimson sighs through his nose, nodding reluctantly with a mouthful of oatmeal bar.

Moonlight lets out a deep breath and sits backed into her seat. She looks down at her hooves gloomily.

Her mind begins an unending race with itself, pulling up thoughts and memories of times past, re-engaging her self-loathing inclinations that have become more prominent over the years in her isolation. Expectations unlived, relationships ruined, and failures amassed. It happens randomly. It happened just before she returned to Canterlot for the first time in years, and it even happened last night. That crushing weight that rises in her heart. No matter how hard she tries to suppress it around others so they keep their pity and worries away, it's dominating her now, and she has no choice but to try and ride it out.

She begins to unwillingly fidget in her seat, doing her best to keep it as stifled as possible. She hopes no one notices, especially not Crimson. The last thing she wants to do is worry him.

As the train moves along its course and Canterlot becomes further away, her tension rises and the overbearing stress eats away at her. It feels like needles are poking her skin all throughout her body, and it's becoming unbearably hot under her robe.

She thinks... she thinks maybe a good book could help her out. She uses her magic to open her left saddlebag... but she ceases any movement right after, suspended in viciously cycling brooding that drains her of motility.

...

"...!" she suddenly shivers in startlement. She feels Crimson's left arm wrap around her and take her into his embrace, effectively breaking the circuit of her self-deprecating mind.

Her cheeks and ears heat up from the sudden contact, though hidden under her hood. She is terribly unsure whether he's doing this simply because he can, or because he knew what was happening to her, but she doesn't fight it.

There's that sensation again, and it seeps perfectly through the cloth she wears. The same sensation she feels every time his hand touches her. She's always had a suspicion it came from him... but she wonders no longer. It does come from him. That oddly relaxing tide of delight in his hold, like if he was somehow sucking away the stress that was building inside of her. Like an oasis to hydrate a wandering soul in the desert, his touch soothes the toxicity that was vitiating in her head.

She trepidly shifts her eyes to the man that holds her, tilting her head to look out from under her hood. She witnesses his glowing irises shimmering softly with gold. She watches the magma-like essence in his orbs lazily swirl in circles, finding herself entranced at their sight.

Seemingly unaware of himself, Crimson continues chewing on his snack as he gazes out to the city of Canterlot, watching it become more and more distant while the train continues on.

Once Moonlight realizes that she's been staring at his face for too long, she turns her head away quickly and lets her ears fall, moving her eyes to the train cart floor. She wants to be embarrassed at herself, she wants to feel a mountain of negative sentiments, but under his hold, she finds it difficult to stress about anything. She even feels drowsiness kicking in. The anxiety attack she had last night didn't allow her to sleep at all, and her constant worrying about today's endeavor further served to keep her awake. She only managed to find rest in the early hours of the morning, which was abruptly interrupted by Crimson wandering into her room to wake her up.

It doesn't take long for her to take her own advice. She closes her eyes and leans against the human who holds her, and for the meantime, she distances herself from her troubles.

‎

---

‎

The train comes to a steaming halt. Crimson and Moonlight are both wide awake. The trip took several hours, and in that time, Crimson ate all of the snacks and Moonlight managed to read through an entire book.

Crimson is nothing short of bewildered at her ability to scan words at such a high speed. It was a fairly thick book, but she ran through it effortlessly. Moonlight had offered him a book to read and he accepted it, but he quickly found out that he can't read written Ponish. Moonlight found this phenomenon overwhelmingly exciting, and now English is another thing on the list of items she wishes to study.

The boarding doors open. Very few ponies are in the train now and no one boards, and the only two to get off at White Tail junction is the odd pair. The door closes, and the train is back on its path, leaving them effectively stranded for the next few hours.

Crimson looks up towards the sun. He sees that it’s already on its way down, with maybe two hours of daylight left. Moonlight takes out her mini-ANA from her saddlebag and presses the green button under the screen, waiting for the little chime.

Be-Deet!

She smiles slightly as she watches it come to life. The lazy green line that usually travels along the screen is now wobbling frantically, and the device begins to squeal like a radiation detector. She adjusts the nobs on the left and right sides of the screen, changing the squirming green line in the interface for a green-lined topographic map of the detected region.

"What's the little beepin' box sayin'?" Crimson asks.

"Just as expected, the magic signature is coming from the nearby town I mentioned. Celestia's scouts have yet to fail!"

"How do you know this magic signature is the one we're lookin' for?"

"The Second-Head Researcher managed to find the signature of the magic anomalies yesterday. He sent me a letter via scroll-send spell. It was perfect timing that he found such valuable information at just the right time."

"Second-Head knows you're at Canterlot?"

"Of course. Everypony in the team knows, I sent letters out yesterday informing the team in Las Pegasus, and you informed the Canterlot team of me."

"Guessin' they're the only ones to know. The ponies in the city aren't any wiser."

"They're the only ones I want knowing. I'm... kind of in charge of them, even if I don't do a very good job as a leader. ... Come on, follow me." She marches forward, stepping down from the platform and across the train tracks. She takes a dirt road into the White Tail woods, and they proceed along this path for a while.

Crimson looks around as they walk, letting the sound of nature please his ears. Moonlight is giving her full attention to the device held in her hoof, following its directions and sound cues. She would hold it with her magic, but doing so would interfere with its signal.

"Do they know you're doin' field ops now?"

"Mm, no. The only pony who knows we're out here today is Princess Celestia."

"You spoke to her?"

"... Nnnot exactly..."

"I wrote her a letter." "You wrote her a letter." They speak simultaneously, getting a chuckle from Crimson and a timid smile from Moonlight.

"Why're you writin' letters to her if you're like a ten minute walk away from her throne?"

"She's a very busy pony. The only reason she was at her throne the first day we were here was that she anticipated us. She halted several meetings she needed to attend to just to see us. The only real way to communicate to her is by her call, reservation, or by letter. She always reads my letters and replies every night, so that's what I use to talk to her."

"It's almost like nothin' changed from being in yer other house. You're still just writin' letters to everyone. ... You ever gonna go out 'n wander at some point?"

"... Maybe. ... I don't know yet. L-Let's keep focused on this for now, okay?" she begs him trepidly. He gives her a nod in response, silencing himself until they reach their destination.

Eventually, the woods give away and the path expands into a dirt field. Moonlight lifts her gaze up from the directions on her mini-ANA. “... Oh dear."

Crimson returns from his stargazing to see what she's referring to. Just ahead of them is a small town, the shambles and remnants of one. They watch it from a distance, scanning for signs of life, but find none. The only sight they encounter is broken, burnt, and destroyed wooden structures that litter the ground. Few buildings still stand among the smoking ruins.

They move forward into the town. It seems to have a similar style to Dodge, but with buildings built parallel to each other, instead of a T-shape.

Crimson scratches his head, “Looks like somethin’ just sacked this place.”

“And recently too."

The two see drying blood around the town, random splotches of it, scattered around in a way that can only be described by frantic horror. Bones are scattered in the same manner as the blood, yet no bodies are to be found. The cues around give the idea that the bodies were either completely decimated or moved elsewhere. The buildings that are burnt still have gently smoking embers, small orange specks of burning ash that still have seconds of life left.

Moonlight returns her attention to her mini-ANA, slowly moving between each building and its rubble to scan with her device. Crimson walks down the middle of this town, glancing at everything that encompasses him with sharp eyes. He figures that whatever it was that ran down this place, it might still be around.

He sees something strangely pastel under a pile of rubble and wood. He walks towards the front of a broken-down shop, standing just before this pile of interest. He kicks some of the rubble off with the side of his foot, revealing a corpse. He sees the top-half of a dead, fairly young stallion. The face of this poor pony is that of utter fear, the last expression he made before his life was cut short.

Crimson looks at the corpse lazily, unbothered by its existence, more-so interested that this is the only body to be found in the wreckage. He proceeds to kick off some more of the rubble, revealing that the top-half is the only part of the body that remains. His lower half is completely absent, where a blood-pool and intestinal tracts take the place of where his hindlegs would have been. Crimson crouches down, examining the sever-point on the stallion's body. “… Doesn’t look like any sorta weapon split this guy," he mutters to himself. "... Ain't never seen flesh ripped this oddly before."

"NUH! HUWAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Crimson’s head snaps like a turret when he suddenly hears a terrified scream come from Moonlight. He steps back into the open, catching glimpse of her standing at the entrance of the town’s rundown saloon a few meters off. “Moonlight!?”

Her ANA is beeping loudly. She turns and runs as fast as her unconditioned body will allow her to, weighed down by the books in her saddlebag. Crimson darts forward and meets her halfway, letting her run behind him and press herself against the back of his legs. He remains looking at the saloon, furrowing his brows at whatever it was that caused her fear.

“What? What was it?” Crimson asks hurriedly. Moonlight's quivering form fails to reply with anything coherent, so he keeps his eyes focused on the saloon.

...

He waits in silence. He only hears the mini-ANA's wailing, the breeze of the evening, and Moonlight's skittish breaths.

He balls his hands into fists, raising his focus against the eerie nothingness.

...

The side of the saloon is suddenly smashed through, and the entire building comes crumbling down. A figure rises from the dust and ash, flying up and landing in the center of the town with a ground-trembling slam.

Twenty meters out from where the duo stand, is a large, sharp-scaled dragon. Standing three-times as large as the human before him, the black and orange-shaded creature chews on something in its mouth, staring down menacingly at the human and pony. Moonlight is shaking uncontrollably.

Before Crimson has the chance to say anything, the dragon spits the item it chewed, a bone sharpened like a pike. It travels like a bullet towards him.

His hand moves in a snap, catching the bone just inches before its jagged broken end impales his chest. Moonlight gasps and flinches, gritting her teeth as she expected the worst. But as Crimson still stands, she returns her horrified gaze up to him. He reaches his arm forward, letting the bone simply drop onto the dirt. His brows furrow deeper in aggravation.

The dragon looks rather amused at the man's skillful catch that saved his life, now finding himself in need to hunt his food before he can consume it.

“Moonlight. Run.”

The dragon tilts its looming head when the human speaks. Moonlight’s chest burns with the urge to question and scream, but she heeds to his word and scatters instead. She uses her wobbling, terrified legs to turn around and run.

The dragon watches her as she runs away to the far end of the town. He spreads his wings and steps to the side, wanting to intercede the fleeing pony for an easy kill.

Crimson steps to the side as well, mimicking the motions of the dragon to keep himself as the center of focus.

Further amused with this human, the dragon returns back to his original position. Crimson does as well. The two gawk at each other. The dragon’s bright orange eyes dilate in a reptilian manner, realizing that this nuisance must perish before he can dine again... but he has a better idea. He'll take advantage of this human's lack of vertical mobility to mortify him and kill the pony he wishes to defend.

Without warning, the dragon jumps off the ground and takes to the sky.

Crimson's eyes open wide, his irises beam in their now-golden state. He squats down, his muscles tense viciously, and with a grunt, he launches himself up with a powerful jump.

The unsuspecting dragon is intercepted mid-air. The man latches onto the dragon’s sharp, curving scales, and with a mighty heave, he spins around with the dragon in his grip, throwing the massive reptile downwards.

The heavy creature collides into the dirt below, but he is quick to rise and leap out of the way as Crimson falls back down while driving his gold-enveloped fist into the dirt. The impact causes a gust of wind to vent in a circle around him.

The dragon returns to his original stand-off position. The human rises slowly, fanning his hand that he used to hit the ground.

The dragon’s eyes squint, staring into the golden orbs that lie in the skull of this human. He now realizes that this man isn't as simple as he initially assumed. He now speaks, his voice is deep, rumbling, and slow. “In my many years of life, you are unlike anything I have ever seen.”

“I'd bet,” Crimson replies indignantly.

“That does not come as a surprise,” the dragon rumbles. “A human who can… speak words. A human who is… strong and capable. Not many creatures can say they've thrown... a dragon. Indeed, you are talented. You are… very rare. ... Unfortunately for you, that is how I enjoy my meat.”

Crimson squints at his gruesome claim. He can't hear Moonlight running anymore, so he briefly turns to see if she has made it a safe distance away. He sees her, hiding behind a barrel at the far end of the town. He now returns his attention forward to— “RRCK!” his cheek is bashed with the sharp end of the dragon’s tail who had closed the distance instantly, sending him flying backwards. He tumbles across the dirt ground until he collides into a barely-standing shop and breaks into it.

The building crumbles and begins to collapse on top of him. With a grunt, he quickly rises onto his feet and dashes to shoulder-bash his way out of the side of the building just before it falls on him. He runs back out to the center of the town, his cheek now donning a long, thin slice that goes from his temple to the right corner of his lip that bleeds in a perfect diagonal.

The man looks to Moonlight, seeing she’s still safe. He looks around, spotting no dragon. He can’t find him. ... But he feels him.

Crimson's eyes dilate. A shadow encompasses him from above, and he quickly leaps out of the way, less than a second before the dragon comes crashing down, throwing dirt and dust around. Crimson rolls along his back and onto his feet, facing the dragon again.

The fuming dragon puffs his chest as he prepares his internal furnace, then he unleashes a huge, unrelenting breath of fire towards the human. The fire envelops him, encasing the area he stood in with searing flames.

The dragon finally halts his barrage with smoke rising from his nostrils. The entire area Crimson was standing in is a huge, dusty, smoking mess. With a grin, the dragon leans his head forward to spot the ashes of the human through the debris...

Charging from the smoke, the angel sprints forward with a huge heater shield that protects his entire front, made of bright, translucent golden light. He shouts as he delivers a powerful bash onto the dragon's head with it, sending him up at an angle from the sheer force of the hit.

The dragon crashes into the same building remnants that he sent the human into, breaking and shattering pieces of wood into splinters. With mountainous rage, the dragon rises from the shambles, flying up and hovering in the air. In a fit of exasperation, he lifts his head and breathes fire into the sky. It has been long since a challenger has caused him this much trouble. With many deaths under his name, being handled like an equal is tempering him more than anything before. He stares down at the red-haired human in complete disdain.

Crimson’s hard-light shield disperses from his forearm into nothing, vanishing from existence. He stares back at the dragon with furrowed brows.

“You are no man! What. Creature. Are you!?” the dragon growls through his visceral teeth.

"What you see here is what you get!"

The snide response tips the dragon off, causing him to charge again, “HRRAAAAH!”

Crimson quickly springs to the side to evade the collision, but the end of the dragon’s tail wraps around his ankle. The dragon flies up, dragging him a few meters into the air before spinning quickly, throwing him downwards towards the earth.

Crimson collides back-first onto the dirt, gasping as blood and spit spurt out of his mouth.

The dragon descends and lands on top of the man, grasping him and lifting him up with one claw. He brings his victim up to his face, his raging orange orbs become slits of hatred. He begins to crush the man in his grasp, getting a quiet croak of pain from him. “You were a very powerful creature,” the dragon rumbles, “I do not understand why you wasted your life as a servant to those… weak… pathetic ponies. You could have been just as a dragon. You could have taken what you desired, when you desired it. You would have had it all."

Crimson's eyes dilate at his words... the same words spoken by...

"Fuckin' hell, we could'a had it all, Sky. We could'a made this land ours. With yer strength and will, we could'a had everythin'."

... Michael.

Crimson's heart begins to burn. His veins circulate with resentment.

The dragon grins at the vexatious human. "… No matter. Die now, in vain.” The dragon’s chest puffs, festering fire in his very being. -- “ERK!? -- UAARRR!” The dragon suddenly screams in agony, the fire building inside him becoming nothing but smoke released from his mouth and nose. The confused and pained dragon looks down at the claw that grips the man. He witnesses a shimmering greatsword of pure golden essence sticking out the back of his claw, punctured right through from the inside.

Crimson shrugs his shoulders repeatedly, rearing his head back as he squirms to drag the sword upward.

“ARRAAA!!!” the dragon cries again, feeling the weapon burn through his palm, causing enough pain for him to release his grasp.

Crimson takes his opportunity. Holding the handle of the greatsword with his left hand, he hauls it upwards with imposing force. It burns vertically along the dragon’s claw, coming out the thumb-side of his palm. Crimson continues this upwards motion into a vertical spin, spinning his sword with him like a tilted twister. The dragon’s claw is severed clean at the wrist, but the nature of the cut doesn’t allow it to fall off immediately. Though the sword appears thick and heavy, the true cutting-point of it is thin and precise, while the energy around the cutting-point sears like a raging fire.

Crimson's weapon disperses into nothing as he aligns himself onto the dragon's twitching claw. He presses his feet against the palm and he kicks off of it with a powerful leap, and from the force of that kick-off, the claw falls clean off.

The dragon begins to panic as he watches blood gush from his severed appendage.

Crimson lands on the ground in front of the dragon. His golden eyes stare into the dragon’s trembling orbs. He sees it, the quaking fear that is building inside of his soul. This oversized menace is finally feeling the helplessness that every single one of his victims felt... and Crimson couldn't be more happy to see it.

He is quick to dart forward when the dragon spreads his wings and takes to the sky, latching onto his hindleg and clambering up along his side. The dragon continues to fly higher and higher, the silhouette of the two combatants eclipse in the moon that is now beginning to rise over the horizon.

The dragon flails and tries to get him off by spinning and shaking, attempting everything he can to become free from his judge, but Crimson won't let go. He squirms and shrugs to no avail.

Or so it seemed. After enough fruitless squirming to allow Crimson to climb up to his shoulder, the dragon finally flings his tail to smash the tip of it against his face to swat him off.

The dragon stops flying upwards and pants deeply, smoke comes out in bursts from his nostrils as he watches the helpless human fall, plummeting several hundred feet towards the earth. His plan worked. The human is going to become a mushy mess of broken bones and scattered intestines once he hits the ground from such a height. A wicked grin of victory takes the dragon's face.

“NO!” Moonlight shouts from behind the barrel. "NO, NO, NO, NO!"

She knows she’s too far away for any of them to hear her, but her dismay has her shouting fruitlessly. Her eyes begin to water, her heart sinks as she watches Crimson descend to his demise.

Crimson blinks slowly as he falls. He feels the wind whistling against him as he reaches terminal velocity. His expression shows no concern, only tiredness. He didn't get good sleep last night as he had stayed in the Rift comforting Viola, just as he plans to do for the rest of his days here in Equestria. A worthy reason to miss out on sleep, he opines.

But now it's going to bite him. Hopefully not too hard.

He closes his eyes, furrowing his previously relaxed eyebrows. He slowly brings his arms in, crossing them over his chest, then he brings his legs in, coupling his knees over his chest as well. His form flexes sharply, and the exertion of his muscles causes him to huff in pain.

Moonlight’s trembling eyes widen from shock and confusion. The human’s body slowly becomes a ball of brightly glowing light. It radiates like a small sun, illuminating the world around.

The dragon’s eyes widen in panic. Just as he had thought victory was his, now he is greeted with... this.

The angel's teeth grit, he feels his entire body burning. The passive Arch that flows through his bloodstream, his muscles, and his soul now manifests itself all around him. It glows brighter and brighter as his grunting becomes more intense.

Then, like a star exploding in the sky, his body extends from its balled position as he releases a warcry into the night, simultaneous to his body combusting with gold energy. Golden wings and a halo form instantly from particles of light piecing themselves together around his body. His eyes are sockets of pure emissive energy.

Moonlight and the dragon unhinge their jaws in awe.

The Arch Angel flaps his translucent wings of light to recover in mid-air. His head snaps towards the dragon, eyeing him with the fury of a thousand suns.

The dragon whispers curses to himself in his draconic language.

As the angel hovers in place, he extends his right arm out with his palm facing down. His hand is encompassed in gold energy, and his sword manifests itself into reality. Small golden molecules come together from the nothing all around him, methodically placing themselves in order one-by-one to form his weapon.

Once it forms, he grips it at the handle. He flaps his wings twice quickly, then once more with great force to project himself like a streak of light. The neck-breaking speed causes the sound-barrier to whine in protest, thundering at the incredible movement.

The angel stops on a dime behind the flying dragon, his posture is that with his sword held out horizontally. The backs of the angel and the dragon face each other.

The dragon blinks, feeling the gust of wind move past him, feeling nothing damaged or harmed in his body. He is confused, frozen, and unable to think properly. His world begins to blacken from the corners of his vision, but he doesn't know why. He blinks again to clear his addlement. Then, as the dragon attempts to turn his head to look back at his perpetrator, his head slips off his shoulders, finally breaking the weak frictional tether that was holding his head in place.

The beast’s wings stop flapping, and the lifeless mass of scales begins its descent toward the ground.

Moonlight’s tear-ridden eyes are shaking, both from fear and veneration. Her beautifully-glistening eyes reflect the golden light being cast from the angel in the sky.

But her astonishment fades instantly when his Arch disperses. His wings, halo, and eyes suddenly evanesce into nothing, and his regular, hazel eyes remain droopy as they stare into the void. He falls also, already unconscious before even hitting the ground. The exertion, the amount of stress placed upon his mortal body, it pushed his sleepy, nutrient-deficient self over his limit.

The dead dragon crashes into a building, now becoming his burial site. The man falls down and crashes into an old empty water tower, crumbling down into a mess of wood and rubble.

Moonlight runs frantically with tears streaming down her face, nearly unable to control her breathing. She runs to the scattered debris of the water tower, using her magic to remove large chunks of the wooden boards and concrete pieces at once. She finally spots Crimson seated on a pile of wood and rubble, like a king who fell asleep on his throne.

She rushes up to him, putting her hooves at his shoulders as she shakes him gently, “Hoh sweet Celestia, Crimson... Crimson please. Please tell me you're okay.” She places her ear to his chest, finding that his heartbeat is… normal. Maybe a little bit faster than normal, but still unnaturally natural. Dreadfully anxious and perplexed, she looks at his face.

His eyes don't open. They remain closed while his breathing paces gently, as if he was simply sleeping. And upon further inspection, he IS sleeping. Out of pure exhaustion, he fell asleep in the air, falling down to land into his seat of wooden planks so he could finally get some shut-eye.

Although frightened beyond belief, she takes solace in the fact that he is still very much alive. She keeps her head against his chest, closing her eyes and letting tears run down her face. She thinks back to only a few days ago, when Crimson was explaining to her about his power. She had completely forgotten about what he had told her... being able to form wings and such. He wouldn't have fallen to his demise, not if he had anything to say about it.

For some reason, she can't help but smile and chuckle wryly, sniffling once as she murmurs, "You weren't kidding... you really do look like an angel. You are... my angel." She couples up to him in silence, staying in this moment for a mental eternity.

After only several minutes, Crimson suddenly coughs. Moonlight’s eyes break open, staring up at him worriedly. He doesn't open his eyes yet, but it doesn't take long for a goofy smile to plaster itself on his face. “… Evenin', Moonlight,” he mumbles, coughing out dust and blood after speaking. His eyelids separate enough to squint at Moonlight. She just stares at him, lost for words. “… Aww. Don’t look at me like that,” he coos in a quiet rasp.

“You… you…” Moonlight gathers the strength to speak, “… you could have died...”

He brings in the sorrowing unicorn for a hug, only letting his smile grow wider. He clears his froggy throat as he grunts, "Nrh, n… nah, gonna take more than… more than that to put me down. Just needed a little rest was all.” He loosens the hug to reach with his hand, wiping off the newly-running tears that trail down her face. He then begins to rise from his wooden throne, grunting as he forces his exhausted body to move. Moonlight doesn’t know whether to sit him back down or help him up, so she remains frozen in her indecision.

Bones are heard popping all throughout his body as he stands up. He tilts his head at the emotionally-paralyzed Moonlight. He then leans down and picks her up into his arms, holding her bridal style.

Just as before, in the train ride, her uneasy heart finds itself eased and relaxed in his hold. The worry is somewhat replaced, shared now between embarrassment and sadness, “… You could have died…” she whispers again.

Crimson shakes his head, wincing as he does, “Remember what I said. I promise I’ll be fine. It won't look good on my part if I got put in the ground on my first run out. I already made Celestia a deal that everything will be okay. That you’ll be okay.” Moonlight slowly extends her hoof to wipe the slowly trickling blood from his face gash. Crimson steps out of the water tower's rubble with a chuckle, “That bastard really did a number on me, didn’t he?”

“Well, least you’re still alive,” suddenly says a female voice in front of the duo.

The two direct their attention to the speaker.

A female dragon with sleek black and blue scales. For a dragon, she's isn't nearly as tall as the previous assailant, and her perfectly smooth scales shine lustrously against the lighting of the moon.

“You kinda just killed my brother,” says the dragoness as she files her own nails.

“... Brother, huh?" Crimson furrows his unamused front. "Well, he done pissed me off. Can't say he wun't askin’ for it.”

“Oh, totally. He was a piece of shit. I was hoping he'd get himself killed one day, so I'm glad that day was today. Thanks."

"Yeah," Crimson huffs and gives her a bored look whereas Moonlight is quaking again. "No problem."

“But… according to the Dragon Code, now I need to avenge my nest brother in order to preserve the lineage, and blah, blah, blah,” the dragoness sighs.

“I’m tuckered, so it would be great if we didn’t have to do this."

The dragoness smiles. “Well it’s a good thing I don’t give a damn about the Dragon Code then. I wasn’t looking to fight you. I was looking to ask you what in tartarus I just witnessed.”

“… Pardon?”

"Don't act dumb with me, angel boy. The wings? The sword thing? ... The fact that you can talk!?"

Crimson’s slouching, roughed-up form sighs, “It's a long story, one I ain't lookin' to recant right now.”

"Hmn," the dragoness raises her browline. "Are there more of you human angel thingies around?"

He blinks unenthusiastically and shrugs, “I don't know. Look, listen, as much as I'd like to keep catchin' yer questions, right now, we got shit to do. Moonlight?”

“Oh, right!" her eyes beam in realization. "The signatures!” Having powered it down during the fight, she takes her mini-ANA out from her saddlebag then turns it on. It begins to squeal very loudly.

“Uugh, what IS that thing!?” the dragoness grunts, covering her ears. Crimson grins at her discomfort.

Moonlight raises her eyes to the dragoness. “The magic seems to be coming from… her."

“What did she say!?” the dragoness shouts as she still covers her ears to block out the wailing device. Moonlight turns it off, allowing her to uncover her ears. She gives Moonlight a very annoyed glare.

“The magical signature my ANA is reading, it's coming from you,” Moonlight restates warily.

“Magic? Dragons aren’t ‘magic.’ We’re elemental, there’s a difference.”

“I-I know, but there’s magical energy coming from you, with the same imprint signature that was captured from the anomalies Equestria has been receiving.”

“I literally have no idea what you're talking about," the dragoness huffs boredly... but after a second, a thought visibly strikes her. "Oh! Oh wait, maybe you’re talking about this thing?” the dragoness presents the tip of her tail where it holds a necklace.

Moonlight looks at it with wide eyes. Crimson takes this as a cue to set her down. She is quick to trot towards the necklace, eyeing it with great intent. In her interest, she completely forgets that she's approaching a menacing carnivore. She eyes the jewel held in the necklace. It’s a thumbnail-sized, amethyst rhombus that hums very quietly, only able to be heard if held up to the ear.

The dragoness gawks down at the small pony with little amusement as she elaborates, “Me and my brother took this thing from some loser a few days ago. It was technically ours, but since my brother’s kinda dead now, it’s mine.”

Moonlight turns on her ANA again, holding it near the gem. The device whines loudly.

“Rrrr!” the dragoness holds her earholes again.

“S-Sorry!” Moonlight quickly turns off the device, safe in her assurance that this is the objective. She reaches her hoof out to hold the necklace, but it is quickly swiped away from her as the dragoness flicks her tail away, causing Moonlight to back away in fright. Crimson furrows his brows and steps forward, balling his hands into fists.

“Uh, this is kind of like, mine?" the dragoness huffs. "I literally just said that. You try to steal it from me, then I’ll have a reason to get violent with you.”

“But w-we need it! It will aid in the understanding of the anomalous magic that has been plaguing Equestria!”

“Nope, it’s mine.”

"B-But Equestria!"

"Not my problem."

Moonlight looks devastated.

Crimson sighs, stepping forward until he stands right in front of the dragoness. She finds herself almost exactly at his height, and quite intrigued at his brazen forwardness. "C’mon, there’s some serious danger lurkin' about. Even if you don't care about Equestria itself, we need it. This is bigger than just some petty treasure hunt. If you're lookin' to live in a world that isn't filled with crazy magic, you'd best hand it over.”

The dragoness tilts her head, “Magic doesn't scare me~”

"D-Do you want payment for it?" Moonlight offers timidly. "W-We could arrange a trade if you'd like."

"Hmn..." the dragoness ponders. "... Nah."

"Listen, dragon," Crimson begins sternly. "Unless you're askin' for it, I won't get violent with you 'r nothin', but I'm fixin' to follow you around like a parasite if you don't give up that necklace."

"Follow me around? Really?" she asks with high amusement.

"Really."

"Everywhere?"

"Everywhere."

The dragoness clicks her tongue, finding herself back into a corner. "... Mmm, the idea of some freaky angel human thing following me around doesn't sit well with me."

"Good."

"Okay, tell you what," the dragoness begins, "I'm keeping my necklace, but I'll tell you where I live. I'm going to think it over for a bit, see what I might want as a payment for it, and then once I figure it out, I'll tell you."

"'N how do we know you aren't gonna just up 'n leave?"

"Because all of my stuff is there. I like my stuff, if that isn't obvious already."

“And, um... w-where do you live?” Moonlight asks.

“I'll tell you, but you two need to promise ONE thing..." The two shoot questioning gazes to the dragoness, waiting for her to continue. "You don't tell ANYONE about where I live. If you do, I'll literally abandon everything I own and leave with the necklace, just to spite both of you."

"Even if we did keep yer secret," Crimson squints, "what makes us believe you ain't ready to pull that off at any moment? Leave yer stuff behind and all?"

"Guess you'll just have to trust me~" she hums cheekily.

Moonlight and Crimson exchange glances, coming to a unanimous decision by nodding their heads.

"Just remember," Crimson mumbles as he turns his tired eyes to the dragoness again, "you're gonna have me on your ass twenty-four-seven if you leave us high and dry."

"Good thing I won't then~ So," she turns herself, facing the shadowed silhouette of the Canterlot mountain off in the distant night. "You know that really fancy pony city place that’s built on the side of a mountain?”

“Canterlot?” Moonlight asks.

“Yeah. That. I think. I don't know what that place is called, but I live like, on the other side of the mountain. Near the very peak, there’s a cave there. That’s my home.”

“… Really?” Moonlight asks skeptically.

"Yup. I've lived there for like thirty years, after I exiled myself from the Dragonlands."

"You exiled yourself?" Moonlight tilts her head.

"Yeah, but that's a story I don't feel like talking about right now. The moon's out and I want to go home."

"That makes two of us," Crimson declares. "We'd better get a move-on."

“BUT!” the dragoness raises a finger from her claw to Crimson’s lips. “Remember. You’re not allowed to tell ANYONE about my cave. No other ponies or whatever. ONLY you two can know. If you break this rule, you can kiss the necklace goodbye," she uses the end of her finger to flick Crimson's lower lip downwards. Moonlight finds a bitterness in her mouth at the touching the dragoness is doing to him.

“We'll play yer game,” Crimson utters. "So, what's yer name, dragon lady?"

"Name's Storm," she says as she lifts her claw, snapping two fingers together which creates a tiny spark. "What's yours, human guy?"

"Crimson. 'N this here is Moonlight Wish. Now, I gotta ask, where were you when your brother and I were tusslin'?"

"Watching from the water tower."

"Hope I didn't disappoint the spectators."

"Best fight I've seen in years honestly. But, you kind of ruined it when you smashed into the water tower and broke it. That was annoying."

"What can I say."

Storm hums dismissively. "Alright, I'm going home now."

"Yeah, think we might be doin' the same--"

“If, um... if you don't mind, Crimson,” Moonlight mumbles as she tugs at his cargo shorts, "I-I'd like to survey the town for a little while... hopefully get the identities of the ponies that were killed here today. T-The train returns to the station at midnight, so we have some time before then."

"Ah. Of course. I'll be by yer side." Crimson turns his eyes to the dragoness, who's looking back at him intently. "Be ready fer me to pay you a visit tomorrow."

"Grrreat! That settles that then!" she gives a toothy smile, driving discomfort into Moonlight. "See you tomorrow, Crim-zun!"

She spreads her wings completely, casting a great shadow behind her before she lifts off into the air. With her dark blue and black coloration, she is quick to fade into the darkness of the night.

Crimson and Moonlight trek back towards the gently smoking town, finishing their remaining tasks for their field day under the radiance of the moon.

Next Chapter: 《 The Pawn on the Stage 》 Estimated time remaining: 24 Hours, 22 Minutes