Light assaults my weary eyes and drags me away from my rather peaceful slumber. With one foreleg raised up to hide my eyes from the light, I lift myself off the ground to a now sunlit control room. The gears in my mind slowly begin to turn as a few choice curses are placed upon the sun itself.

Yeesh, can’t I get five more minutes of sleep? Stupid sun shining right on me.

Dragging myself across the room, I manage to make it to the one thing that can shield myself from this onslaught. While the curtains don’t do much to darken the room, they do keep the sun rays outside where they belong and spare my poor eyes from going blind. With that taken care of, I can finally take a good look around the room. And as expected, everything is where they were last night. The de-leathered chairs sit next to the remains of the test consoles, my fully repaired duster is nicely folded on my likewise repaired saddlebags, and Rose is curled up and sound asleep in her corner.

Which is somewhat of a bad thing, considering she was supposed to wake me up for my shift. Or maybe she tried but I was too tired to get up. With the only way in and out of this room trapped, it’s probably not that big of a deal. And after everything we’ve been through, we both deserve a good night’s rest.

I pick up my duster and drape it over her (as any proper stallion should). The little pony in my head warns that we should be going, but it is also important that neither one of us is tired when we set out of here. Plus, I have no clue how to safely disarm the door and losing a leg is not something any sane pony should do twice.

Thus, with nothing better to do, I eject last night’s holotape and replace it with another one. Hardwire did not raise any objection to me listening to his tapes when I apologized for listening to them. So I should be fine listening to another entry while waiting for Rose to wake up, right? Right. Just as long as it isn't too personal. There's glimpsing into the past to learn more about this place and then there's being a stalker. So with my earblooms clipped on, I look through the list of recordings and pick the one at random.

“Let’s see here,” The younger and healthier sounding Hardwire mutters as his voice pipes in through the earblooms. “There we go, these PipBucks really can do anything, can’t they? I wonder what I should say to test this out?”

The sound of wings flapping enters the recording. “Ah, so you won the StableTec lottery!” A cheerful sounding stallion says.

“Depends on how you look at it, Thunder,” Hardwire says as I hear him start walking. “Personally, it feels like I have a glorified tracker on my foreleg that I can’t easily take off. Anyway, how’s Floria doing these days?”

“She’s doing fine,” Thunder says. Though, given that he knows Floria, it's probably safe to assume his full name is Thundering Lane. “Her and Wheat Bale are testing the new design out right now.”

“Wheat Bale,” Hardwire thinks out loud. “Hay Bale’s grandson?”

Oh right, Rocky did mention that Hay Bale had a grandson, didn't he?

“Yep,” Thunder answered back, confirming what I just thought. “The rocket engine already checks out, but Floria thought it would be a good idea to let the newbie conduct a dry run before it gets shipped to the launch pad,” He then lowers his voice. “Anyway, I heard from Pastel that there was a meeting between Rocky and one of those MoM agents. Hear anything about that?”

Hardwire lets out an exasperated sigh. “Look, just because I keep tabs on everypony’s conversations doesn’t mean I know what is going on.”

“Hey, everypony knows you didn’t want the job,” Thunder says reassuringly, though he still keeps his voice low. “But you never know, you know?”

“I know,” Hardwire says. “But no, I haven’t heard anything about that. You?”

“Just that my Sis is ticked off about them giving Rocky some kind of special potion,” Thunder answers back. “According to them, it was a little ‘thank you’ gift for all the hard work we’ve been doing. According to Sis, it was a bribe. For what, she couldn’t figure out. She can’t even get Rocky to explain why he didn’t turn it down or throw it back into their face.”

“Maybe he didn’t want to offend them?” Hardwire offers. “It does sound kind of suspicious, though. We haven’t really done anything so far for him to start getting gifts from the Ministries.”

“Right? That’s why I came to you,” Thunder asks as I hear somepony pat a shoulder. “You know what they are planning here?”

“No, they don’t trust me that much,” Hardwire says. “Which is a good thing. I don’t want them breathing down my neck. I came here to get away from all of that.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Thunder pauses. “But you’ll let me know if they’re coming after Mahzun, won’t you? He may be a crazy conspiracy theorist, but he’s family now. Floria would be upset if MoM took him-”

My ears perk up at the explosion in the background. Static starts seeping into the recording as Hardwire shouts "What was that?"

"It came from Rocket Testing," Thunder shouts back. "Come on!"

Their galloping hoofsteps slowly disappear as static soon engulfs the recording. A quick check reveals that this isn't the end of the recording, so I quickly pop open the casing of my PipBuck and mess with the wiring. Because I refuse that the rest of this recording is corrupt! Not with what just happened!

"Wheat Bale!" Some mare's shout manages to cut through the static. "Where Are You?!"

"I Found Him!" Hardwire shouts back. "I… Dear Celestia…."

Dear Luna. She was there. Hay Bale was there when her grandson-

The recording devolves in static once again and I smack my PipBuck against the floor.

Don't you dare cut out on me now! What happened to him? Was this an accident? What is going on here?

"Floria!" Thundering Lane's voice cuts through the static. "Floria!"

"I'm Ok!" Floria shouts, her coughing barely coming through as the static threatens to take over again. "I Was Standing Next To Amber When… WHERE THE HAY IS SHE?!"

And once again, static. In frustration, I rip out some wires from the nearby console and use them to replace a couple in my PipBuck. That did nothing to solve the situation. With no other solution coming to mind, I move to eject the tape when the static finally dies down.

"There," Hardwire says in a tired and somber tone. "Her card's been blacklisted and security notified. That should keep her from getting too far."

"Good," Bright Eyes says and then chuckles mirthlessly. "The one day I needed nothing to happen, everything goes to Tartarus."

"Should we call Rocky back in?" Floria asks.

There's a pause. "No, let him enjoy his date with Silky,” Bright Eyes answers. “I can deal with MoM until he gets back."

"But I don't get it," Thunder says. "We’re still testing the difference between using hydrogen and kerosene as rocket propellants. The test fuel shouldn’t have been up here yet."

“Amber Blossom somehow got her hooves on it,” Floria explains with an edge in her tone. “She told Wheat Bale you wanted it tested today and was waiting in the control room when I confronted her. She must have started the rocket while he was removing the fuel.”

“But she’s an accountant that the Ministry of Tech sent us,” Bright Eyes says thoughtfully. “Hardwire, can you see if she was using someone else’s card to get in here?”

Hardwire doesn’t say anything, but the tapping noises suggest that he is on it. Thunder, however, does speak up. “My team and I were in our lab the entire day. We would have seen her if she got in somehow.”

Unless she was using one of the StealthBucks I found yesterday.

“Yet she still managed to get her hooves on your test fuel and get into a restricted area,” Bright Eyes counters. “I want to know who is helping her.”

“Umm, Floria?” Hardwire asks nervously. “Do you still have your key card on you?”

There's a moment of silence, then some muttering followed by some shuffling of clothing. "Its right here," Floria finally says. "But how-!"

"Blacklist her card too," Bright Eyes orders. Hoof tapping follows while she continues in a serious tone. "Floria, did you have contact with Amber before today?"

"You're not suggesting she's in on this, are you?!" Thunder cuts in.

"Honey, please," Floria says softly before answering in an equally serious tone. "No, I saw her in passing but that was it. I never gave her my card, I swear."

There's another moment of silence and then Bright Eye sighs. "MoM is going to have a field day here."

"They can check through the logs," Floria says. "There is no proof that I did anything wrong here."

"They won't care," Bright Eyes says bluntly. "You are a zebra and your card was used to let Amber get in here. That alone will make you a collaborator in their eyes."

Thunder snorts. "You can't let them take her! She's an Equestrian! She has her rights!"

"Don't be naive!" Bright Eyes says sharply. "After that fiasco we had with that misplaced crate from the Ministry of Arcane Science, the Ministry of Morale have been paranoid about us. Amber probably hoped that MoM's prejudice against zebras would keep them from going after her until it was too late."

"But we caught her!" Thunder says, sounding angry and almost desperate. "Even if they're paranoid, they would know Amber was trying to frame Floria," he pauses, likely looking for some pony to agree with him. "... Right?"

"Thundering," Floria says tenderly.

"Don’t do that! I know exactly what they do sympathizers to," He answers back. “I won’t let them take you to Shattered Hoof! I'm not losing you like that!”

"And you won't," Bright Eyes says calmly. "I'm not the kind of griffon to let some thugs take away my friends for no reason. Not without a fight, at least."

"Raina, this isn't an angry mayor we're dealing with here," Floria points out. "This is an entire Ministry that will be after us."

"Which means we'll have to get another ministry on our side," Bright Eyes says. I can practically see her with a sly smile in my mind's eye. "Come on, we need to talk to Rocky about this. I hear he has a family friend that might help us out."

"And if that doesn't work?" Floria asks.

"Then we'll play dirty," Bright Eyes answers. “How do you two feel about going on another vacation?”

Static kicks back up again, unceremoniously marking the ending of the recording there. It is a lot to take in, actually. Amber Blossom was a spy, just like I thought back when I first read her name. Smart move on her part, using Floria as a scapegoat like that. Given the Striped Scare that was going on back then, MoM would have arrested her without trial and her family would never see her again. At least, not until after she had gone through the ‘re-education’ process at Shattered Hoof. Assuming she survived the process. Though, given that Floria isn’t an emotionless husk, it’s safe to assume they found a way to keep her from getting sent there.

However, none of this actually explains why the Balefire Warheads ended up here in the first place. If anything, this would be the last place to send them, right? Maybe another recording or message can shed some light on my question. Looking over the list, one particular message catches my attention.

From: Copper Hardwire
To: Ms. Raina

Raina,

First of all, I agree with what Rocky said last time, that meeting was not your fault. I don’t think anypony would have guessed that Smooth Charmer would cave in at the last moment. Or that MoM representative would go so far as to threaten another Ministry employee. Guess the Ministries aren’t all as united in one cause as we were led to believe.

At least the recordings were enough to convince them that Floria and the other zebras weren’t involved in this fiasco. Don’t forget that. Even if we lose the company, none of us are in jail or worse because of you and Rocky. That’s more than we can ask for at this point.

I know, this isn’t all that comforting. But I do have good news. Apparently, Amber didn’t just steal StealthBucks from the Ministries. There was also a holotape in her terminal with a very interesting encrypted file inside. I can’t make any sense out of it, but it might help convince them to give us all another chance.

I’ve attached the fire to this message. Please do what you can with it.

Sincerely,
Hardwire

I let out a sigh of relief. No zebra was sent to Shattered Hoof. Good. Though Hardwire suggesting that they're getting fired does damper my mood somewhat. Seeing the long list of pink slips and resignations after this message doesn't help either. Guess whatever good will the company had with the Ministries was gone once that meeting happened. But none of this explains why the Ministries decided to turn this place into a museum? Was it to punish them? An attempt to earn some bits to recoup what was invested into this place? The more I think about it, the more my head hurts. And the remaining messages on this holotape are corrupt too. Maybe this is a mystery that won't be solved until I get back to Rocky and Bright Eyes.

However, there is that file Hardwire mentioned. I wonder what is inside of it. It is easy enough to transfer the file onto my PipBuck. Opening it, however, instantly produces a whole spool of random nonsense. Studying it does reveal some patterns within the garbled mess (A perk of having read some books that describe the spellweave methods the Ministries used to encode their messages). This looks to be a Spitfire Cipher, which definitely confirms that this was stolen from one of the Ministries.

Unfortunately, and to my annoyance, knowing the cipher used and having the key to decode it are two different things. Ugh, it’ll take me years to decrypt this without the key! And that's assuming my scant knowledge on cryptography will be enough to break through this. Why Luna? Why do you toy around with my curiosity like this?

“So what's got you so worked up?” Rose asks while resting her head on my shoulder, my duster still draped over her shoulders like a cloak.

“J-Just some PipBuck issues,” I admit, trying to ignore how close my bat pony companion is to me. “There’s an encrypted file that I discovered. But without the key, it’s just a garbled mess.”

“Well, that easy for you, ain’t it?” She pokes my chest with her hoof. “You are one of those Twilight Society ponies and you did say you were an expert in Pre-War Tech.”

It might have been a mistake telling her that. “That doesn’t make me an expert in everything. My ‘expertise’ is mostly centered around spell matrixes and how to manipulate them inside arcanotech.”

She gives me a confused look. “I thought you only knew magical maid spells?”

I give her an unamused look. “I said most of my spell list is akin to a maid’s. There are spells that really only function within a device like a PipBuck.”

She nods, inadvertently rubbing her head against my neck and prompting me to ask “C-Could you give me some personal space, please?”

“Oh, umm, sorry about that,” She quickly lifts her head off my shoulder and backs off a little. It actually makes me feel like I scolded her. But before I can rectify that, she taps my PipBuck. “That’s the file, right? Looks like something the Enclave would have.”

That catches me off guard. “Enclave? What do you mean Enclave?” I ask just as Rose digs through her saddlebag and pulls out a holotape.

“Here, try using this,” She holds the tape out to me. I hesitate to take it, causing her to playfully add “Come on, it’s just a tape. It’s not going to bite.”

“I know,” I say, taking the tape and swapping it with the one in my PipBuck. “I was hoping for an explanation about what-” I pause and stare at my screen. “This… is this a cipher key?”

She shrugs. “Don’t know. I won it off of a pegasus in a game of Blackjack. Kept telling me that it was a decryptor or something. It got me into a few old Enclave terminals I stuck it into. So, I figure it might work for your thing too.”

“Can’t hurt to try,” I say and then run the decryptor tape. I tap my hoof as I wait for the file to get encrypted. Rose sits down next to me, seemingly making a conscious effort to not touch me as we watch the number of attempts increase on my PipBuck screen.

After a few minutes, she suddenly speaks up. “Soo, you wanna tell me why you ran away from home?”

That isn’t an easy question to answer. The little pony in my head winces and looks back at all of the memories related to that time. All of the naive hopes and dreams that not only shattered into a million pieces, but which shards ended up stabbing my soul repeatedly until now. But I promised her I would tell her that much. So I take a deep breath and mentally prepare myself to open up some old wounds.

“I got tired of the hypocrisy,” I explain. “I mean, Tenpony Tower was the Manehatten Hub for the Ministry of Arcane Science. We were supposed to be the guardians of the tech they left behind. But we did nothing with it! Sure, if everypony knew what was inside of the tower, the surrounding raiders would have come to our doors and we would be dead in a matter of weeks. But after a while, our reasons became excuses in my mind. Made by self-centered elitists more concerned with doing experiments than helping ponies out. So, when I discovered an abandoned access tunnel out of the tower, I decided to leave and actually make a difference out there.”

“Oh, wow,” Rose mutters in surprise. “I never would have guessed any of that. So, are they hunting you down now or what?”

I shrug. “I haven’t seen any sign of them since I left. The door was in a blind spot, security wise, so they probably had no clue how I got out. Or maybe they knew that the tunnel was full of ghouls and thought I got torn apart,” I clear my throat while rubbing my shoulder. “It certainly was a surprise when they cut off my way back inside.”

She leans in slightly, her full attention now on me instead of the PipBuck. “And you survived all that,” She playfully hits my shoulder. “That’s kinda impressive for a Tower pony.”

“Hey,” I say while rubbing my shoulder. “I couldn’t shoot the broad side of a barn with a 9mm back then, but I could teleport. You’ve seen me in action against those hellhounds, remember?”

“Like I could forget,” She says, glancing at my back for a moment before quickly focusing on me again. “So you managed to kill the ghouls, right?”

“Eh, no,” I avert my gaze from her while I nervously shift from rubbing my shoulder to rubbing my foreleg. “I, umm, got rescued by Silverwing and his group. I ran into him after escaping the tunnel and they took care of the ghouls that were still biting at my tail.”

“Ah, ok,” Rose says. From the corner of my eye, I can see her rubbing at her scarf uncomfortably as she asks “I guess that was before he did… whatever it was that made you hate him so much?”

I wince at that question. “Yeah, he figured out rather quickly that I was from Tenpony Tower and wanted me on his team. He was looking for some lost tribe of vampire ponies and figured a book horse like me would know a thing or two about that. Honestly, I think he planned on using me to bypass the ‘no-business within the Tower’ policy on non-citizens. He looks at others as tools to exploit rather than actual beings, though I didn’t figure that out until it was far too late.”

She slowly nods. “The other ponies in his group were treated like that too?”

I look back up at her. “In a way. Amber Flare was an ex-raider who had a Buck addiction that Silverwing exploited. Ziggurat was our zebra medic with an odd habit of removing bones from corpses and keeping them. He did mention belonging to some extremist group once, so I figured Silverwing was blackmailing him somehow.”

“And, umm, what about you?” She asks cautiously. “How did he get you onboard?”

“Simple. I was a naive pony who wanted to be a hero like his father before him,” I smile mirthlessly. “All he had to do was convince me that finding the treasure the vampire ponies had would help in rebuilding society out here in the wastes. Reframing all of our side jobs as building up ‘good karma’ in the communities we would rebuild later only reinforced the illusion for me.”

Rose frowns as a mixture of anger and disgust appear on her face. “I hate it when ponies use others like that. If I ever see the stupid griffon, I’ll give him a black eye or two for ya. He is a griffon, right?”

I smirk a little at the thought of Rose beating up the silver-winged griffon. “Yeah, he is. Though, I doubt you’ll be seeing him anytime soon.” And I will never see him again, if I’m so lucky.

“So what woke you up?” She asks. “Did he cheat you out of the treasure or something?”

“The treasure was a bust,” I rub my neck and my body tenses up as the memories come flooding back. Painful memories about the cave, the bones scattered across the place, the murals drawn in blood on the walls, the cracked memory orb. The words to describe that horrible experience stick in my throat. After all this time, I still can’t bring myself to relive that particular moment. “Silverwing wasn’t happy about that,” I finally say and decide to leave it at that for now. “However, Trian Mill was when we parted ways.”

A concerned look crosses Rose's face. She opens her mouth and I wait for the inevitable questions about the 'treasure'. Instead, she closes her mouth and hums instead. “Trian Mill? That doesn’t ring a bell.”

It is a bit of a relief that she isn't going to press me on that experience. Though, Trian Mill isn't going to be much better. Maybe I can gloss over this one too? “I’m not surprised. It was a hidden military base after all,” I explain, trying to decide how much to say about the place. “We only found out about it when the inhabitants started shooting at us."

"Maybe they knew about Silverwing already?" She smirks at her own joke.

"I wish. Maybe things would have turned out differently," I lament, killing the smile on her face as I continue. "They were refugees of sorts. Escaped slaves, former Enclave citizens, exiled Stable ponies. They were scared that we were some kind of raider scouting party. They soon realized we weren't when we didn't fire back."

I wait for Rose to say something but she remains oddly silent. So I continue. "They had no clue what a find they had in their hooves. Trian Mill was a high security military bunker with turrets covering every blind spot. It was definitely built to store something dangerous, but I guess the shipment never came or some group emptied it out decades ago."

A sense of dread starts to swell within me as the memories continue to come to mind. "When they mentioned that their turrets weren't working, I volunteered to take a look at it. I know my way around terminals and Silverwing even had a targeting data holotape he had gotten years ago," I chuckle and raise my hoof a few feet off the ground. "There was this little colt that practically idolized me as I was working to fix the turret system. Thought I was the coolest stallion around."

"What happened to them?" Rose finally asks.

The words stick to my throat and I shut my eyes as that memory comes into focus. "I screwed up," I say softly, fighting back against the pain and regret those words bring. "I didn't notice that there was a virus inside the holotape. Not until the turrets turned on and started gunning down every pony in sight. By… by the time I managed to shut it all down, they… they…."

I feel a hoof on my shoulder and I look at Rose through the tears forming in my eyes. "I killed them, Rose. They were depending on me and I got them killed. I was so sure I had the knowledge and skill to fix this that I didn't even notice that something was wrong with the stupid holotape! I-" I wipe the tears from my eyes and try to regain some composure with a deep breath. "I'm the last pony that should be helping the ghouls out. I've told them as much. Yet, here I am, having learned nothing from the last time I tried to help."

"Treppy," Rose says. "These things happen all the time out here. You can't let them get to you like this."

"No, you don't get it," I say while shaking my head. "I killed an entire community of ponies with that mistake! And after… after what happened to Silverwing and the others? I'm no hero. I'm a monster."

"A monster? Please," Rose says incredulously. "A monster wouldn't risk his life to save me. Or most of the ponies I know, actually. So don't give me that." She then quickly ruffles my mane up to no end.

"Agh! Stop it!" I bat her hooves away. As soon as she stops her assault (and completely messes up my mane, no doubt), I give her a glare. "You know how many times I put your life in danger?"

"No more than any of my other partners," She answers bluntly. It is an answer to which I have no immediate comeback. And she takes full advantage of that. "Look, I know what a monster looks like. And you," She pokes my chest. "Aren't one."

This feels like a battle she won't let me win. Not without tearing myself apart even further by digging deeper into my past. "Alright, I'll agree to disagree. Will that work for you?"

She frowns. "No. I don't think those ponies want you to keep punishing yourself over an honest mistake. I know I wouldn't; you were only trying to help."

'And what good did that help do?' The little pony in my head argues. 'How could they possibly forgive you? You don't even remember their names anymore. Rose doesn’t know what she is talking about. How could she? She’s never screwed up as badly as you.'

And yet, Rose’s words make me realise something: I had been so focused on not reliving the past that I never thought about the ponies I killed by accident. I had assumed that they would hate me for taking their life. Just like I assumed Rose was like Silverwing.

“Do you really think they would forgive me that easily?” I ask softly.

She smiles slightly. “Think they’d like seeing you like this if they did?”

That is a good point. I still feel guilty making Rose think I hated her after I had already decided she wasn’t… evil. Maybe they feel the same way about how I’ve been blaming myself all this time?

As if reading my thoughts, Rose pats my head. “I don’t know how long you’ve been holding this in for. But maybe it is time to stop being stubborn and forgive yourself already, ok?”

It isn’t quite as simple as that. Too many horrible things happened in such a short time of each other that letting go is impossible. Or it feels that way. Though, looking at Rose, hearing her attempts at making me forgive myself. Maybe. Maybe I can let go of this one event. It still won’t absolve me of my sins. But at least the ponies of Trian Mill no longer have to worry about me any longer.

Luna, if I’m wrong in forgiving myself, please make sure their retribution is swift and just. Assuming you can even hear this prayer.

“Alright, enough patting,” I say while lightly swatting her hoof away. “It’s demeaning. And I will try to forgive myself. If only because you make a good point.”

Her smile widens into a grin as she heads towards the door. “Alright, now that that’s settled, let’s get out of here.”

I nod my head at her before moving to the only reflective surface in the room: the monitors. Honestly, why does she like messing up my mane so much? Does she get some kind of enjoyment out of it or something? It is already hard enough trying to look decent in the middle of a wasteland. Not to mention how many times my mane and tail have been cut up and burnt.

Letting out a sigh, I start to fix up my mane when I notice something about my reflection. The pony staring back at me isn’t the same depressed pony I’m used to seeing. This pony looks different. Happier, maybe.

Which is strange. After everything that has happened, I had given up on seeing anything outside of a tired and broken pony in my reflection. A constant reminder of how foolish I was to ever think that I could make a difference in the world. Now I see a reflection that’s closer to the naive and determined pony that left Tenpony Tower so long ago. Still bearing the signs and weight of my past on my shoulders, but less so. And with a dim light of hope that hasn’t been in my eyes in a long time.

There is another difference with this reflection too. A feeling that something is… off about me. Like some part of me is damaged? Or maybe scarred? There are a couple of scrapes and cuts on my face, but they aren’t what is triggering this feeling. As I try to make sense of this feeling, Floria’s question from before I started this adventure comes to mind.

‘Intrepid… what do you know about the spirits?’

Did she see something in me that I’m only now starting to become aware of? Should I have told her the truth of what I had found back there? Maybe, just maybe, she knows what kind of curse I’ve brought upon myself? About that cracked memory orb didn’t contain any memories. Only the pure darkness that now lurk behind my eyes. And sorrow. Pain.

Hate.

Suddenly, my duster lands on top of my head, obscuring my vision and snapping me out of my introspection. I pull it off and glance at an embarrassed looking Rose. “Oops, sorry,” She says. “I guess I overshot that. It’s a nice duster, by the way. Where did you get it?”

“Silverwing got it for a job,” I say while putting my duster on. “I, umm, kept it because I liked the look.” When Rose gives me an amused look, I quickly add “So where did you get that scarf?”

She shrugs. “It was in a mall and I thought it looked cool. So that’s something we got in common,” She gives me a wink. “And you have to have something cool looking if you want to be a serious bounty hunter. Most go with a hat or a gun, though.”

That does bring up one thing I wanted to ask since I’ve met her. “Why did you decide to be a bounty hunter, anyway?”

Strangely, she doesn’t seem eager to answer that question. Instead, she opens the door and takes a look around the chamber before saying “I didn’t really have a choice in the matter.”

“Wait, really?” I walk up to her. “I figured you always wanted to do this. What happened?”

She glances at the ground, looking conflicted. That was a landmine question, wasn’t it? Before I can offer an apology and back off, she sighs. “Alright. You opened up to me about some things. I’ll be fair and do the same,” She then gives me a serious look. “Just don’t pity me.”

I nod and she thinks for a moment. “Treppy, what was your dad like?"

"My dad? He was a typical earth pony," I answer as we walk out of the control room. "Strong, brave, loyal, kind, and sometimes stubborn to a fault. He instilled within me everything he thought I needed to be a good stallion. He's the kind of pony I aspire to be. And regularly fail to be."

"I think you're selling yourself short there," She says softly. I don’t agree, but I hold my tongue and let her continue. "The only thing my dad taught me was how to shoot. He was usually away from home, chasing down some bounty for months on end while mom took care of me and my sisters. She was pretty amazing, being able to do that all by herself."

"I can imagine," I say. "Did you miss your father when he wasn’t around."

She nods. "I got why he was gone for months. As much as a little filly could at the time. But I wanted him to stay with us longer. I used to make him promise that he would come back every time he left. And every few months, he would come back and take me out shooting."

There’s a sinking feeling in my heart as I hesitantly ask “So what changed?”

Her expression grows dark. “Some raiders came by looking for dad. He was gone, though, so they decided to take us instead.”

Every fiber of my being tenses up as Rose slows to a stop. “We tried fighting back, but a mare and a few fillies against some armed psychopaths isn’t really a fight. They liked my spunk, though, so they made me watch as they tortured my family. Then they loaded a revolver and promised to let them go if I begged hard enough. My throat was raw by the time they shot them all. They slit my throat as a ‘reward’ for entertaining them and tossed me out to the vultures.”

She presses a hoof against her scarf. “They really sucked at slitting throats.”

My blood boils as I glance down at her scarf. The dark pony already whispering in the back of my mind. ‘Didn’t you come out here to stop things like this? Ask her where they are. They’re just raiders after all. Scum of the earth. No one will cry if you slaughter them all after you are done here. It is the right thing to do.’

“Where was your dad in all of this?” I ask instead, trying hard not to let the anger I feel from seeping into my tone.

“Don’t know. I never saw him again,” She answers. “I got back home alright, hid there for a couple of months. But he didn’t show up like normal and I realised that it was just me now.”

I lift up my hoof, hesitating for a moment as I remember that she didn’t want any pity, before finally placing it on her shoulder. “That must have been hard.”

Strangely, she doesn’t brush my hoof away. If anything, she seems a little surprised by my gesture. Maybe because I genuinely mean what I said? Regardless, she tries to hide it with a shrug. “That’s the wasteland for ya, Treppy. It ain’t nice to an orphan filly with a rusty gun. So, I had a choice: bounty hunting or starving to death. And I picked not dying. Well, I mostly do hired gun stuff, but no pony really cares what you call yourself as long as your useful.”

“Do you miss them?” I ask. “Your family, I mean?”

“Yeah… but I wouldn’t worry too much. My tears dried up a long time ago,” She says softly before moving up to the metal door that separates the chamber from the rest of the facility. “Can’t show that kind of weakness either. Ponies will think you’re soft and they’ll try to exploit you out of your caps if they can,” She starts pulling on the door. “So I learned to beat them to the punch and never have a partner for longer than a job. Nopony’s a saint.”

I quickly walk up and help her open the door. She gives me a sly smile. “Well, almost nopony’s a saint. You’re the only decent partner I’ve had since, well, ever.”

“And probably the stupidest and reckless partner too,” I say while giving the door a tug. Dear Luna, this door is hard to open!

“Ehh, I’ll admit, I thought you were playing me when we first met,” She gives the door another tug. “Your story was too fishy to be true and you thought talking to hellhounds was a good idea,” She pauses to catch her breath. “Not to mention, you coming to save me for free? Tell me, if you knew my rep before coming down here, would you still do that?”

“Yes!” I grunt out as I give the door one more tug and it finally creaks open. “I came after you because I thought you were in trouble. I don’t think your rep would have changed that.”

She scratches the back of her mane. “Not even if I was like Silverwing?”

“You’re nothing like him,” I say a little too quickly for my taste. Not really liking where this conversation is heading, I poke my head into the hallway and look around. “Are those raiders still around? The ones you were talking about?”

She doesn’t say anything right away and I look back to see her frown. “No, somepony took them out before I got back there,” She says disappointedly. “Pretty brutally too. Makes me wonder if dad is still around. If he is, maybe one day I’ll make it big and he’ll finally take notice.”

Backing into the room, I extend my hoof out towards the opening. “I’m sorry I can’t help you with that. Or do much to fix your reputation. Although, I doubt any pony would believe you if you told them you used to work for an ex-member of the Twilight Society.”

With a chuckle, she talks through the door and waits for me on the other side. “I’ll settle for being treated like a mare for once. Thank you.”

“N-No problem,” I glance at the floor, trying not to show my embarrassment at her gratitude over something so minor.

From the corner of my eye, I can see her smirk as she pats my head and takes a few steps forward. “Come on, let’s get moving before those hellhounds start hunting us down again.”

“Right,” I quickly fix my mane and then start following the clearly amused bat pony.

Paranoia seems to be my ground state within this facility. Every shadow seems suspicious, every pile of rubble looks like a trap in disguise, every room feels like it is hiding a hellhound inside. Every flickering light a sign of something sinister. Maybe it is because Lupa and the others weren’t waiting for us outside of the testing chamber. Or in the many, many, many places where they could easily ambush us since we left the room. After killing so many of their pack, I highly doubt that they would leave us alone like this. And this feeling of being seconds away from dying is never going to leave me, is it?

At least Rose is with me now. For the comfort that provides.

“You alright?” Rose asks, carefully rummaging through some old rubble for a trap. “You seem nervous. Well, more nervous than usual.”

“I was expecting to see Lupa by now,” I admit. Then I look around one more time to see if E.F.S. will pick anything up. Just to make sure. All it takes is one mistake to get you killed.

‘It doesn’t have to be this way,’ The dark pony once again whispers. ‘All it takes is one show of force, one brutal display, and they will leave you alone. It is as simple as that. They’ll respect that. If not, well, you’re more powerful than they could ever dream to be. And it’s not like anypony will care what happens to them. They’re just murderous hellhounds that kill innocent ponies just for the fun of it.’

While that may be true, it doesn’t justify giving into that power. It isn’t something I can control. It is evil, primal, wild, and hungering for something I can never quite understand. Something will go wrong if I let it take over again.

‘More could go wrong if you keep suppressing it like this,’ The dark pony warns. ‘Besides, it doesn’t matter if it is evil as long as the end results are good. That’s what happened in Arbu, right? If one can get away with butchering an entire town because it was full of cannibals, then it should be fine to let go and rip apart a few hellhounds for the sake of avenging the fallen. Or will you continue to refuse and risk losing your only friend?’

“Got it!” Rose exclaims before pulling out a hidden landmine from the rubble. I shove the dark pony to the back of my mind while watching her place her new reward into her saddlebag. “And I think that makes: me - twelve, hellhounds - zero!”

“Think you got enough explosives there?” I ask.

“Not a chance,” She gets up and starts walking down the hallway. “And I get what you mean. But this is a big place. Maybe they thought we were heading somewhere else?”

“Maybe,” I say as I quickly join her. “I don’t really want to tempt fate by spending more time here than we have to. How far are we from the stairs?”

She gives me a sly smile. “How much are you willing to pay for a good answer?”

I give her the most deadpan look I can muster. “Really?”

“Ok, I’ll give you a break,” Rose says. “For the low price of ten caps, I’ll give you a really good answer.”

“Rose,” I say. Ten caps is not worth a simple answer.

“Alright, alright,” She waves her hoof. “How about five caps?” I pause long enough to do a facehoof. Though that doesn’t stop her from continuing. “Ok, how about two caps? One?”

“Is this really necessary?” I ask sincerely. Well, half sincerely. This is obviously a joke on her part.

“But it’s fun to tease you,” She says innocently enough. Then she points to where our hallway turns left beyond the upcoming intersection. “It’s just around the corner there. That one’s free of charge.”

“How thoughtful of you,” I say dryly before a thought comes to mind. “You think they’ve got the stairs rigged to blow up too?”

“Probably,” She answers, then gives me a proud grin. “But that just means another few explosives to add to my little collection.”

I glance at her saddlebag. “Just remember what you did to Rover, ok?”

“Rover? Ah! That one hellhound with the grenades,” She waves her hoof dismissively. “Don’t worry, I won’t let them pull that trick with me.”

True, it would be hard for a hellhound to pull that trick. And using a magical energy weapon would just disintegrate the whole lot rather than cause them to explode. Still…

“Isn’t there a safer way to get to the third floor?” I wonder aloud.

“Safer? No. But this is the fastest way,” She says as we pass the intersection. After a few more steps, she looks around the corner. “And... this is bad.”

Looking around the corner myself, I see the stairwell leading to the third floor. Now completely filled with rubble. Yeah, this is bad. I quickly turn around and scan the hallway behind us. There isn’t anything that suggests that Lupa might be here. No red dots, no signs of moment, nothing. Then a couple of the lights flicker off. Followed by three red dots appearing on my E.F.S..

Rose swears under her breath as I pull out my gauss rifle and aim it down the hall. My hair stands on end as Lupa steps into the light, a satchel over her shoulder and her piercing red eyes staring right at me.

“Well, well, well... what do we have here?” Lupa says slowly. Winona and Roxie also emerge from the other entrances to this intersection, cutting off our escape routes. Lupa looks me over. “Oh, hello unicorn. You don’t look well.”

“I’ve been better,” I say flatly. Lupa looks just as terrifying as the last time I saw her. Winona doesn’t look any better from the last time we fought, though her injuries seem to have healed up nicely. Probably means they have access to healing potions. Honestly Luna, why can’t we find some?

Meanwhile, Roxie looks less intimidating up close. Sure, she has a cybernetic left eye and some bits of metal barely showing through her fur. However, despite this and carrying the equivalent of an energy cannon in one claw, she doesn’t look all that intimidating. If anything, she looks like she doesn’t want to be here at all. Maybe we can convince her to back off?

“I see you’re still with the rat,” Lupa says disappointedly, with the same motherly tone as last time.

“Well I can’t help it if I’m better looking than you three,” Rose says before sticking her tongue out at them.

“That can be fixed,” Lupa says while admiring a claw and then offers a toothy smile. “Of course, that isn’t really why I’m here.”

“Yeah, yeah, you want Smarty back,” Rose rolls her eyes while patting her saddlebag. Then she offers a sly smile. “I think you should go after a stick instead. I hear they’re easier to catch.”

Winona growls but Lupa raises her claw to silence her. “We will get to that. For now, I heard that Winona hurt you badly. So I wanted to stop by and apologize for her.”

“Oh really now?” Rose says, highly amused by the idea. “Are you going to make Princess grovel before him too? Let him rub her belly?” Those questions raise Winona’s hackles, but Rose ignores her and glares at Lupa. “I’ll warn you once, if you like your head where it is at, you’ll back off and leave us alone.”

“Like I’m afraid of a rat biting me,” Lupa laughs and then starts rummaging through her satchel. Probably for show, given how small that satchel is compared to her clawed paws. “But I understand, we are scary monsters to you two. That’s why I also have a gift for him.”

A grenade most likely. Or something else equally dangerous. Either way, I aim my rifle at her and ready myself for whatever she pulls out of that bag. “No thanks,” I say firmly. “I don’t take gifts from murders like… like…”

Every fiber of my being shakes upon seeing Lupa pull out a memory orb.

“Do you really have to say such mean things?” Lupa asks calmly, admiring the orb. “After all, I thought a cultured unicorn like yourself might appreciate a gift like this, no?”

Terror tries to grip my mind as I take a few steps back. Run, my instincts scream at me, yet Lupa’s eyes hold me in place. Rose glances back at me with concern? Fear? Worry? It is hard to tell as my eyes refuse to look away from the orb, but I catch her glaring at Lupa with an anger I’ve never seen from her before.

“That’s low, Lupa,” She mutters under her breath.

“So the rat does care about the pathetic unicorn,” Lupa says, dropping whatever pretense to kindness in her tone. “The rumors made you out to be smarter than this.”

Rose takes a defensive stance. “Say that after you get Smarty back.”

Lupa shakes her head while repeatedly tossing the orb up and catching it in her paw. “It seems the unicorn has better manners than you. All I want to do is talk, just like he asked for,” she glances at me and shows off a toothy grin. “It’s rare for prey to give me as much trouble as he has.”

Rose frowns. “You know I killed two of your pack already, right? Or are you going senile there, grandma?”

“It is their fault for not being careful,” Lupa says coldly, her grin now gone. From the corners of my eyes, I notice the other two shift around uncomfortably while she continues. “You’re a rat that is too weak to do anything but nip at our tails like a coward. Your annoying unicorn friend, though. He practically announced himself to us and somehow made a fool out of my pack. Twice.”

Her voice raises into a snarl. “And I won’t stand for that.”

Suddenly, she lobs the memory orb in my direction and instinct kicks in as I rear back in panic. A sharp burning pain erupts from my chest as a magical blast comes out of nowhere to knock me backwards and onto the ground. It is enough to knock some sense back into my head.

“He might have Smarty, you idiot!” Winona screams while I struggle to get back on my hooves. The orb starts rolling towards me and I nearly have another panic attack before a bullet shatters it into pieces. A few of which land next to the broken pieces of Floria’s talisman now lying on the ground. The magical ward protecting me from being disintegrated by that last magical shot before finally giving out.

“Intrepid! Are you alright?!” Rose shouts, a worried expression written on her face as she glances back at me. The barrel of her rifle barely smoking.

“I’ve been better,” I say weakly while picking my rifle off the ground. Being hit by a magical bolt really hurts! Not to mention that it did knock a little bit of the wind out of me.

“Oh? Are you really afraid that you almost lost your favorite tool?” Lupa mocks with a wicked smile to match her tone. “Weren't you going to throw him away like all the others?”

“You-” Rose snarls, her eyes filled with anger as she moves to fire at Lupa. At the same time, Winona sprints forward, claws extended and ready to rip Rose into bloody ribbons. Time seems to slow as the dark pony whispers one thing to my mind:

'If you don’t do it now, you are going to lose her.'

In one smooth motion, I teleport in front of Rose and rip out Max’s blood from inside my bag. It easily forms into a blade from which to block Winona’s attack with. She staggers back, looking shocked, before I quickly slash at her again, cutting her chest in the process.

No, you are not going to kill her! Not after everything that I’ve gone through. Not after everything that I put her through!

A chill runs down my spine as I rip more blood out of Winona’s wound. She stumbles onto the ground, shaking in fear while I fashion another blade from her blood. A rush of anger and power goes through my being as a familiar siren’s song pulls me towards her.

Afraid? Heh. Maybe now you finally understand what you put those ghouls through. What you’ve put me through.

I step forward, anger boiling into a quiet rage while blood blades hover above me. And yet, even as my feelings are centered around Winona, the siren’s song tugs at my mind to look for something deeper inside her. But what? That question gets buried by the intense and overwhelming desire to tear into her and find it.

The dark pony smiles. ‘After all, a monster like her doesn’t deserve to exist.’

“Intrepid?”

Rose’s worried tone snaps me out of my trance. At least, it felt like a trance. The feelings from before are still there, though. Still screaming at me, making it hard to think and figure out what the hay I was just about to do. Seeing Winona frantically back away from me and noticing the pair of blood blades hovering above me is enough to remind me of what I was about to do.

Lupa stares at me, a dumbfounded look on her face. Then her face twists into an almost gleefully sadistic grin.

Horror flashes through my mind for a brief second before Rose pushes me to the ground, disrupting my control and causing my blood blade to splatter onto the ground in the process. The bolt of magical energy flies over our heads is enough to bring my mind into focus. Grabbing my rifle and teleporting Rose and I away from the hellhounds, I briefly glance back to see Lupa rip the magical energy weapon out of Roxie’s paws. Her head snaps in my direction, that same deranged expression on her face making every hair on my body stand on end.

My mind races as she rushes towards us. Not enough to fire off my rifle, so I sling that onto my back and grab Rose before she can let go of me. An escape route appears in the form of a crack in a wall and I quickly teleport to the room on the other side. And then to another room across the hallway. Then to another room from beyond the glass partition. Again and again until my head starts hurting and fear loosens its grip on me. I let go of Rose and slump against a nearby wall to catch my breath. My heart beating in my ears as sweat runs down my face.

Rose doesn’t say anything as she gets up and looks around the room we ended up in. It looks to be a lab, with a giant hole where the entrance used to be, whiteboards with equations written on them, dusty counters, a wall lined with cabinets and drawers. She wastes no time in searching through them. With the blood curdling roar in the distance, I’m reminded that time is not on our side and look through a nearby drawer for something to help us against the hellhounds.

Let’s see here. Beakers, test sheets, paper clips, bubblegum, proposal for a balefire propulsion system? Wait, what?

“Hey, is this flammable?” Rose asks and I look up to see her holding a large metal canister simply labelled as RP-1.

RP-1. RP. Would that stand for Rocket Propellant? If so, then, according to Thundering, it might contain either hydrogen or kerosene. If the explosion in the recording is anything to go by...

Searching through the other drawers, I eventually find a lighter. “Most likely. Might be explosive too. What’s the plan?” I ask while testing the lighter to see if it works.

“You toss, I shoot, and we find a way up while they’re busy putting themselves out,” She explains before tossing the canister at me.

I catch it and give her a concerned look. “So we’re going to burn them alive? With what might be rocket fuel?”

“You got a better idea?” Rose asks.

“Sneaking is always an option,” I answer back.

Rose shakes her head. “I don’t think that will cut it anymore. Lupa knew where I was in the chamber, so good bet she has our scents now. And,” She then points at my saddlebag. “We have Smarty. Throw in that she thinks you’re mocking her and you think she’ll ever leave us alone now?”

“No, she probably won’t,” I admit. “But still, there has to be-”

Rose’s ears twitch as two red dots appear outside of the room and start moving towards us. We take cover behind different counters, Rose readying her rifle while I peak around the edge to see who is coming.

And not a moment too soon as Lupa and Roxie run into view. The two stop at the entrance, sniffing the air before looking directly into our room. Roxie begins to walk in when Lupa stops her with an outstretched arm. “Wait here and don’t screw up again,” She mutters to Roxie before stepping inside, her terrifying red eyes scanning the room as she does so.

“Sorry,” I mutter before teleporting the canister above Lupa’s head. At the same time, Rose ducks out from her position and fires, bursting it open and splattering both of them with a clear liquid. The dawning horror on Roxie’s face as she recognises the liquid causes me to hesitate as I start the lighter.

That hesitation disappears as Lupa lunges towards us and I quickly teleport the lit lighter onto her. The liquid burst into flames, engulfing Lupa from the shoulders up in an explosive inferno. The fire is enough to make her stop but her expression is… wrong. Completely, horribly wrong. There is no hint of pain, no signs of panic, just a mild surprise that her flesh is burning. Like somepony would when it starts lightly raining on them.

That’s not normal. Why are you acting like that? Doesn’t that hurt? Why aren’t you putting it out? What is wrong with you?!

A bullet smashes into Lupa’s shoulder, causing her to stagger back before digging her claws into the ground and charging forward. Rose darts under the flaming hellhound while I teleport to the entrance of the room. I pick up the lighter and glare at Roxie. She hesitates, gives one look at my lighter and then at her burning leader, before backing off. Thankfully.

Lupa, however, isn’t done with me as she whips around and strikes at my face. I teleport away, but the trickle of blood running down my cheek reminds me to stay on my guard. Running into another lab nearby, I duck behind some cover and ready both my rifle and the lighter. Fear, however, starts taking over again. And it is hard to fight back against it when there’s a flaming hellhound after me. Not only that, she is shrugging it off like it was nothing! Who just shrugs off burning rocket fuel?!

I nearly jump out of my skin when Rose appears next to me and whispers, “Ok, so that didn’t work all that well.”

“You think?!” I whisper back with a hoof over my heart. “Did you know Lupa would react like that?”

“No, I didn’t,” Rose whispers. Despite sounding calm, she looks unnerved by the current situation. “You got a plan B?”

“No, I-”

Suddenly Roxie breaks through one of the room’s walls. Part of the ceiling gives way, but she effortlessly knocks it away, shattering it into pieces as it hits the floor. She then cautiously looks around the room. “Smarty? Smarty?” Roxie whispers loudly while walking into the room. “Come on out, it’s safe now. I didn’t mean to shoot at your friend. Honest. You know how twitchy I can get when ponies make sudden movements. Just tell him to come out and I promise I won’t hurt him again.”

Forgive me if I don’t trust you enough to take you up on that offer.

Rose carefully aims her rifle at Roxie while I glance at the broken ceiling. Mostly because it is surprising that more of it didn’t come down, what with the wall holding it up now mostly gone. However, with enough force applied to it, that might be our ticket out of this mess. “Hey, how many explosives did you say you have?” I whisper.

Rose raises an eyebrow at me. “With all the traps I disarmed? More than enough. Why?”

I shy away from the edge of the counter as Roxie looks our way. “Well, if fire didn’t work, maybe burying them will?”

Rose thinks for a moment. “Don’t think I’ll have time to set that up.”

“I’ll give you some. Here,” I pull out Smarty and place the doll into her saddlebags. “Smarty will be safer with you.”

“Wait, what are you-” Rose starts before I teleport behind Roxie. Flicking the lighter on is enough to cause the hellhound to tense up and I aim my rifle at her as she turns around to face me. Rose looks torn as she glances between me, Roxie, and the door. Eventually she shuts her eyes, shakes her head, and disappears. And honestly? This really is a dangerously risky move on my part.

The air grows tense as we both stare at each other: Roxie’s claws extended, ready to attack. My lit lighter hovers in the air to my left, my rifle to my right, aimed and ready to fire. A classic showdown setup that is a bit more terrifying and less dignified than what literature makes it out to be.

‘Just light her on fire and be done with it,’ The little pony in my head says. ‘You’re not going to win in a straight up fight with her. Not without Rose around to bail you out. And who is to say she isn’t like Lupa when it comes to fire? With all that wiring and cybernetics, she’s probably immune to pain anyway.’

‘When why assume that will work?’ The dark pony coldly chides. ‘Do what you were going to do to Winona. Rip it out of her if you have to. You already know that it is the only way to put them down for good.’

No, there is no need to resort to that. And seeing the way Roxie glances at my saddlebag, maybe there’s a better way of dealing with her.

“You don’t really want to be here, do you?” I ask, trying to sound as non-threatening as possible. Assuming I was threatening in the first place. Though, the way she looks surprised by the question gives me hope. “You don’t need to follow Lupa if you don’t want to. I’m sure the town nearby would be willing to take you in if you ask nicely.”

Roxie glances down at the lighter and then readies herself for an attack. I keep S.A.T.S. and my rifle ready as she snarls “You lit Lupa on fire, you killed Rover, you keep hurting Winona, and you’re keeping Smarty away from her family. Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t cut you down right now.”

“Because I’m Smarty’s friend,” I point out. “And she wouldn’t be happy if you hurt her friend.”

“But you’ve been hurting and killing her family,” Roxie snaps while leveling an intensive glare at me. “Our family.”

“And how many families did you destroy when you decided to come here and start slaughtering them all?” I snap back. “They weren’t the ones that screwed with your minds and forced you to be their mindless puppets! So what did they do to deserve the pain and suffering you and your family has done to them?”

To my surprise, Roxie seems taken aback by this, causing her to visibly think for a moment. “But they’re ponies,” she growls. “If we don’t get rid of them, they’ll take our minds away again. Turn us back into mindless weapons.”

“Smarty’s a pony,” I point out, lowering my rifle a little as her anger lessens. “Does she want to do that to you?”

“No,” Roxie mutters. “But that’s because she’s different.”

“Well I’m different too,” I smile at her. “And there are other ponies like Smarty and me who wouldn’t mind being your friend either. So how about we-”

I nearly gag as I catch a whiff of burnt flesh and chemicals coming from… behind me?! I barely dodge away as a set of claws slashes at me. Blood soaks into my torn duster shoulder and the lighter hits the ground with a soft ‘tink’ as I then teleport to the other side of the room. That lighter is soon crushed underneath Lupa’s paw. Her visage is nauseating to see: from the shoulders up, her fur is gone and her skin sizzles and blisters, with scorched pieces of metal poking through at places. What does remain of her fur is wet from some kind of liquid, though I have no clue what she used to put herself out.

And pointing my rifle at her only makes her give me an amused look before glaring at Roxie. “Having a nice chat?” She says coldly, making Roxie flattens her ears and cower before her. “Go back to Winona. I’ll take care of this unicorn.”

Roxie wastes no time scampering off. My body shakes as Lupa gives me her full attention and smiles that bloodthirsty smile. “Now, where were we?”

Pieces of concrete flies into the air as she rushes forward, claws out and fangs bared. Dodging to the side, I quickly teleport out into the open hallway and barely take a step forward before the wall next to me explodes and claws start sweeping towards my head. I barely teleport back and fire a panicked shot at Lupa as she turns to face me.

The shot misses, striking the wall near her instead and causing her to frown and shake her head. “Come on now, unicorn. Quit toying with me,” Lupa says calmly while she slowly walks towards me. “We both know what you are capable of.”

‘She knows,’ The dark pony whispers as I activate S.A.T.S. and queue up two shots. The first misses her leg and the second barely clips her burnt shoulder, causing it to bleed more than it already is.

“Still shooting me? You know that isn’t going to work.” Lupa says, looking confused for a moment. Then a toothy smile forms on her face and presses the tip of one of her claws on her chest. In one slow continuous motion, she cuts her chest open and blood starts seeping out. “There, I made it easier for you.”

‘What are you waiting for?’ The dark pony asks as the siren’s call once again tugs at my mind. I find myself drawn to her fresh wound as the dark pony whispers ‘She is evil, you are in the right. Give in and kill her already!’

Shaking my head, I fight against the temptation in my head while backing away, only to quickly press up against a wall. Sweat runs down my face as I frantically search for a way to escape, only briefly noticing the small lab where this whole fight started from. Not really my intent to run around in circles, but if it buys Rose more time...

Lupa frowns again. “You’re still holding back,” She snarls, moving forward again. “You bare your fangs to Winona but not to me? Why?! Do you know how long I’ve waited for a good challenge? To actually feel the thrill of combat again? What will it take to make you Take Me SERIOUSLY?!”

She charges forward with blinding speed as I teleport away again. Finding myself reappearing in a corridor, I barely have time to look around when Lupa whips around the corner, barely keeping herself upright in her mad dash for me. A whistle catches my attention and a quick glance to my left reveals Rose lying prone at the end of the adjacent hallway.

It takes mere seconds to teleport to Rose’s side, with Lupa’s claws barely digging into my chest armor before I completely disappear. Rather unnecessary, Rose whistles at Lupa and catches the hellhound’s attention. It is at that moment, as Lupa tears her way towards us, that I notice a piece of string wrapped around her hoof. With a smug grin, she pulls it and out goes the pin to a few grenades taped to mines along one of the support arches.

The ground shakes as a chain reaction of explosions turns the hallway into a storm of dust and flying debris. Reacting on instinct, I grab onto Rose and teleport further away from the explosions. It takes a few seconds for the shaking to finally stop and allow us to pick ourselves off the ground.

“You know, when *cough* when I said bury them, I didn’t *cough cough* mean bring the whole floor *cough* down on us as well!” I say, my foreleg covering my mouth as I try not to choke on the dust.

“Well, you did *cough* just disappear *cough* without explaining-” Rose manages to spit out before she presses her scarf against her mouth. “Look, does it matter? *Cough* Lupa’s dealt with now, right?”

“She better be,” I wave some of the dust away as the air clears, revealing both ends of the hallway to be completely buried in rubble. Guess this place really isn’t as stable as I figured. Although, being trapped in a hallway is miles better than having… whatever Lupa is after us. “Any idea how we’re getting out of here?”

Rose barely opens her mouth when some rubble shifts and a claw shoots out from underneath it all. I watch in dumbfounded horror as Lupa digs her way out of the debris we buried her under. Some part of me realizes too late that hellhounds are good at digging while she slowly stands, pieces of drywall and concrete falling away from her bloody body. The cold glare she gives me with her red eyes pierces through my very soul.

And that cursed siren song screaming in my mind. Her blood dripping off of her body, calling to my mind with an urge that is hard to ignore.

“Enough games,” Lupa growls while slowly making her way towards us. “Stop hiding behind your guns, stop hiding behind your rat, and actually fight me like you mean it!”

It gets harder to breathe and I fight back against the terror and darkness gripping my mind while Rose fires her rifle. The bullet digs deep into Lupa’s leg, but she continues forward as if nothing happened. “Actually, no, I think I understand now,” Lupa says with an air of cold, calculating menace. “It’s the rat. She’s holding you back. When you were going to finally fight back, she had to say something and scare the killer away.”

Turning on S.A.T.S., I queue up three shots aimed at Lupa’s head. She has to go down. She needs to go down. As the spell activates, two of my shots miss while the third one hits her dead on. The bullet ricochets off her forehead, causing her to stagger back and little else as blood trickles down her face, the wound revealing a bit of metal underneath her skin.

Lupa shakes her head. “You just keep doing that. That won’t work. The winged ponies wouldn’t let their ‘pride and joy’ be taken out by a cheap shot like that,” She then grins. “But maybe that’s finally sinking in. Maybe now you’ll finally use that magic of yours and give me a real fight!”

“Use my magic? If you insist,” I say, pulling out my MFC from my rifle before funneling my magic into it. Just enough for one powerful shot without causing a backlash like last time. After all, it worked with the first hellhound I fought here, it’ll work on her. I feel lightheaded as I pull the trigger, sending one more bullet ramming right into Lupa’s head, knocking Lupa to the ground. Pressing a hoof against my forehead, I wait for the feeling to go away. Better than having my head erupt in searing pain.

As I’m about to pat myself on the back for the achievement, Lupa slowly stands back up. And suddenly things are back to being bad. No, they are worse, as she cracks her neck and glares straight at me. “That is not what I MEANT!”

Lupa takes a step forward before Rose shoots and hits her shoulder. She howls, not in pain but in rage, and starts charging towards us. Rose fires bullet after bullet into Lupa's legs, hampering her speed, but it is not enough. Nothing will be enough to stop her! If a charged shot to the head won't put her down for good, what can?

'You already know the answer to that,' The dark pony says pointedly. 'Now you need to choose: keep holding back and die or give her a taste of her own medicine.'

I shake my head as Rose fires a bullet that Lupa dodges. No, that can’t work. Blood magic is not going to stop a suicidal monster that can shrug off a force that can easily destroy walls. We have to run! Except we’re trapped with her in a broken down hallway. With flimsy walls and ceiling.

Once again, I funnel my magic into my rifle, pointing it at the ceiling and uttering a silent prayer before firing. And that familiar pain sears through my head as the bullet smashes through the ceiling, leaving behind a small hole to the upper level. Just as Lupa lunges for us, I grab onto Rose and teleport us up.

Reappearing on the third floor, I let go of Rose and clutch my head in an attempt to fight back against the pain. Rose quickly nudges me, saying something akin to “Hey! You alright?!” to which I nod my head.

My head clears up enough to make sense of her next sentence. “Let’s get out of here!” Rose says before beginning to gallop away.

I try to follow but something pulls against my tail. Looking down, a feeling of dread takes over as I notice that the end of my tail has fused with the floor. This is the worst time for Teleportation Splicing to happen! “Why now?!” I shout, tugging at my tail in the vain attempt to free it somehow.

Suddenly the floor in front of me breaks apart as Lupa bursts from the floor below. Pure, unbridled rage pouring from her very being. Her red eyes glaring straight into mine as she strikes for my head. It’s all I can do to just shut my eyes at horrific vision.

So this is how it all ends: Shaking in pure, unadulterated terror and unable to stare death in the face as it is coming. Sorry Dad, Mom. I couldn’t be the stallion you wanted me to be. At least Rose can get away now. Instead of dying in that concrete grave right below us.

… Why am I not in pain yet?

Forcing my eyes open, every fiber of my being stiffens as Lupa’s claws hovers a hair’s breadth away from my face. Lupa herself is frozen, to the point where I can’t tell if she is breathing or not. Her eyes are locked on something behind me and, with all the willpower I can muster, I slowly follow her gaze to see Rose holding a knife to Smarty’s throat.

“Back. Off.” Rose says in a low threatening tone, pressing the knife against the doll to show she is serious.

Lupa just stares blankly at Rose, then at me. Gears turn behind her terrifying eyes before a low, dark laugh escapes her mouth. “Alright, I’ll let you win this round,” She says before patting my head. “Killing you now would be a waste.”

She takes a few steps back, then flashes me a toothy grin. “Oh, and do let the killer out next time, Intrepid. I want an actual fight next time. Between equals.”

With those terrifying words, Lupa disappears back down the hole she made in the floor. I feel cold as I stare at that hole, my body shaking before my legs give out and I slump onto the floor. Her words continue to repeat themselves in my head: Let the killer out, let the killer out. Does she… does she think I’m a killer? No, no, that can’t be it. She can’t seriously want to see me use that- that cursed magic against her! She saw what I did to Winona!

‘Yes, and she grinned like a mad pony over it,’ The dark pony points out darkly. ‘She’s a monster! You’ve seen what it took to just slow her down!’

Something tugs on my tail and I glance back to see Rose cutting it loose from the floor. “I hope you don’t mind it being this short,” She says jokingly, though her tone betrays her worry. “You still look good to me.”

It is all I can do to just nod at her and force myself to stand back up. The small patch of hair fused with the ground captures my attention. A reminder of just how close I was to dying. How dangerous Lupa truly is. A hellhound who feels no pain, who ignores her own burning flesh, who shrugs off bullets…

A hellhound who, upon seeing me pull blood out of her daughter and nearly stabbed her with it, was upset that I snapped out of it and refused to do the same to her!

‘And she called you by name,’ The dark pony whispers. ‘Asking, no, begging for you to quit holding back and let her have it. To show her what you can do with your power.

‘Because she wants to be treated like your equal.

‘She thinks that, deep down, you are both the same.’

My body shakes with that realization. And with tears streaming down my face, I start to laugh.

Congratulations! You survived certain death and escaped the hellhound trap!

Current Quest Objective:

Retrieve Data Needed For Rocket Launch.Activate Satellite Uplink and Radio Repeater.Escort Winter Rose Back To Safety.Scavenge For Medical Supplies.Don’t Die.(Optional) Grab Everypony’s Things From Their Offices.