Fallout Equestria: Desperados

by Dice Warwick

First published 11th of April, 2020

Eleven years after the Stable Dweller opened up the sky, the town of New Appaloosa now thrives as an independent territory, where in this town two lost ponies wake up and must make new lives for themselves.

It has been eleven years since the Stable dweller trotted into the wasteland, and changed things forever, leaving equestria better then she first found it. But life in the wasteland has not become sunshine and rainbows, being as it has always been, where no matter how much things change they stay the same. The parting of the clouds have given way to an oppressively hot sun, the clearing of the radiation has opened the land to new dangers, and what of the raiders, well they have only changed their tactics.

In this new budding age the small town of New Appaloosa found itself under the eye of New Canterlot Republic as a possible extension of their quickly growing territories, the young civilization grasping at all they can take as they attempt to bring back the old ways of equestria. Wanting to hold onto their independence, New Appaloosa embraced new governance, along with a strong hoof of law and order in which to show the NCR that they were not up for the taking. 

Their defiance to the NCR encroachment having proven effective, the eyes of other groups would then fall onto the town, among them the Lightbringer foundation, followers of the Stable Dweller, they have chosen to hold their upcoming lightbringer festival at New Appaloosa. A celebration to the hero who opened the skyes, it attracts ponies from all over the wasteland, and now they are coming to this town, becoming an opportunity for the town to truly become independent through the money they may make from it. But not all attention is good, and like wolves smelling blood, dark forces now circle the town, seeking to gain power through this idea of independence. Yet the greatest danger may come from within as the town's grates protector, Sheriff Ashy Oaks, who firmly holds on to her ideals of justice may become a noose for both her and the town itself. 

This is where three ponies find themselves, as outsiders looking in; the stallion out of time Slowtrot, the Mare out of place Harp Melody, and the troublemaker Star Charter. It is here where they learn one cold truth of the wasteland, that War, war never changes.

Star Charter, Slowtrot, and Harp Melody

FoE: Desperados, Prologue

I tapped on my notebook, still unsure of what to do about my situation. The miasma continued to shift around me, forming structures based on my memories, as well any other creature, unfortunately, to be trapped in this chaotic stagnant pocket of space and time. The "psychic constructive feedback" I think it was called. The structures themselves were unsteady and crumbled to black dust soon after forming. All consumed by an unending storm that swirled all around me, howling like an angry beast. Fortunately, the storm never came close enough to be a problem, and the toxicness of the miasma was quite low, despite how thick it was. I was in more danger of reality itself warping on me and forming some monster near me, or the ground turning to lava under me. It was all theory, as no one really understood how the miasma actually worked, but it was always safe to be paranoid around the stuff.

It was all just as fascinating as it was frustrating. Having seemingly dipped into another world already, seemingly because I was inside some sort of underground bunker, so no way to confirm where I was. The only evidence I was in another world was that I had met with an odd miniature equine with artificial legs, quite sentient, but not all that interested in talking. It was a brief, yet interesting exchange, and her surprised, yet not shocked reaction to me, might be a tell that there are creatures that are similar to myself in that world.

After all that, I finally reunited with that troublesome harpy friend of mine and got ourselves back on track to head home, but to only soon after get separated in this miasma pocket. It’s not my fault that I found some strange armor peace, and became distracted. Artifacts of any kind are worth lots of coin, so alien artifacts got to be worth even more than the average. When I finished inspecting the equain armor peace that harpy was gone.

So I figured if I just stay put and wait for him to come and get me, Harpies may be fickle to say the least, but never knew him to break a promise. Unfortunately, I had another problem to deal with, something I was very unsure what to do with. As I waited, a new equain had fallen near me, from where, who knows, but I was not going to let the poor thing suffer alone.

Studying her, this pink miniature horse had several cuts, and had been stabbed in the chest, though not deep, her rib cage having taken the brunt of the damage, so it was likely cracked. I could only guess that it was her dress that must have saved her, whatever it was made from, it was strong. So I patched her up to the best of my abilities, which was significantly harder to do with my claws becoming some sort of hoof-like structure, forcing me to use my jaw to do much of anything.

“Wha… what’s going on? where am I? Am… am I dead?” after several hours of being unconscious, the small equain spoke, sounding worried and understandably confused.

“Hard to say really, but what I do know is that we’re in a place where time and space are warped, and as for your status as alive or dead, let’s just caution on you not being dead.” I maintained a poise of calm, it was the first thing I learned when becoming an explorer, that above all things, don’t panic.

She looked at me for a moment, her face going from mild shock, to puzzlement, then sighed in relief. “Thank Celestia, you seem friendly, though I thought most Sparkle-Lurkers had purple chitin, then again those non-glowing ones were brown.”

I looked at my light blue shell, my joint glowing with a green bioluminescence. “I don’t know what the Sparkle-Lurkers are, but I must have taken their shape. The name’s Azure Dice, Explorer by situation, artist by unpaid trade, and story writer hobbyists.” I informed her as I politely bowed.

She pushed herself up, wincing in pain, and bowed back. “Harp Melody, Princess, well former princess of the Orthis Kingdom.”

I scribbled her name with mouth claw, my writing being less than the standard I was used to but I was quickly getting better at it. Putting my notebook away I then pulled out my sketch pad, instinctively trying to hold it with my now nonexistent claws, and it bubbled out of my grasp and hitting the miasma ashy ground. "Seriously, why do I have hooves, is it like some sort of magical law that in your world we must have hooves?"

“Let me get that for you” She pointed at my sketchpad, the screen of the device on her leg then glowed green, enveloping my sketch pad with the same green light, then lifting the sketchpad without touching it, before passing it back to me. "So you don't normally have hooves?"

I wiggled my 'hooves' in the air. "My kind aren't naturally so flat clawed, the tail to, it's a bit odd with it being so inflexible." I opened the sketchpad to a blank page. "You don't mind if I draw a few sketches of you, for documentation purposes I mean."

"Are you sure, I mean you can, but I'd rather get back to a friend of mine." She took a moment to look around, and take in how lost she was. "I… don't even know where to start, where even am I?"

"Between dimensions, in something like a bubble made of condensed and unstable magic known as miasma. That's at least my best-educated guess." I informed her as I did my best to get a sketch down. "There's nothing we can really do much about it, but I do have a friend who is an expert spellcrafter, we just have to wait for him to come get me. He will know how to send you home. I think."

Harp didn't look all that hopeful with my explanation and turned to the device on her wrist. "Must be that megaspell I fell into, it was made to warp time and space. Maybe there's a way to reverse my situation if I can adjust the magic in this place.."

I chuckled nervously, "From my experience, it's better to leave messing with magic to those who have years of experience of not killing themselves with it."

She tapped at her device, its overall shape looking familiar to the armor peace I had found here. “Hey, do you know what this is?” I asked as I pulled out the armored piece, and her eyes widened at the sight of it.

“I’ve never seen a pipbuck like this before.” She took it from me and inspected it before frowning. “Looks like it’s dead, maybe power loss? Let's check.” The air around us rippled, the miasma responding to something, no, it was responding to Harp. Like a swirling vortex strands of the Miasma was then drawn to her, absorbed into Harp as she began to… shimmer.

I watched as the pipbuck began to let out a harsh green light, making several noises before a voice came from it. “He… hello?” the pipbuck spoke in a mechanical voice. “What’s going on, I can’t see, is anypony out there?”

We both looked at the pipbuck, both with confusion on our face. “Is it supposed to talk?”

Harp paused for a moment before talking. “Sometimes pipbucks are given VI’s, virtual bits of intelligence, though it’s rumored that sometimes they develop AI like properties.

I looked back at the pipbuck, and asked. “What’s your name?”

“What was that! Is somepony there, I can barely hear you,” it responded.

Harp opened up a bag she had on her, pulling out a few cables. “This pipbuck is too damaged, maybe I can transfer the program to mine.” pugging the damaged pipbuck to hers, Harp started pressing buttons, then sighed. “Luckily most of the files inside are undamaged, so this should take but a moment.” Soon after a loud dink rang, and Harp smiled. “Hello, my name’s Harp Melody, what’s your name?” she asked her own pipbuck.

There was a moment of pause before the pipbuck spoke. “Destination pipbuck 2600, Issued to the OIA by the MoAS for top secret corridor duty, reconstructed for the use of Thorn Rosland to conduct internal assassination of any potential threats to Lunas rule over Equestria.”

Harp looked shocked for a brief moment, then looked over at me, as though wanting to know if I understood any of that. I just shrugged and said “I’m not native to your world.”

She then turned back to her own pipbuck, and asked. “So is there anything you can do?”

The pipbuck flickered for a moment. “Most spellmatix spells are unavailable, this platform seems to be missing the necessary spell talismans to conduct normal functions.”

A frown came from Harp for a moment before her eyes widened up. “Let's try this.” She said as she reached into her bag, and pulled out a small flat oranged box, it had a window on one side, where I could see some sort of gemstone inside, carved into the shape of a disk, and had a magic circle inscribed onto it. She then opened a slot on her felock mounted device and put the box inside. “What can you do with this 2600?”

Again her device flickered, and again it made a loud bing noise. “Teleportation talasman recognized!”

Harp gave a hoof thrust into the air. “Yes! Can you use it?”

Once more the pipbuck flickered. “Requires a destination point… destination point found... Activating the teleportation spell...

“Wait, what!?”Her eyes widened right before she vanished in a flash of light, leaving a hole in the ground.

“Oh dear, did she vaporize?” I said to no one in particular as I put my sketch pad away. The hole itself seemed to widen, drawing the ground itself into it, and with speed. “So much for staying put!” I once more, said to myself as the ground collapsed from under me, plunging me into a dark void, and to the unknown.

“Good evening ponies of the equestrian wasteland, as well as those not ponies. DJ Pon3 is asleep right now, and I, your lovely pirate DJ, has taken over his airways to bring you some new tunes. No music you’ve heard a hundred times already, nor any of that pro NCR propaganda, just the music you can partie to. Now get up, and shake those le…”

*Crach, Pop*

“What was that? WHAT! Are ponies raining from the sky going to just be a thing now? No, go get that mare on a stretcher, I’ll shut everything down before mom finds out. Yes, you will still get your caps, now get going!”

*Buzz, Crackle*

“Sorry everypony, looks like this broadcast will be cut short due to unforeseen weather conditions, enjoy your usual broadcast.”

…

…

…

“...and that’s why the NCR is here, so if you spot any raiders, be sure to report them, together we will make the wasteland safer. In other news, the Lightbringer festival is right around the corner, and New Appaloosa is going all out to celebrate. They have hired the newly founded merchant guild, Blue Skies, to make this an affordable, but also the biggest celebration yet. Be sure to stop by, and enjoy the games, good food, and most importantly, watch the sunrise that announces the beginning of the festival. This has been DJ Pon3, and that was the news. Now it’s time for some music, starting with Victoria Rosary, who will be performing at the Lightbringer festival, singing her popular cover song, Somewhere Over the Sea.”

*Click*

Author's Notes:

Well first off I want to thank Kkat for making this wonderful story called "Fallout Equestria" I probably would ever have gotten into reading, defiantly not written stories of my own without it's inspiration. it's pure imagination and passion is something we are sadly lacking in our modern media.

Than I must thank Gamma Deekay for convincing me to wright my own, all as his stories intertwined with others, making a already big world bigger, and I wish him well on his next grand adventure he will craft.

Lastly I am grateful to Scroll for helping me get this story out, without you, I'd probably finish writing this story before finding another editor with the rate I was going.

FoE: Desperados, Ch1, Confusion

My head pounded like I had way too much to drink the night before, and with how I was drawing a blank to what I had been doing before I went to sleep, that might be true. It was also not a good sign that I hurt all over, so something must have happened.

Opening my eyes, things took a little longer then I liked to become less fuzzy, but I found myself in what I could only describe as some sort of open medical room from the rows of beds it had, and the M.o.P. boxes everywhere… maybe I did have too much to drink, but I still can't quite remember what had happened, so having been blackout drunk is a good bet… I physically cringed at the idea and knowing that I must have done something stupid to end up here, and likely wasted the bits I owned.

My stomach gurgled, and I knew that whatever was in my stomach was going to come up and come up soon.

I jumped off the hard bed then face planted onto the floor. I pulled myself up and looked around for a bathroom, but I saw none. There was a bandaged up pony in one of the beds nearby, so I did the most sensible thing I could do and asked him. “Where's the bathroom? I’m going to puke soon.”

He looked up at me and spoke with a voice that sounded like he smoked three packs of cigarettes every day for his entire life. “Heh, stable ponies. The outhouse is back behind this building. Just go through the front door and head round back. Ya won't be able to miss it, the smell alone is unmistakable.”

I thanked him and galloped off out the front door, quickly making my way around the back where several shabby outside toilets stood next to each other. The bandage pony didn't lie. The place smelled like the sewage had backed up.

Picking one, I found a glowing mushroom poking out of it, but I no longer have the time. I stuck with it and began to wretch.

I don’t know how long I was in there, but when I was done, there was a sizable pool of rainbow-colored liquid in the toilet bowl… I could only assume it was the mushroom that did that… very strange.

Leaving the outhouse, I made my way to the front, now taking a look around. It was a rustic wooden building with ponies all about in cowpony hats and plenty of revolvers on plenty of ponies hips. It was like I had stepped into one of the old frontier movies, except the ponies here looked far dirtier than what they normally shown on the silver screen.

“Hay ma’am,” I stopped one pony that had a very old looking sundress on. “Where am I?”

She gave me a confused look before answering. “You’re in New Appaloosa, silly!”

New. I didn't know Appaloosa started a new town. “Ah, thanks ma’am.”

She then trotted off, and I trotted into the street, feeling a bit lost, but at least with some knowledge to where I was.

There was quite a hustle and bustle to the ponies here. Not to the same level as back home in Applewood, but it was clear everypony had someplace to be.

As I followed the crowd, I found myself in what had to be the market street of New Appaloosa. It had shops of all kinds, each having a swinging sign made from what looked like recycled metal. There was even a pony trying to sell Sparkle-Cola. Her pitch being that it was ice cold despite that being how they're normally sold.

My mouth was feeling dry so I trotted over to the soda vendor She was sitting next to a cool-o-matic 2000 Sparkle-Cola fridge. It was just a normal fridge, but in the shape of a Sparkle-Cola bottle with a glass door in the front, though this one looked like it was made to look really old. Same for the bottles inside.

"One bottle… wait, drat I don't have my bits," I lament. There goes my thirst quenching.

"Bits, why in a radscorpions butt cheeks would I want bits? It's twenty-six caps. Take it or leave it," the vendor said before mumbling something to herself.

"Caps?" I scratched my head, feeling a bit confused.

"Bottle caps, like the ones on a Sparkle-Cola bottle, ya nitwit!" she exclaimed.

Odd… no. It was now making sense. This wasn't a frontier town, it must be part of Sparkle-Cola Word's theme park. I think I remember something about the theme park setting up a frontier town in their park. Which means somehow I got in here while blacked out, maybe I got a job with them. Not the first time I figuratively fell into a job. At least that means there's somepony I can talk to, and possibly recover and stuff I lost.

"Oy, space pony, are you home, and more importantly, are you going to buy anything?" the vendor spoke up.

"Oh, sorry. Kind of got lost in my thought there. Is there a manager I can talk to? I seem to have lost my coin pouch," I asked.

The vendor's eye twitched. "Fffffffffuuu…" she huffed, then pointed over at what looked like a saloon. "Don't know what the ff… I don't know what ya'll are talking about, but the owner of that saloon's husband is deputy Willow Tree. If anypony can help you out, and even care too, he will."

I thanked the vendor lady then I made my way to the saloon.

At the saloon, the place looked like a knock off of a frontier saloon, yet strangely authentic. Ponies playing cards, drinking at the bar, and a few eating hay fries that didn't look all that fresh. The staff here were quite busy, as to be expected, and I couldn't find any open seats or a pony willing to talk to me. I was mostly getting a shrug or a grunt to go away, but there was one spot that seemed to be void of ponies except for three old ponies sitting at a table, playing cards. One was a sharp-dressed unicorn stallion who puffed pink smoke from the pipe in his mouth. Another was in a well used military uniform decorated in lots of metals. The third was a thin zebra jenny of all things. She had an M.o.P. uniform on and sported a bright purple mohawk.

Something about the zebra gave me a feeling of deja vu. "Excuse me if I cut in?" I asked as I sat down.

The three cocked their eyebrows at me as they threw some bottle caps in the center of the table.

"Were playing old Appaloosa poker smooth coat. You familiar?" The military pony spoke with a very gravelly voice.

I was mildly familiar with Appaloosa Poker. I knew if I didn't have chips, I couldn't play.

"Ya, just give me a moment," I requested.

Quickly looking around, I checked for anything I could use, only to see a bottlecap roll under the table. It being a Sunset Sarsaparilla bottle cap with a blue star on the inside. Grabbing it, I sat up and tossed the cap into the pile.

"Sorry,” I apologized. “It's my only cap right now, I kind of lost all my stuff somewhere. Wanted to talk to the deputy about it. Willow, I think, they said his name was."

The fancy stallion deals out the cards. "I'll let Apricot know that somepony needs to talk with her husband," he told me in a proper, yet also very gravelly voice.

I looked at my cards, making sure no pony can see them. It was three aces and two princesses. The cards themselves looked rather old despite them clearly being the princess print cards that only came out last year.

A feeling of dread then washed over me as the ponies must play poker a real lot, and my one cap was at risk.

"Thanks, that will help a lot. I think I may have drunk a bit too much last night, and blacked out. Don't know how I got so far from Applewood, and into Sparkle-World, so I'm just hoping I didn't cause anypony any problems."

They looked at me with confusion, then shrugged as they showed their hooves, knowing I could not add to the pot. I did as well, and they gave me a displeased look before the military pony pushed the small pile of caps over to me. After that, the fancy pony delt his cards again. We all threw a cap into the pile.

"Applewood ey? I heard strange stuff coming from over there. Nothing that can be confirmed, but that place has always been the center of trouble," the military pony spoke.

"It's not that bad," I said, feeling more relaxed now that I had more game tokens. "I mean, if you know the right ponies, you can get in one of the preshow theaters. I even met Lilac Lace once, though only as a drink runner for the theater. They say that the silver screen makes a pony look grander than what they really look like, but the silver screen didn't do her justice."

There was a pause, then the fancy pony gave a sophisticated, though gravely laugh, puffing pink smoke from his pipe.

"Oh, all too true! That mare knew how to take over a stage, own it. Now don't tell nopony I said this, but Lilac and Rarity didn't get along all that well, despite all the promotional photoshoots and pro-Equestra shorts they worked on together. Lilac cared more about artistic freedom above all else, where Rarity, well she wasn't the ministry mare of the ministry of image for nothing."

The military stallion then laughed loudly, and gravely. "Ya know, I remember her movies now. The fifty-foot mare was my favorite! She had so much leg. Rumors from the tank battalion out west says she's still kicking around, though they like their tall tails."

We continued playing our game and chatting about the usual goings-on The two ponies being more candid then I was used too, making me a bit worried that the M.o.M. were going to pop out at any moment. The conversation ranged from buckball and how, despite Appaloosa still on top of their game, Cloudsdale was making a major comeback, to how the ministries might be going a tad too far with all their plans.

It was strangely a pleasant conversation.

"Zay pony," the zebra spoke up in a thick, and gravely accent. She had not spoken this entire time. She just played and watched me. "How long has it been since the great war started?"

The three of us became quiet at her question.

I thought about it for a moment. Despite what the ministries put in the history books, I remember the start of the war being a bit more complicated, though I was only five then.

"Let’s see, there was an old veteran that told me there was a five-year-long trade war before any shots were fired and, even then, the first ten years of the war was just posturing with little actual violence actually happening. So, if you’re talking about full-on hostilities, then it started right after the little horn massacre around over nine years ago."

There was a pause between the three poker players as they shared glances. The Zebra then pulled out a strange device, It a metal box with a handle, and two moving wing-like appendages on the end that had severe small flashing lights. It flashed and beeped as she pointed it at me, her eyes fixated on the box.

Then she let out a sigh. "Your either the world's most well-preserved ghoul, or you somehow managed to survive being soaked with a massive amount of powerful magic, but then that would answer to how you put a hole in my new clinic."

I cocked an eyebrow, a bit confused. "I don't get what you're saying."

She pointed at her fenlock. "Your pipbuck should give you some details about yourself."

I checked my right fenlock. Nothing. I then check my left. I found an expensive-looking pipbuck attached to it.

I nearly fell out of my seat upon seeing it, for such things were kinda hard to get, even when you had the bits for it.

"When did this get here?" I asked in confusion.

Turning the thing on, it felt strangely familiar, despite never having used one before. Even the engraving of a '?' Entangled with a pony shoe, my cutie-mark on it.

On the screen, an image of a green pony formed, it's eyes "X" out and it looked quite unwell.

"I think it's broken. The thing says I'm dead?"

The Zebra scratched her chin. "Well, your vitals were normal the last time I checked, same for your friend."

"Friend?" I said, cocking an eyebrow.

She put away her device. "Here, let's go back to my clinic and I can take a more thorough look at you, now that you're awake."

She then looked at the other two ponies. "Tell the deputy that I got this covered, but if he still wants to talk with the stable pony, we'll be at the free clinic."

I was still confused, but at least it seemed that I found a pony who can help. Well, a zebra, at any rate.

Looking at the large pile of caps I won, I had no way to take them with me.

"Hundred caps, and I'll give you my spare bag," the military pony spoke up.

I shrugged, then pushed the caps to him. He threw me an old worn-out military bag, in which I put the rest of the caps into.

Following the zebra, I made a quick stop to buy an ice-cold Sparkle-Cola. I was disappointed to find it a bit flat, making me glad I didn't spend any bits on it.

Entering the clinic, next to the bandaged pony, was a very pretty, as well as the tallest unicorn mare I had ever seen. She almost looked like one of the princesses, but without wings. She also sported a short main and tail cut. Stranger, her eyes were not normal. It was snake-like slits rather than being round like a pony.

"Welcome to the New Appaloosa free clinic," the zebra announced.

"Oh thank Celesta, you found him Jali! I was almost about to panic!" The tall mare said with a tone of relief.

The zebra, Jali, looked at me and chuckled. "He literally stumbled into my poker game and ended up nearly stealing all our caps like he was blessed by a god of luck itself."

She then pointed at one of the hard beds.

"Now you sit there, pony, and Prism will bring out the other one from our private room, along with all your things."

I sat on the bed. Jali picked up an old worn out medical bag, pulled out a bunch of equally worn-out medical tools.

"You all are taking this frontier theme really seriously," I spoke, feeling a tad more confused.

"Just stay still as I examine you. Tell me if anything feels wrong."

She began hitting my joints with a small rubber mallet that didn't hurt, but it forced my legs to move a bit.

"Now open wide," she instructed.

I did.

She stuck a flat stick into my mouth for a moment as she looked inside.

"Alright. Now . . . have you noticed any strange fluids coming out of your body, or any odd pains?"

"Other than some aches and pains, maybe some bruises, I feel fine, though I may have puked a rainbow outback in the outhouse,." I explained.

Jali paused for a moment as Prism carried a mare and a bag into the room.

The mare was pink with light gray stripes and had a blue mane with light gray streaks. She also had two small wings and a small horn, along with a pipbuck on her left fenlock.

Placing the unconscious mare on the bed, Prism then trotted over to us. She placed a saddlebag with the stable-tec logo next to me.

"Prism, there might be some rainbow bile in the outhouse behind the clinic. Can you recover a sample of it for me?" Jali requested, and Prism cringed before nodding and trotting off.

Next, Jali looked at me and asked, "Alright. Could you look through your bag and see if you remember anything?"

I really had no memory of ever owning such a bag before. After touching it, it became clear that it was more two M.o.P. medical cases put together like a saddlebag. Very strange... yet familiar.

With a click, I opened the first case, and inside was a blue jacket that looked like a stable barding that Stable-Tec sold, and on the side was "R&D" imprinted on the sleeve. There was also a blue cowpony hat with a yellow band around the base, it was made of similar materials to the jacket, yet it was much sturdier.

It all felt familiar, but even when putting them on, I still didn't remember anything, so I opened up the other case. What was inside was a gun and several bullet-filled magazines for the gun, along with rifle bullets inside clips.

Picking up the gun, I didn't really know much about guns other than what I saw in the movies and parts I made in factories.

It was a pistol which used largeish ammunition and, had the Stable-Tec logo on it, despite that company not being in the gun manufacturing business. Also it had an engraving

"Chekhov's Promise," I read out loud as I messed with the trigger on the bit.

*Bang*

The gun fell from my hooves. A trail of smoke followed as it descended down a long dark shaft. So long that the darkness had swallowed it. It made no sound after vanishing.

I looked up and found myself no longer in the free clinic. Rather, I was sitting in front of a massive stable door. Blood splattered all over it. Getting up and turning around, I was now in a hallway. The bodies of ponies in blood-stained lab coats were along the floor. Around my neck was a color that beeped.

"Go, or your head will pop!" A mare spoke as she stepped into view, she a blue earth pony mare with a long golden mane and wearing a decorated navy uniform. Thorn Roasland had a wicked grin on her face that told me she had no intent to spar me.

Turning again, I took one step and found myself in a large room. In the center was a swirling magical vortex.

"I can stop it. I can make it so that the war never even started!" An older green unicorn mare in a lab coat stood at the edge of the vortex, heavy bags under her brown eyes. Her shadow began to crawl up her, wrapping around her, covering her. Healing Herbs eyes then turned a golden yellow, and the rest of her became the black nightmare Phobetor.

"A fool! Her, you, and everypony! I will soon be free!"

*Bang*

The sound resonated loud enough to hurt my ears and, with it, everything shattered, becoming dark once more.

"You do know what to do with that, right?" A mare asked, and I found myself sitting at one end of a long table. To my left, I could see the city of Applewood, and to my right was the decaying ruins of a city. It looked somewhat like Applewood.

On the other end of the table was me, a purple earth pony stallion, saggy long pale blue mane, with a jade streak running through it. He held Chekhov's Promise in his hooves, smiling.

"Let me remind you," he said to me.

Pointing the gun at his, and my, head, he, and I, fired.

His head shattered into pieces… like glass fragments.

In the flying fragments, I could see other ponies in them; Thorn Roasland, Healing Herbs, Phobetor, and me.

There were other ponies too. Many other ponies, but they were far more incomplete compared to the first four.

Then the pieces fell, landing behind the table, forming a unicorn mare. She was purple like myself with a pale blue mane, again like myself, and even had a jade streak through it. Behind her was a very long and dark shadow. In it, I could make out faces of ponies looking back at me, each seemingly in a fit of madness.

Fragment cracked her neck, stretched her back, then looked at me with annoyance.

"Now that's a face I haven't seen in a long time, though not long enough if you ask me. Well whatever, I got a business to lord over and I don't need some ghosts from the past to pester me. Be gone spirit, or I shall eat you." Fragment waved her hoof and slid my gun over to me as everything became fuzzy, fading, then dark.

I opened my eyes, finding myself in a largish dusty room with mismatched wooden walls and floorboards that had several rows of beds that look like they were salvaged from the side of the road. I was back in the clinic, though it was a bit hard to believe that this place could be considered one with how dusty it was. Maybe I was in a Sparkle-Cola world set-piece, but the effort to make it look like an authentic frontier town was a bit much.

Looking down at Chekov's Promise, smoke still drifting from the barrel, I then had a feeling that I was in big trouble. "Sorry about that, but the good news is I'm starting to remember stuff."

A long sigh came from Jali as she trotted over to me.

"Good! Now can you tell me where you two came from? It might answer to what is wrong with you." Jali proposed, her voice sounding worse than before, and her face… looked like it was from the movie Undead Zebra Nightmare…

"Um… Is it Nightmare Night?" I asked, her makeup making her look quite out of place for a frontier setting… unless there was a zombie vr’s cowponies event going on?

Jali stared at me for a moment before she answered. “I think you ponies were about to celebrate that before everything went up in balefire, but no. What you're seeing is real.”

The painted on muscles, where it was to look like her skin, was missing and moved, as though they were her real mussels. It all looked way too real.

I studied Jali more. Nothing about her yelling makeup, yet there's no way a pony or zebra could look like that naturally. Magic was clearly the answer, but such disguise magic was outlawed, and even then, why a zombie zebras?

Thinking, I scratched my chin, finding a beard where one was not there before. “Wait, when did I grow this?” I asked myself as I slowly started to remember, but things still were not making sense, unless something went seriously wrong.

“It’s fuzzy, but I think I remember, though it sounds more like a dream,' I declared.

Taking a deep breath, I dug up the memories from my confused mind and looked at the pipbuck I got as a parting gift. “I had just triggered the megaspell to implode on itself. I couldn't let either of them get their hooves on it, and teleported out… but I didn’t end up in the overmare’s office.”

The zombie doctor grumbled. “Megaspells, that’s never good news, but it would explain the magic you're flooded with.”

Jali then pointed at the unconscious mare. “How about her? Remember her now?”

I shook my head. “Maybe she’s one of the R&D staff in the stable. It did have its share of zebras working there. I know she's not going to be part of the Navy, unless Thorn planned to use her as a kicking bag.”

Jali sighed as she picked up the gun. “Sounds we will just have to wait for her to wake up.”

She placed the gun next to me then turned to the alicorn. “Prism, I thought you checked this before locking it away?”

Prism’s eyes shifted before she also sighed in frustration. “Star… Sorry Jali. I’ll be more careful next time.”

“Please do. It was hard enough to get the mayor to approve setting up this clinic near the town's center. The last thing we need in some uppity smooth coat chasing us back out into the outskirts, all just so they can use this space to sell more junk again.” Jali then turned back to me. “Right, now if you can stay here. I want to run a few more tests on you to see if you have any mutations. Maybe some mental damage.”

I nodded, still playing with my new beard, and wondering how long I had been out.

I checked my pipbuck. The date was just all wrong, saying that I was 211 years late in catching my flight from the Marewaii skyport. “So, this might be a dumb question… but my pipbuck says it’s been over two hundred years. That can’t be right, right?”

Jali dug her hoof into her lab coat and pulled out a thin rusty box. Inside was a very old photo of five zebra soldiers sharing drinks. “This photo is of me and some of my squadmates. It was taken a few days before the war ended over two hundred and eleven years ago.”

There was a fairly young and attractive zebra jenny in the group, in what I could easily guess was a zebra's medics uniform. Looking up from the photo at Jali, some of the stripes matched, but she resembled more as a withering corps than the young zebra in the photo.

“You sounded like some of the confused pony ghouls who are from the wartime, so I want to check and see if you are actually one of us or not.” She closed the thin metal box and put it away before trotting off to the back.

Prism trotted over with a box of fancy colt cakes, passing them to me. “Here. I have a feeling you might be hungry,” said Prism.

I looked at the old looking box and flipped it over to see the expiration date. The fading letters told me that it was a hundred years passed its expiration.

“Don’t worry,” she assured, reading the worried expression on my face, “though it might be a bit stale, they are still good to eat.”

Shrugging, I tore open the box. The dry and sickly sweet smell hit my nose.

“Orange incorporate always advertised how their food snacks would last forever. It was even a joke that if the world were to end, there would be nothing left but cockroaches and fancy colt cakes,” I said as I bit into the cake, and it indeed was stale, but still edible. “Well let’s hope we were wrong about the cockroaches.”

Prism quickly looked away which gave me a bad feeling.

“Who the fuck is shooting a gun in town, and at this fucking time!” the voice of a loud and angry mare shouted in from outside.

Trotting in was the most frontier movie looking sheriff of a mare that might have well stepped out of the silver screen. She even had the nasty looking claw-like scar on her right cheek.

“Y’all should be glad no pony got shot or it be to the gallows, ya hear me!” She was a pale green unicorn mare with a graying mane done in a bun. On her brown duster jacket was a big shiny brass star. Hanging off her hip was the biggest revolver I had ever seen. She even had a big brown cowpony hat on. It also had a smaller brass star pinned to the brim.

“Sheriff, please calm down. I’m sure they have a good explanation for this,” a younger unicorn stallion trotted in. He wore the same outfit as the mare but lacked the stars or the big ass gun. “Anyways, Apricot said that there was a pony looking for me here, so let's see what they have to say first.”

The sheriff huffed, her eyes scanning the room. Her eyes fell on me and Prism. After that, she asked in a demanding tone, “You or the monster, which one of ya fired that gun?”

I looked down at my pistol then I raised my hoof.

“Swwwy, mm…” I swallowed the cake in my mouth, washing it down with the rest of my Sparkle-Cola.

I tried again. “Sorry. My bad. I thought it was empty before messing with it."

She trotted up to us, giving me a death glare. “Do you think this is funny?! Fucking around with any gun is liable to get somepony killed!”

Prism stepped in the way as she said, “Sheriff Ashy Oak’s! I get why you're mad, but he only just woke up, and I don’t need you beating one of our patients unconscious again. So calm down, or I will remove you from here.”

Ashy didn’t move her head or even move her eyes to look at Prism.

“Try me monster, and I’ll have it that you, and that harlot of a daughter, get what's been long coming to you.” Her voice was seeping with contempt.

"Ahem." I cleared my throat. "Sorry, I'm still a bit at a loss as to what's going on, but I'm willing to bet that threatening a nurse is still very much frowned upon."

I then gave the grumpy mare a smile. A very nervous smile. "How about we work out a deal? For any fines or damages I've caused, maybe I can work them off?" I presented my bag of caps, hoping it would at least calm the situation.

As Sherif Ashly took a few steps closer, Prism backing away.

"You think money can just sweep your crime away?" Ashy then got in my face. "Ponies like you are why things don't get better. “No, they actually are why things get worse."

By Celestia, I didn't know what she wanted with me. Maybe to have me grovel on the ground like some power-mad mare?

"Listen here, I said I'm sorry,” I pleaded. “That it was an accident and that I'm willing to do something to fix any damages. Now can you back off and let me deal with the fucking fact that I likely teleported over two hundred years into the future?"

Ashy backed up, looking a tad confused herself, and finally looking up at Prism. "What chems is this pony on?"

"None yet sheriff" Jali spoke up as she trotted back into the room. "I need to run some tests to see if this pony is a ghoul or not. Wouldn't be the first ghoul to spend most of their unlife confused and lost."

“Now I'm sure you have business here, but I prefer you leave deputy Willow Tree in charge and not rush to judgment while we are all still trying to put on a happy face for the visitors. I know you got the mayor on your side, but there are limits to everything sheriff, even for your brand of justice."

A frustrated huff came from sheriff Ashy. "Fine then ghoul, but remember it goes both ways. If any of your patients cause any more problems, it's back to the outskirts of town, and this time your whole Followers of the Apocalypse cult will stay there."

She yanked the bag of caps from my hooves with her magic, and turned to leave the clinic, leaving the stallion behind.

Deputy Willow then sighed. "Sorry. She means well, but with all the new ponies coming in for the festival, it's a bit stressful."

Jali trotted up to me, placing a box on the bed and opening it to reveal a few strange devices. "Well do remind her that we're here to help. The town's doctor is not going to treat every cut and bruise, and the outskirts is not the safest place to be when you are not a local, and got a lot of caps on hoof."

Willow gave us a friendly smile. "I'll be sure to remind her. As for damages, fortunately, it's just a few holes. Nothing major, though it gave a cat a good scare."

"Then why's the sheriff getting bent out of shape over it?" Prism asked, sounding irritated.

"Because, if we let that slide, then there's going to be ponies who will think it's okay to just casually fire their guns whenever they like, and that never ends well. That dedication to the safety of the ponies here is what makes Ashy the perfect sheriff, and why this town has been able to flourish," Willow answered.

"And what about the ponies in the outskirts of town?" Prism shot back.

"Ahem!" Jali cleared her gravely throat. "Not the time nor the place for this discussion. I just want to make sure that this clinic stays open for the foreseeable future, and once the festival is over, then we can work on helping the outskirts. Now, deputy Willow, if there's anything else you need from us?"

"Just more details on what happened,” Willow answered. “Lately the mayor has been pushing for us to make written reports, likely wanting us to emulate the NCR." He said as he pulled out a pencil and notepad.

Jali rolled her eyes. "Does anypony here think it might not be a good idea to copy old Equestria?"

"Let me guess, we should be more like old Zebraca then" a mare spoke up from outside, trotting in with a more light and friendly step.

She was an ocean blue pony in a yellow sundress who wore gold earrings and gold mane clips in her long wavy sea green mane. The mare got a collective sigh from the other three ponies.

"What? I heard the sheriff was heading this way and wanted to see if everypony is alright,” the new mare explained, then said in pleasant greeting, “Oh hi deputy Willow. How's the wife?"

Prism trotted over to the new pony, looking less than pleased. "Star, we need to have another talk about your concept of gun safety."

The mare, Star, cocked an eyebrow, and looked over at me, then down at my pistol. "Ahh, ya forgot to eject the bullet from the chamber before holding the pistol I see. You know, the old buzzard would never have made that mistake."

Jali pulled out from her box a metal clip with some wires attached to it. "Just ignore them, and stay still, my equipment is very sensitive to fluctuations in magic. I should be able to figure out your condition fairly soon."

She attached a clip to my ear and a second one to my other ear. Both then got attached to what looked like a miniature terminal. It had blue lettering which appeared in what I guessed had to be Zebra writing. It beeps every few seconds as Jali nodded her head and placed a wire attached strap to my hood. It beeped some more before she started tapping on the small keyboard while nodding.

"Strange. I think there's some interference?" she said right before its beeping started to go faster and faster. "That's not right!"

The mini terminal then began beeping so fast it was like it was screaming all before the screen then turned off. A puff of black smoke subsequently came out of it.

Jalin looked at it, her mouth agape in shock.

*Thud!*

Jali and I turned to see what made that noise.

Hiding behind the bed next to mine was the pink pony, now awake. "Excuse me, not to be rude, b… but can I have some clothes? I'm feeling quite exposed you see." She spoke with a quiet, yet elegant sounding voice.

-Trait: Good Natured - Slowtrot grew up in a time where war and violence was still a foreign concept, and held to those ideals, even if they failed in the end. He gains a boost to non-combat skills, but all combat skills are lowered.

-Trait: Forgot how to Door - Slowtrot does not retain information as well as other ponies, but he tries his best, for better or worse. -1 to skill points when advancing in level, but gains +1 to luck whenever entering a new area, and has a %10 chance to succeed on skill check he is too low to complete.

-Odd Trait: Wild Wasteland - it might just be that Slowtrot is out of place and time, but the world seems different to him, odder, wilder. He might be crazy, or it's Equestria that's gone mad, but all the same something is not right.

-Learned Skill: Scrap Craft - The workers of the wartime industry had many ways to make the most out of what they had at hoof, and having lived among them, Slowtrot had learned how to make tools from old scrap.

-Learned Perk: Classic Education - Slowtrot gains two more skill points every time he advances in level.

FoE: Desperados, Ch2, Confusion

The unusually tall unicorn nurse had carried over my saddlebag and gun case, both looking like they had taken a beating, of which now that I remember, they likely did. Fortunately everything else inside was intact and clean, so I quickly put on my red dress and a pair of underwear. Now decent, I could focus on the task at hoof, such as figuring out where the tartarus I was.

Getting back up on the bed, the room looked to be constructed from salvaged wood and furnished with salvaged beds, giving the place a cozy, yet rough feel to it. If I had to guess, I was in a moderately well off place. Not so well off that they had anything new, or at least refurbished, but. other than the hole in the ceiling, the room looked solid. I could safely assume that I was around civilized ponies, though that did not mean I was around good ponies.

Fortunately the zebra ghoul Jali was considerate enough to fill me in on the who's and wheres of what was going on, putting me at ease with her darken yet friendly bedside manor. I was somewhere safe. New Appleloosa as they called the town, but it concerned me with how far from the Marewaii Islands I was now. It just didn't feel real to me, and maybe it just had not sunk in yet.

"My name is Harp Melody, and thank you for looking after me." I said as I gave the ponies a polight curtsey. "I wish I had some way to repay you."

"Think nothing of it. Helping ponies in need is why the followers exist." Jali explained as she finished examining me. "Though if you could fill in some information about how you got here. The other stable pony has a less than reliable memory, and a second account would be helpful. So, was there an actual megaspell?"

I looked over at the other pony, Slowtrot was what he said his name was. I already knew his name, but he didn't seem to know mine, or who I was at all. So I decided to play it safe and not give out too much information, not that any pony would believe most of it.

"Megaspell, I think so. It’s hard to explain what I saw other than it being an active megaspell. I think it was the source of what was warping the stable, and my friend and I had to finish collapsing it, but I fell in before it closed up." I explained.

"That's right!" Slowtrot said loudly, "it was a time space megaspell. The overmare, Healing Herbs, was trying to open a hole in time and prevent the war from ever starting." He then sighed. "Unfortunately it was all a setup. A certain ponies had other plans in mind for it, so it had to be destroyed. I guess I failed to do that if you had to finish the job."

There was a pause in the room as everypony seemed to chew on that bit of information. The first to speak up was Jali, "That, at least, explains Slowtrot and why he looks fresh, despite being older than me." She then turned to me, her rotten face was still hard to get used to, but I did my best not to react. "Now how about you, miss? Did you also make a jump in time?"

A wave of dread washed over me as I checked my pipbuck, but also hope. If I had moved through time, maybe I'm in the past, maybe I could save so many lives… seeing the date on my pipbuck shattered those hopes, finding that I was in fact a year forward in time. A whole fucking year, and it was now gone.

It felt like a heavy weight had just fallen on my shoulders, pulling me down, making it hard to move.

"Are you alright, Miss Harp?" Jali asked.

Taking a deep breath, I smiled. "Just a bit shocked, that's all, it seems that I've been out for a few months, but it's nothing too bad."

What I said was not entirely untrue, but I was still worried about my friends. More importantly, I had to at least look calm, like how I was taught to be, otherwise I was just another target to be used.

Jali nodded, "That's to be expected. Even without the whole time magic, most stable ponies tend to suffer from momentary bouts of shock when leaving their home. I'm a bit surprised that a smooth coat like you didn't jump back when you saw me."

I gave a nervous chuckle. "Well you're not the first ghoul I've come across, and far from the worst looking one at that."

She smiled back at me. The moving of her exposed mussels made me feel a bit uncomfortable.

"Well, you seem healthy,” Jali noted. “I'd check your radiation signature to make sure you are not mutating and such, but all my sensors suffer from a sudden magical overload. It's going to take me a good part of the day to fix even one, so you can wait here if you like, or take a look around town. If you do leave the clinic, it might be a good idea to go with an escort. New Appaloosa may be a safe town, but it still has its dangers." Jali informed me before grabbing her doctor's bag and a smoking ammo box, then trotted to the back.

I felt a twinge of guilt as she trotted away with her broken devices It more than likely my fault for overloading. I was a bit startled when waking up and had let out more than a bit of magic I had stored in me. Feeling the magic in the air, it all felt different, yet familiar.

The ghoul gave off a stagnant magic, just like another ghoul I had met had, and the unicorn stallion was overall normal, but the other three were odd.

Slowtrot felt elusive, like his magic was both here and not.

Prism felt like, well like somepony had taken the magic of a unicorn and used it to try and copy the magic of an earth pony and pegasus, making something that felt wrong.

Then there was the mare Star, the feeling of her earth pony magic had something mixed with it, warping her magic just a little.

"Well, I think it's time I go. The mayor is going to want to know that our two stable ponies are awake," Deputy Willow spoke up, putting a weathered looking notebook into his breast pocket. "Also, if you can, try not to antagonize the sheriff any more, Star. She's got more important things to do then to clean up after your messes."

With that, he trotted out of the clinic.

The mare, Star Charter, sticking her tongue out at him.

An audible sigh came from the tall unicorn, Prism. "What happened this time, Star?"

Star rolled her eyes. "There was another rowdy patron at the tavern and I had to remind him of the rules. Asshole must have ran crying to the sheriff, that's all."

Trotting passed Prism, Star made her way to me, a mischievous smile on her face. "Let's forget about the sheriff and talk about some of the shit this mare had on her. I mean, those guns, and that robot, never seen anything like ‘em before!"

Opening up the gun case, she pulled out one of three disassembled air rifles, but then it was snatched from her hooves by a blue overglow of magic.

"Star!" Prism shouted, "Maybe not try and overwhelm the young mare."

The earth pony mare took a deep breath and sighed. "Right, sorry. I was just getting carried away." She then relaxed, giving me a calm, but still mischievous look. "So, what's a small mare like you doing with so many guns?"

Prism levitated the rifles over into my hooves. “It’s a Lelantos, though most of us just called it a bolt launcher. It uses talismanes to compress air, and spin the bolt when firing.” I explained.

I used my pipbuck to then levitate the rifle's other parts over to myself, and began to put the rifle together. The reassembly being a simple task of twisting a few screws.

When I was done assembling the rifle I poured a bit of my magic into it, and the talismans began sucking the air into itself, filling it’s two air tanks.

“All that’s left is to load the revolver with bolts and,” I pulled the trigger of the rifle, and it gave a loud pop. “You got an effective hunting rifle.”

Star raised an eyebrow at me and crossed her hooves. “Two questions; one, did you just levitate all that without your horn, and two, what the heck powered that rifle? I don’t see a spark battery?”

‘Crap! I guess that must not be normal here.' I lifted up my pipbuck. “My pipbuck has a weak levitation spell built into it, so it can lift small objects, but requires a levitation talisman to do more than that.”

Lifting up the rifle, I wasn't sure it was entirely safe to tell them about what I was. The last thing I needed was to be chained next to a generator to power it.

"Well, it can be charged. This one just had a bit of power still in, that's all. Most of the tech back home is like that. We Mirage Ponies just need a working spark battery," I half lied, leaving out that I was basically the spark battery.

“That’s… actually cool.” Star said, clasping her hooves together, making a clop sound. “But a bit of a bummer though. Spark batteries have become hard to come by lately.”

I felt a bit sad about letting her down, so another lie wouldn't hurt. “Well, it doesn't need to be a spark battery. If there's a magical source of energy, I might be able to power it up.” A lie as it was, it would make a good cover explanation if I ever needed to use the bolt launcher, and not reveal my magical ability.

Star smiled. “That would be awesome! We should test shoot them sometime. Those bolts look like they could easily pearce a radscorpion's hide.”

I did not like the sound of whatever a radscorpion was.

“That’s enough, Star. I think she needs some space.” Prism stepped in.

Star shrugged and trotted off while Prism said, “I’m sure you have a lot to get used to, and my daughter dragging you outside to shoot guns might not be the best idea right now.”

This time I raised an eyebrow. “You're her mother, but you don’t look that old.”

They also didn’t look all that alike, other than both having a blue coat.

Prism chuckled. “Well, not biologically. I adopted her long ago when she was a rambuncuse filly. Now she's a rambunctious adult. As for myself, I’m a lot older than I look. I may not look it, but I'm an alicorn. Well, an artificial alicorn."

“Long story short, my sisters and I were created by the goddess, a great and powerful mutant, though unfortunately time had driven her to madness. Don’t worry, she's dead now, killed by the lightbringer.” There was a sense of sadness and longing in Prism's voice.

“Alicorn, as in the princesses, but you don’t have any wings,” I asked, still processing the idea of an artificial alicorn, but it did fit with how her magic felt.

She looked at her back, then back to me. “I lost my wings long ago, not that I miss them. I was originally just a normal unicorn before becoming this.”

The mention of lossed wings reminded me of another friend. “Oh, that still must have been painful.”

I could feel tears forming in my eyes, so I bit my tongue to regain my composure.

There was a pause. Prism looked at me with concern as I did my best to hold a smile. It all interrupted by my stomach grumbling. Releasing what had just happened, I hid my face in my hooves as I flushed red with embarrassment.

A louder chuckle came from Prism. “Sorry, I should have grabbed some food for you. I’ll be right back.”

When she left, I sighed in relief.

As a direct descendant of Princess Platinum, I had to stop acting like a foal to be a proper lady. That meant no emotional outbursts and always presenting the best side of myself. If I didn’t do that, I would only mess things up for everypony again and become a burden to everypony, like back home.

Turning my attention over at my worn out saddle bag, I opened it up and looked inside. There was a clutter of ruined makeup, toiletries, an advanced gas mask, and several changes of underwear. There was also a figurine of the ministry mare Fluttershy and a pin like medallion depicting Celestia and Luna. Picking up the medallion, I felt my heart sink. It was a family heirloom of a close friend of mine, and I never managed to give it back to her.

“Damnit, I messed things up again,” I said under my breath.

Checking the other side of my saddle bag, I found the R&D stable jacket my father gave me. In an inside pocket was my father's gun. It still loaded as though, left untouched. I put the gun back before anypony noticed and threw on the jacket before looking back in the bag. What was left inside were a few basic spell talismans for my pipbuck and a red cap that had a metal band in the from with the inscription of “M-C”, in remembering how my friend gave it to me to help me calm down, and it has helped me get through the nightmare that was the R&D stable.

Taking the medallion, I pinned it to the cap and put it on my head. It did helped me feel a bit more confident in myself.

As for the spell talismans, they were not looking in the best condition. One even having a crack in it, so I decided to leave them alone for now.

“Hey, Miss Harp, can you tell me what this is?” Star startled me when she spoke up, placing a wasp-shaped robot onto a nearby bed.

It was my robot, Order, which my father gave it to me for protection, but now it was covered in dents, had a broken eye, and one of it’s propeller wings was bent.

“That’s a recon drone. It works a bit like a sprite bot, but more advanced. Can you bring it over to me?” I asked.

Star nodded and moved it over to my bed, placing Order on top of the gun case. I then placed a hoof onto it and pushed my magic into the drone. Slowly Order came back to life, but it was not going anywhere under its own power. The hud display in my vision then began to show me the drone establishing a connection to my pipbuck. Most of its advanced programming went safely inside my pipbuck. There was also a status bar, more than half finished, which listed as file conversation, likely from the pipbuck 2600.

“Good… Day… Lady… Harp,” the drone spoke in a distorted voice. “How… may… I… serve… you?”

“Order, you need repairs, so go into sleep mode,” I commanded my Drone.

“Yes… my… lady…” Order then powers down, and I sighed in relief. He was damaged. Really damaged, but there was a chance he could be repaired.

Stretching my legs, I then hopped out of bed, and proceeded to fall over. I hadn't realized how weak my legs had gotten. I needed Star to help me back up.

“I guess I should stay in bed then,” I figured.

Star laughed. “That might be the last thing you should do. Just trot about the clinic. Get used to trotting again.”

I took a few steps, then stumbled, getting another laugh from Star.

“Sorry to laugh, but you look a lot like my daughter when she was learning to trot.” she explained.

Looking at the earth pony mare, she didn’t look all that much older than me.

“Let me guess. You adopted, like Prism.” I asked.

She rolled her eyes at me, and huffed. “No, she is my actual daughter. By the goddesses, I had to carry her in my belly for nine months.”

I think I hit a nerve, so I said, “I’m sorry. It’s just that you look so young. I didn’t think you’d have a foal yet.”

“Oh, well that’s an honest mistake. I mean I get it. Mom was really pissed when she found out, and it took a long time to repair our relationship after.

“All that said, my little Bridget is the best thing that’s happened in my life, aside from getting Prism as a mother, that is,” Star explained. “Unfortunately, her father had to skip town. Although my mom was forgiving, his father was less so. As far as any creature knows, he’s currently working as a Talon.”

Something was missing in this story, so I asked, “Why was your mom and his father mad about you being pregnant?”

Star looked away for a moment. “Well I was only sixteen at the time, and he had promised his father that he would not fool around. The old buzzard was more mad about him breaking his promise than anything, and didn’t take punishment lightly, so my foal’s daddy skipt town before he got the worst of it.” She then chuckled. “When he left, he promised to become a famous Talon, then return with a lot of caps. The fool was better at making guns rather than shooting them.”

“Fortunately for every creature, my granddaughter is a well behaved and smart filly, unlike her parents.” Prism returned with a bottle of sparkle-cola and a very old looking box of snack cakes. “Here, have this. It will hold you over until you have a proper meal.”

The box, both the packaging and the sweet inside, looked ancient, but it would be rude to not at least take a bite. So I bit into the snack cake, finding it to be sickly sweet, and very stale, but still quite edible.

“Say Miss Harp, not to pry or anything, but are you from Cantercross?” Prism asked.

I washed the cake down with some soda, then asked back, “Cantercross? No, I'm not. Why do you ask?”

Prism sighed. “Sorry. It’s just that you said you're a mirage pony, and I only just now remembered hearing about them in a city called Cantercross. A few creatures I know had met them personally but didn’t go into detail. From what I can remember being told, the city is in the far north west and they run the government there. That’s about it.”

“How long ago?” I asked.

“Roughly around ten years ago. Not too long after the clouds cleared up over Equestria,” she answered.

“That’s not right. No pony has ever left the island. We all thought nothing was out there until recently,” I mumbled to myself.

I looked at Prism and gave her a smile. An honest smile. “Thanks, I don’t know if those are the same mirage ponies as me, but it’s good to know I’m likely not alone out here.”

A chuckle came from Star. “Maybe you can join us the next time we go out west. Maybe talk with those friends of ours. Just be careful. One of them is a bit off his rocker.”

She got a sharp glance from Prism that cut her laughter short.

Star then shrugged “But with ya, maybe it’s better to not get ahead of yourself. Just get used to things here first.”

“That might not be a bad idea,” Slowtrot spoke up, getting everyone's attention. “I mean, I’m from the Coltiforna region of Equestria. I’m not sure if there's anything to go back to, but might as well see what’s become of my home.”

Prism nodded in agreement as she said.,“Getting you two back home would be for the best, or at least close to it, but, even then, the problem would be having the caps to even make such a journey. Caravans going that way are not cheap, but it’s the safest and fastest way. Luckily, right now is probably the best time to earn the caps for it, but with how you two only just woke up, I’d advise against it.”

“Well it’s not like I’m planning on going anywhere yet. I mean, I’m still not quite sure what to do,” I said as I looked at the snacks, soda, and the other beds. “But I can't just freeload on you when you’ve helped me so much already.”

“Oh, no, you're not freeloading. As a Follower of the Apocalypse, it’s my job to help those in need,” Prism quickly responded.

“And that’s why we were all poor,” Star huffed. “I’d suggest sitting on it and just getting used to the wasteland, but eventually you're going to need some caps to rub together, and I can help you with that.”

Prism cleared her throat to gather our attention, then said, “I think we should ask the mayor to see if he can help them first. I’ll go talk to doctor Jali about it. While I am at it, you can show the two stable ponies around town.”

Star shrugged as she said,“Fair enough. I need to go pick up Bridget soon anyways.” She then trotted over to me as she asked, "Are you good to move around, or do you want to wait here a bit more to stretch your legs and such?"

I stretched one of my legs. I winced a little from a dull pain in my muscles, but it is not enough to be a problem.

"I'll be fine,” I assured Star. “Like you said, I probably need to trot it off."

"I'm fine, by the way. Been a bit lightheaded, but nothing else I can recall," Slowtrot added to the conversation.

"Alright. I'll give you a brief tour of this town, so follow me." Star pivoted around then trotted out the door.

Following her, the door outside the clinic was strangely bright with a dry and dusty wind coming out from it. My eyes took a moment to adjust.

Before me was a busy town under a vast sky with ponies of all types and even a few non ponies moving about. It was about as crowded as back home, but the town was far more spacious that the ponies were able to get around without too much trouble.

The one thing that struck me by surprise was how muted the colors were, being mostly different shades of brown, gray, and the odd brightly colored pony in the mix.

"No trees. I guess that makes sense to how you can live out here," I thought out loud.

Slowtrot raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by that? Wouldn't trees be a good thing?"

I scratched my chin for a moment as I realized that things might not be the same as it was back home.

"Well,” I answered, “back where I am from, the trees produce a toxic pollen that can kill within minutes. Then there are places without the trees that are plagued with massive bubbles of concentrated radiation, they are invisible, and roll around randomly."

He visibly cringed. "Then how do you ponies live there?"

"There's an extensive metro system under the Marewaii Islands. That's where everypony lives," I explained.

He looked away for a moment before nodding. "I think I remember hearing about that, yes. The advertisements for Marewaii boasted about how safe their metro system was. There was even an urban legend about glowing monsters living in the tunnels."

As he chuckled to himself, I bit my tongue to remind myself not to mention that there were actual glowing creatures in the tunnels.

"Oy, are ya two going to keep gawking, or are ya going to follow me?" Star yelled out to us.

Following her, we stopped outside a large and bussey building that was at the corner of a "T" street crossing, with a large sign that read 'New Appaloosa Saloon' where there was cheerful music coming from inside, along with the smell of cooked food.

"This here is the town's main watering hole,” Star explained. “Its a professional establishment, so none of the usual wasteland sanagans are allowed, otherwise the deputies will come and straighten you out."

"What do you mean by wasteland sanagans?" Slowtrot asked.

"Chem use, fighting, harassment of the staff, and otherwise being an obnoxious pain in everypony's ass," she explained. "Not that other places tolerate such things, but here in the center of town you are not just going to get let off with just a bloody nose."

Looking around along the main street, I saw several small stalls set up between the larger buildings. Each selling random trinkets and other odds and ends.

The larger building on the other street corner was a general store with a large sign that read "New Appleloosa Emporium". It seemed that the town's name was a big selling point.

With Star pointing them out, there was also a pharmacy clinic that looked a lot nicer than Jali's free clinic. The town also sported a capital building, a weapons shop, a laundromat, a bank, a barbershop. Not too far off was the sheriff's office with the Jail attached to it.

The rest of the buildings were simply residential housing, most being apartment buildings with a few of the more wealthy residents having full houses to themselves.

Star pointed down the intersection to where the train station was as she added, "That there is the lifeblood of the town. It safely brings in new workers, traveling merchants, and recently tourists. Up until recently, the town mostly got by with the caps brought in from the quarry since it was for an NCR supply point but, thanks to the Lightbringer Festival coming up, things have gotten really busy.”

"I heard this Lightbringer Festival being mentioned before. Is it like the Summer Sun Celebration we used to do?" Slowtrot asked.

She just shrugged. "Don't know what a Summer Sun Celebration is. As for the Lightbringer Festival, it's basically to honor the hero who pulled back the clouds and returned the skies back to Equestria. She went by a few names such as the Stable Dweller, Hell Mare and, of course, as the namesake of this festival, the Lightbringer."

“This town is especially excited, as this place was the first settlement she visited. She helped the town free themselves from the cruel rule of Redeye, or at least that's how the town explains it." Star informed Us.

"And this NCR?" I asked.

"That be the New Canterlot Republic," a chubby earth pony stallion said loudly as he trotted up to us. He was dressed just like deputy Willow, but his clothes seemed to be slightly stained with grease and was one size too small for the stallion. "They are currently the biggest faction here in the wasteland who seek to bring back old pony values, though they mostly just protect their trade routes."

He then reached out his hoof and I reflexively offered mine back.

"The names False Cap,” the chubby pony greeted, “one of the head deputies here in town. And you are?" He asked as he kissed my hoof. He gracelessly let some saliva on my hoof as a result.

I held back on showing my disgust, knowing that this pony likely didn't know any better. I did my best to politely wipe off his saliva using Slowtrot's jacket.

"My name is Harp Melody. A pleasure. Did you say Canterlot? It's good to hear it's still around. My family always worried that our ancestral home was lost to the war. It has been a dream for them to one day return. Maybe I should go and pay the city a visit?"

Both Star and False looked away for a moment.

"About that, Harp," Star spoke up. "when the enclave attacked the wasteland long ago, their first target was to level Canterlot.

“Also, from what ponies have told me, before the city fell, it was a no-mares land, full of unkillable feral ghouls along with a necrotic pink cloud filling the city." She further explained.

I felt myself deflate a little from the explanation. "Well, I never thought I would ever get to leave the Islands, so at least there's that."

"That's the spirit, Miss," False said, with a jolly tone. "and arriving in New Appaloosa at this time is mighty good luck since the festival is soon upon us. I'm sure you're going to enjoy yourself.

“If you need somepony to escort you around, I'm more than happy to do it."

Star stepped between us with a smile that hardly hid her aggression towards the stallion as she said to him, "Thanks for the offer, deputy. I'm sure she will give it plenty of thought. She does have time for it since the festival is not soon upon us."

"Indeed, there is still plenty of time, False agreed. “Well, Miss Harp, if there's anything you need, I'll be around. Just be careful around a mare like her. She tends to attract trouble," He said as he tipped his hat and gave us a friendly smile before trotting away.

"Well wasn't he a nice stallion. Other than that Sherriff, the deputies have been down right pleasant," Slowtrot responded, no hint of sarcasm in his voice.

Star just sighed. "Ya, compared to Ashy, you can say they are pleasant." She then turned to us with a much more honest smile on her face. "If he's free to mingle, it means it's almost time to pick up my daughter. Care to join me?"

We both nodded and began to follow Star. I took one more glance at False Cap as he mingled with the town's ponies, a big smile on his face. He was good at hiding it, but by no means a master. Under all the niceties was something slimy. I didn't know what it was. I had only just met him, but I had a strong feeling that if I was left alone with him, I'd be in danger.

From how Star acted, it was clear she knew exactly what he was up to, but was in no position to call him out.

That did not seem as true in reverse, however, since he openly pointed out Star’s shortcomings.

We trotted a bit further down the main street. It came to a simple but fairly well built building. On the side was a tall sign that depicted a larger than life image of a mare in what looked like she was in stable barding, raising up a pipbuck attached leg that held up the sun. Written on the bottom said, "The Lightbringer Foundation’s School for Bright Foals"

I looked over at Star, feeling a bit concerned. "Is this Lightbringer some sort of religious saint?" I did my best to ask politely.

Star just chuckled. "Sometimes the Lightbringer Foundation seems to act that way, but as far as anypony knows, no, she's simply just a big old hero that did a bunch of heroic deeds."

Bells started ringing from the building. The school's doors flung open. Flooding out was a herd of foals.

From the group, a small pink filly jumped out, attaching herself to Star.

"Mamma!" she yelled as she climbed onto her mother's back.

Bridget had her mother's wavy green mane and green eyes, but on her back were green feathered wings, and on her forelegs were two scaly yellow talons. Strangely of all was two small gold like horns on the filly's head. It both foreign, yet familiar. She also gave off the same warped magic as her mother, but it felt more natural, and light.

"Did you have fun at school my darling?" Star asked with a loving tone.

Bridget grinned widely. "We had to read about how the Lightbringer left her stable, and I did it without making a mistake on my first try."

Star smiled back. "Oh, we got a big filly here, reading without any help now. Maybe you should start reading to me now."

The little filly frownd. "No. I want mamma to read to me. You do it way better!"

"Fine then. Anything you want me to read tonight?" Star asked softly.

"Ummm," Bridget ponderd. "Can you tell me about the time you met the vampire ponies?!"

"I can, but that story isn't in a book," she answered.

Bridget just huffed. "You should make it one mama. Then I can read it in school." She put on a proud looking pose. "Then everypony would know how awesome mama is." Her eyes then drifted to us, then she gasped. "Stable ponies!"

She jumped off her mom with her wings out as she barreled at us, only to be caught by her mother and pulled into a hug. "What did I say about jumping at strangers?"

"But… but their stable ponies!" She whined a little.

Star nodded. "Yes, and I'm currently helping them out. Do you want to join us?"

Bridget nodded excitedly.

"Alright, but behave yourself, or grandmother might not give you cakes," Star warned her daughter.

Bridget gasped for a moment, then calmed down.

"So, where to next, Star?" I asked.

She got up, letting her daughter stand on her own. "I think paying the mayor a visit would be a goodish idea. He should be expecting you by now."

Slowtrot and I nodded. It felt a bit soon, but like so many ponies say, it's better to do it sooner rather than later.

Harp Melody -

Tagged Skills:
-Barter- 42
-Science- 40
-Speech- 42

Trait: Good Natured - Harp focused on less combative skills growing up, and more on social skills, as well as constructive skills.

Trait: Small Frame - Due to her small size, she has +1 Agility but your limbs are more easily crippled (25% extra limb damage).

Unique Trait: Blood of Platinum - As a direct descendant of Princess Platinum, Harp has a natural aura of authority and power. It is both magical and social. When performing magical feets, Harp gains a 2x power boost, and has unique dialogue options open to her.

Learned Perk: Intense Training - +1 to Charisma

Learned Perk: Educated - You gain two more skill points every time you advance in level.

FoE: Desperados, Ch3, Confusion

The town's central office was in need of dusting, just as most of the buildings in town, though was the way it normally was like because everypony was too busy to clean up, such as a board looking secretary that was more interested in painting her hooves than doing any real work.

That secretary has an overly styled mane cut that looked like a beehive, and she also wore obnoxiously red horned glasses with a decorated strap that dangled around the back of her head.

"Hello Karat Gold. Is the Mayor free?" I asked with a smile, hoping she was not going to be a bitch today.

Karat slowly put her hoof polish down, then adjusted her glasses before looking over at me. "Oh, I'm sorry Star, the mayor didn't request for a private meeting today. If he needs help with stress relief, I'm sure he will send a message to your boss."

I took a deep breath to stay calm. It was only a few words, but after years of her bullshit, I really wanted to give her a black eye. It didn't help that she knew she could be a cunt to me, and I couldn't put her in her place.

"I'm sure he would, but that's not what I'm here for." I pointed my hoof back at Slowtrot and Harp. "I'm sure the mayor knows by now that the two stable ponies are awake by now. They're here to see if he can help them get settled in as they don't have anywhere to go yet."

She looked at the two, scrunching her nose a little at Harp, but smiling a bit at Slowtrot. I didn't get Karat's taste in stallions, but then again she had bad tastes in everything. If her husband wasn't such a spinless wuss, I'd feel bad for him.

"Alright, Hon. He should be wrapping up his meeting with Deputies Stop Clock and Willow about now." She then turned on the intercom on her desk. "Mayor Espresso, the two stable ponies from the free clinic are here to see you."

The intercom crackled before the voice if the stallion Espresso spoke through. "Ah good. Deputy Willow told me they’re up. Send them in, they can join us for some coffee."

Karat then pointed at the door behind her. It opened up after she pressed a button. "You can go on now."

My two companions trotted over to the door while I followed, only for Karat to clear her throat at me. "They can. Not you."

I rolled my eyes at her and pointed at the door myself. As a result, Bridget galloped in after the two.

"Oh no! My daughter just galloped in without permission! I guess I’ll just collect her then be on my way."

Not waiting for a response, I trotted off, but this time to find myself blocked by the tall, thin, and gray stallion called Stopped Clock. He looked down at me with his one good eye, the other having been clawed out by a griffin long ago.

"Not staying, Deputy Clock?" I asked.

He looked down at me and scowled. "Got to get back to my patrols. Make sure no raiders are up to anything outside of town. Speaking of which, Star, you've better been keeping your nose clean."

"Far cleaner than False Cap's uniform," I told him.

He nodded and trotted forward. I stepped aside to let him through. "Good, It's bad enough with whom you're already associated with. Give us a good enough reason, and we'll send you to the gallows for the good of the town."

"Oh come on deputy, I accidently set the town on fire once, and you give me the third degree for life!" I huffed back at him. "I get y’all are doing what's good for the town, but have you ever heard about too much of a good thing?"

"Ponies not being as vigilant as us is what led to the rise of the slaver lord Redeye and the suffering of so many for so long." He presented his revolver from under his duster. "So I'll repeat myself, keep your nose clean, or face cold hard justice."

"And may the goddesses be with you too," I said back at him as he trotted off.

I didn't doubt the validity of his threat. I was used to being around overly zealous ponies, and I didn't plan on breaking any of their laws. Not intentionally, at least.

"You are quite a well spoken young mare, Miss Harp," spoke Mayor Espresso, who was a brown and balding earth pony stallion who tried, and failed, to come over his bald spot with his cream white mane. Not far from him was Deputy Willow, looking as friendly as ever.

Harp sipped her coffee, holding the cup with her hooves, and not using her pipbuck spell to hold it like she did with her rifle.

"Well my family worked as administrators back home, so there were expectations for my siblings and I to be held to a higher standard." Harp took another sip, then smiled. "I got to say, this town is quite impressive. It must have been hard work to get it to this point."

Espresso chuckled, clearly flattered. "I won't deny that I've put in a lot of effort turning this town from some backwater stop, into a place ponies look forward to visiting. Getting the Lightbringer Festival to be held here took a lot of string pulling. It should help put us more on the map."

He then nodded over at Willow. "It's also thanks to Ashy Oaks and her deputies. Without them to keep everypony safe, there's no way we would have been able to open the quarries. Without the quarries, the town would never have a stable enough income to improve."

Willow scratched the back of his head, looking a bit embarrassed. "Well Ashy figured that we needed a proper base. Can't just wander the wastes hunting slavers forever. Upholding justice in the area just came naturally to us, so we decided to change our goal. That's all."

I trotted over to Bridget who was looking at one of the mayor's books, trying her best to read well above her ability.

"Excuse me,” I interjected. “I’m just here to pick up my daughter."

The mayor just waved me off. "Yes, yes,” he agreed dismissively, then looked at Harp as he said to her “Now miss Harp, I could use an extra assistant. A bright young mare like yourself would be perfect for that role. It should also help you safely get used to life out here. With all those horror stories about stable ponies wandering the wastes, let's not have another one start here."

Harp pondered for a moment, then nodded. "I think that might work out well for me, yes. I accept."

"And me?" Slowtrot raised a hoof.

Espresso paused for a moment, as though he forgot he was even there. "Well can you read, write, or do math?"

Slowtrot raised an eyebrow. "Yes. Can't everypony?"

The mayor chuckled for a moment. "You'd be surprised how many ponies can't do any of that. I can introduce you to a few of our more valued residents. They've been asking for a pony who can help them with the more day to day tasks."

Picking Bridget up, she whined a little, but knew not to bother the mayor.

"Hey you two, if there's any problems you need help with, just ask for me at the free clinic, so don't be a stranger now." I waved at them as I trotted out, the two waving back.

Bridget waited until we were out of the building before speaking, mainly because she didn't like Karat almost as much as I did. "Are they going to be okay, Mamma?"

I ruffled her mane as I answered, "Of course, darling. They’re grown up ponies. They just needed a bit of help. That's all."

Making our way down the market street, I eyed the merchant stalls for any food because I needed to pick up something for dinner tonight. Luckily there seemed to be a lot of corn on the market, and several less than happy mercents sitting around with far lower than average prices. This was really lucky for me since money was still tight even with extra business going on. Being able to stalk up on food was a wait off my back.

Trotting up to one merchant, I put on my best friendly face. "I'll take two, no three dozen ears of corn." Tossing the merchant the caps, they gave me three bundles of corn. "So what's with all the corn?"

The merchant sighed. "A bitch of a farmer had a huge harvest this year, but told no pony. I bought my bundle thinking I could mark up the price, and as you can see, we all had the same damn idea. Bet the bitch laughed her way home.”

I shrugged and turned to head back to the free clinic.

I never ceased to find it funny how New Appleloosa tore down several ruins just to build this part of town, but lacked the coordination to keep all the wood the same when building, making a confused mosaic of brown on the walls and floor.

Still, this place was miles better than most places out in the wastes. Even the decaying beds, at least they only had a few loose springs. It was also sheer luck on my part that I found a mostly intact tarp to cover the hole in the roof, so it will now only leak a little when the rain storms finally come back around.

Inside I saw Jali performing a checkup on a mare friend of mine.

"Hay Star," Bronze Chain greeted weekly. She was a beautiful tan unicorn mare. She was covered in scars. Her long black mane parted only by her broken horn.

"What's up? Not feeling well?" I asked as I trotted over which allowed me to see her unicorn colt, Copper Wire, fiddling with some electronic device next to the bed.

She yawned. "Just haven't been sleeping all that well. Seeing if Jali will give me something to help."

"And I told her in no way am I giving sleeping pills to an alcoholic," Jali said sternly before taking her stepiscop off Bronze's chest. "Other than mild dehydration and a need to eat more, you’re fine. Now if you manage to keep yourself sober for a week, I'll consider giving you a mild sedative."

Bronze nodded and got off the bed. "I'll try."

I trotted over and gave her a hug. "You know you can always stay over with me. I'm sure I can help you get some sleep," I said as I wiggled my eyebrows, hoping she would say yes. Mares were not really my thing, but Bronze and I had grown close over the years, and I did want her to move in with us.

Unfortunately, there was one really big issue with Bronze.

"I'd like that, but you know how Prism feels about me," she said just as my mother trotted in. Bronze looked away.

Prism just sighed. "I said I was sorry Bronze, but I did explicitly tell you to not bring alcohol into our home."

It was an agreement mom and I had made to keep booze and chems as far away from Bridget as possible. It was something Bronze was unable to do so far.

I chuckled as I remembered Prism shaking a scared and upside down Bronze. I then got a dirty look from the two of them.

"Sorry, sorry," I said as I backed away. "Anyways, Mom, can you look after Bridget for me? I’m going to take some of this corn to the gunrunners. Knowing them, they completely forgot to eat anything today." I then placed two bundles of the corn on a nearby bed. "Also we got corn for dinner."

Mom looked over and gave a concerned look. “Thanks, but isn't that a bit much?”

“Naw. The prices are low right now. If we had the caps for it, I’d have gotten more,” I explained. “Also left the two stable ponies with the mayor. Not sure about the stallion, but that… mirage mare… well she’s already got the mayor all greased up, so she will be fine.”

“It’s buttered up Star, not greased.” Prism said with a sigh.

I just shrugged. “Buttered, greased. Whatever. She’s still got the mayor all loose around her. I just hope they get normal work. I’d rather not see them take the late grave digger’s place.”

"Speaking of him, what happened to that creep?” Bronze asked.

“Dead, from what the deputies said. He got attacked by radroaches and fell into a grave he was digging outside the town's proper graveyard. They then jumped in and ate him alive,” I further explained.

A slight smile formed on Bronze face. “Good! He deserved it for how much he made our Cloudy worry."

“Can you not talk about such things with the foals around,” Mom said sternly. “Anyways, don’t you feel sorry for that stallion? He clearly had a rough life. More so than most.”

Bronze looked away, and I shrugged.

“Ya, at first, but there's a limit to everything, even to how much you can pity a pony. At some point enough is enough, and he long passed it.” I then looked around the bed to see Bridget watching Copper Wire take apart one of Jali’s burnt out tools. “Hey Honey, I gotta go. You stay here and be a good filly for grandma, okay?”

“But I want to see grandpa Hardballer too,” she whined.

I smiled. “You know how busy he normally is, but maybe you can join me tomorrow. Right now I’m just going to make sure he's been eating.”

“Alright Mama, but say high to Aunty Javelina. She gets lonely if you don’t,” Bridget encouraged.

Nodding, I ruffled her mane again. “Now play nice with Copper. I’ll be back when I’m done.” She looked up at me and smiled like a good girl.

Turning and trotting to the door, I had to dodged two foals running in. They were a tan pegasus colt named Roger Roger, and dark gray with light gray spot earth pony filly named Light Step. The filly ran past me to join Bridget, while the colt stopped to look at me first.

“Hey Star,” Roger Roger greeted. “Can we use the big radio the followers have in back?”

I looked up at Prism who shook her head.

“Sorry Roger,” I say back to Roger. “Mom says no.”

“Oh, okay.” He said with a frown before trotting off to the other foals to see what Copper was doing.

“Thought ya'd be here. Star.” Rusty Cleave spoke up as she trotted in. “The boss wanted me to tell you that there's a little extra job he would like you to do.”

She was a light green mare with bright red main, and had a thing for spikes, making her look too much like a raider, mostly because the mare was too dumb to not flant her raider heritage. Despite all her raiderish glory, she was a dancer through and through, with a stripper pole as a cutie-mark, and had surprisingly raised her daughter Light Step to be an adorable filly. She was also another close friend of mine.

“Well it better pay well if it’s off the clock,” I grumbled.

She shrugged. “Waterspout didn’t say nothing about pay ta me, but I doubt Head try and cheat ya. Also, thanks for looking out for Light last night. Didn’t think I’d get extra clients.”

“No problem Rusty.” I said as I rolled my eyes. “But did ya think to not work in the brothel? You tend to take on the more aggressive types, and I worry sometimes.”

“It’s good pay, Star, and how else am I going to get my little Light what she wants?” She explained without shame.

I decided to not argue. The mare was clearly set in her ways, and somehow was at least doing right by her daughter.

“Well,” I said, “Just don’t do it too often, Light Step is a sensitive little filly and hates it when her mom doesn't come home.”

Rusty sighed and nodded, so I then trotted out into the crowd.

Making my way to the train station, the crowds diminished as I crossed the tracks. I entered the less clean part of New Appaloosa.

It was not all that bad, yet, as I first had to pass through the secondary market where ponies hocked random junk and other things of mild value. There were also plenty of beggars, some with foals, hoping for a free cap or two, but doing nothing to change their situations. There were also the chem addicts keeping to the shadows as they waited for their supplier to give them their next fix. All of them were kept to this side of the tracks by the sheriff, effectively keeping the town “Clean” in the eyes of any visitors passing through. The mayor put in more of the town's funding to further keep these ponies out of sight using billboards and cheap apartments that obstructed the view of this side of town from the train.

“Hey Miss, want some Dash?” A sleazy stallion asked me. I quickly backed away as I gave him a glare.

“A cap, please Just one so I can feed my foal!” A mare cried out to me, the half dead foal I’d seen before in the hooves of two other mares. I’d do something about it, but there would just be more mares with more starved foals next week. If I didn't ignore it, then I'd likely go mad.

Passing that mess, I trotted through what quickly became the shanty part of town where ponies just built whatever homes they could haphazardly throw together. Their waste was thrown out in front into open trash piles. Here was where the quarry workers lived, though they spent more time breaking rocks than they did living here but, without them, this town would have stayed a small blip on the map.

There were also just a few ponies here, mainly the quarry workers, foles or spouses who were too weak to work in the quarry themselves. They minded their own business, so I minded mine.

Further past the shanty town, there was a wide empty space that separated the Gunrunners compound and the town. They had a deal with the locals. If no pony built too close to them, they didn’t have to bloody any noses.

As I trotted into the reception building, I passed a green mare in a well tailored duster. Her red mane was bundled up in a messy bun. I wouldn't have cared if it weren't for her rear legs being cybernetic. This was something quite rare but not unheard of. She did not pay me any mind as we passed.

At the desk was the oldest son of the compound's owner, a greasy red hippogriff.

“Sup Longslide,” I greeted. “Hungry for some corn, or will you be a cunt?”

He looked at me, and then at my bundle. “You know, if you weren’t the mother of my neice, I’d tell you to go and fuck off right now.” He placed two revolvers into a gun case. “And no, I had some cram this morning.”

"A cunt it is." I placed the bundle of corn onto the reception desk as I gave him a friendly smile. "So where's the old buzzard?"

Longslide pointed to a door on the side. "He's with Javelina inside the schematics room, so keep your voice down." He then turned his attention to several blue sheets of grid paper. They were covered in sketches of the vehicle he had made, but never got to work.

Trotting off, I entered the inner walls of the gunrunners facility that surrounded the factory and several smaller buildings. Along the way, I passed a griffin in a dirty jumpsuit. He ignored me as he puffed on a cigarette. The smell triggered a minor craving in me. I pushed the feeling down. The last thing I needed was Mom and Bridget smelling it and lecturing me about how bad smoking was.

In a corner of the compound was a fortified building where the gunrunners kept their gun schematics. The door was obviously locked. Knocking gently, I waited for a moment before the door clicked, then it opened a crack. The pail pink eye of Hardballer looked at me for a moment as I waved at him.

"What do you want, Star?" Hardballer said quietly as he slowly opened the door. The old and balding griffin looking at me with a sense of annoyance, a feather coming off his dusty red and pink plumage

I trotted in, being mindful to not make too much noise.

"Just saying hi, and letting you know that I dropped off some corn for all of you to eat tonight, twelve ears to be exact," I explain.

Off on the other side of the room was the scrawny young Javelina. She had a clean gray jumpsuit on and big fluffy earmuffs on her head. Javelina was quite focused on assembling a rifle. Every now and then she glanced at a schematic off to her side.

"Also Bridget wanted me to say hi,” I went on. “She didn't want Javelina to feel lonely."

Hardballer's expression softened a little. "She's a good little filly. Well, tell her that her aunt is fine. I've just been going over the basics with her all day."

"Business has been that slow?" I asked jokingly.

He shrugged. "Yes and no. We get enough orders from the Talons and the NCR to keep this place running, but because of that bitch of the sheriff, that's all the regular business we ever get. It also doesn't help that she's been blocking our ability to get new spark batteries for the workshop, so even if we do get more work, most of it is going to be done by claw."

I pointed to a tattered red flag on the wall which depicted a big eye on it. "Maybe you should not be so blatant about the dealing you had with that Redeye pony."

"Maybe Ashy should stop acting like a cunt about the past!" Hardballer grumbled.

“Anyways, the workers under my watch were well treated, and some even continued to work for us even after the NCR took over Fillydelphia." He explained, raising his voice a little.

He got an audible grunt from Javelina to tell him to quiet down.

I sighed. "Still, if you keep this up, I'm worried that Ashy will just shoot you one of these days. Bridget loves you, and I rather you stick around until she has foals of her own."

Hardballer gave a very small smile, making me worry he would crack his beak from doing something he almost never did. "Thanks, but even if I did hide all this away, it's not going to change her feelings. You can see it in her eyes. She's still stuck in the past as an angry and beaten slave, starving for retribution." He then looked back at Javelina. "Now if you would, Javelina needs to concentrate, otherwise she is going to get overstimulated."

I nodded then trotted back outside. "I'll bring Bridget around tomorrow, so make sure you eat regularly. You get even cranker if you don't eat."

He nodded in agreement then slowly closed the door.

Making my way out, I didn't bother Longslide as he tapped his grid paper with a chewed up pencil.

My next stop was not too far away. I just needed to skert along the edge of town. Before long I entered a well constructed building poked up from the edge of the slums. It was a two story high tavern. It had a tall billboard depicting a frilly dancing pegasus mare in front of a pole. Inscribed along the side in bold letters was "Ruffled Feathers". It stuck out like a clean patch of fur on a ghoul.

Out in front of the tavern was a mare in patchwork overalls who stepped away some garbage. "Hey Star. A bit early?" She asked

I shook my head. "Waterspout wants me to do something, so I'm here to get paid."

She nodded as she got out of my way. "Well just wipe your hooves before going inside. I just finished mopping and don't want to mop again."

Nodding, I entered, making sure to wipe the dust and mud off my hooves on a mat before going further inside.

The tavern was mostly empty of customers. Most of the patron's not working at this time were rarely coming to this side of town, so there was just a hoof full of wastlanders at the bar.

The cleaning crew, on the other hoof, were in full force. They were busy getting rid of any mess left the night before as they chatted among each other.

One mare, in full cleaning uniform, pretended to dance on the stripper pole in the middle of the tavern.

The owner of this establishment was behind the bar cleaning a glass, looking far fancier than he should for this side of town.

Waterspout looked over at me, motioning with his head for me to come over. Trotting over and sitting at the bar, he poured me some clear liquid into a glass and passed it to me. Sipping on it, I quickly became disappointed. "It's water!"

"And water is still not free yet, so don't complain Star." He said as he poured himself some water.

Waterspout was an older teal blue hippogriff. A real one, and not a hybrid like Longslide, Javelina, and Bridget were.

"And thanks for showing up," he said.

I gulped down the water. It was at least crisp and refreshing.

"So what's the job?" I asked. “And tell me it's something quick. I rather not miss dinner with my daughter."

He sipped on his glass of water. "No worry. I just need you to convince a pony to pay their tab. That's all."

Finishing off my glass of water, I groaned. "Seriously, Waterspout, I got the deputies watching me like a hawk since the gravedigger died, all because I'm the last one to see him alive."

Waterspout put his glass down. "I'm not telling you to beat the shit out of him, just to talk to him. Remind him that if he wants to drink here, he needs to pay up. If he pays, then you get a cut. Sounds good?"

I pushed my used glass to him. "Alright, I'll do it. I'll talk with this stallion."

He smiled and took the glass.

"So who's this stallion?" I asked.

Still smiling, Waterspout passed me a slip of paper that had directions. "You should know him, Pothole. He’s the stallion who likes our cubby mares and has a big hoof fetish."

"You mean the one who likes being stepped on?" I said cringing. "Sometimes I really hate the ponies in this town."

"Hate it or not, they pay us the caps we need to live here." He said as he trotted off to tend to a customer who just finished their drink.

I got away from the bar, making my way out of the tavern. I patted the note in the pocket of my saddlebag to make sure it was still there

Navigating to the outskirts wasn't too hard, but required more guesswork than I liked to. I found the right ally of scraped busses turned pony homes. This ally had quite a few ponies hanging around. Many of them a mix of drunk or high, but overall just not doing anything. Some of them eyed me with a hungry glare. The ones who knew better looked away and minded their own business.

"I'm looking for Pothole. Heard he's around," I called out.

Several more ponies looked away. Some chuckled. One scrawny dark gray earth pony stallion looked me in the eyes. It lasted for a moment before he stumbled up, knocking over a mostly empty bottle of booze.

"Wh...who'sh asking?" he slurred, stumbling closer.

I trotted up to him. I noticed the smell of cheap booze was thick on him and had an odd chemical smell to it.

"Alright, Pothole. You seriously need to pay your tab back at Ruffled Feathers. Waterspout is getting a bit impatient about it," I explained politely.

He raised an eyebrow at me and chuckled. "Ah yes, the tab. Tell ‘em I ain't got ta caps. He's just gonna have ta eat ya loss."

Sighing, I got a bit firmer in tone. "By impatient, I mean he told me to get you to pay, and that's cutting into my time. Time I would rather not spend here."

Pothole chuckled louder, poking me in the chest with his hoof. "And what if I say no? Ya ain't gonna do shit. Not with ta deputies still up ya ass."

He then got in my face. His putrid breath assaulting my nose. "Now fuck off like a good whore."

He stared me down. I unflinching matched his gaze. It had become a simple thing. Just as a part of me as breathing was, there was a dark magic in my eyes. All I had to do was considerate a little on it, and I had Pothole trapped in my gaze, paralized. Then I trinkle in thought of what I wanted to do to him to put worry on his face. To him, what I was imagining was what he was seeing and experiencing. It lasted for only a moment, nothing extreme, but in his inebriated state it must have been hallucination something quite frightening. Letting him go, Pothole stumbled back and pissed himself, garnering laughter from the ponies watching.

I took a step forward. He flinched.

"If ya have the fucking caps to get plastered, ya have the fucking caps to pay your goddesses damn tab, so get ta dick out of your ass and take care of it. Do you understand?" I chastised the drunk.

"Y… yes. I'll do it," he stammered. "But t...tell Waterspout t..to give me a week. Caps been tight."

"Tight? Ain't ya working for the quarry?" I annoyingly asked.

"Up until recently," another stallion spoke up from his window. "The east quarry got a contract with the NCR, and now the cunts are using prison labor from the NCR Correctional Facility to break rocks. The other quarries have lowered wages to fit in more workers, so everypony is hurting."

This time I raised an eyebrow. "Right. I heard something about that, but then how ya getting all this booze and chems?"

The stallion then tipped a dirty bottle at me. "A new merchant caravan came in from out west over a week ago, Blue Skies, they’re called. They sell this shit cheap. It's shit, but cheap booze is cheap booze."

I shook my head and turned my attention back to Pothole who was already crawling away. "I'll tell Waterspout ya will pay in a week, so don't go making me look like a fool, or ya will owe me more than just a bunch of caps."

He nodded as he retreated into his rusty shithole excuse of a home.

Satisfied, I returned to the Ruffled Feathers to let Waterspout know on the agreed payment time. The boss was hoping to see the caps sooner, but a week's wait was good enough. Free from any more obligations until I had to return later tonight for work, I made my way back to the town's free clinic.

On one end of the clinic were four foals were playing with whatever Copper Wire had made from the dismantled electronics. Their mothers were nowhere to be seen. Prism was on the other end, re-applying bandages to a burnt ghoul. He still tight lipped to whoever set him on fire, not that it was any of my business.

A nearby radio played a sorrowful song in much the same way as Sweetie Belle. It backed up with an old world brass band. The singer was a pony I knew well, but had not seen in a long time.

I listened intently to the song. It expertly finished in a way that made me want to hear more. If I could, I'd take over the radio airways to play more of it. More ponies needed to know her greatness.

The music crackled to a stop. The deep voice of DJ Pon3 annoyingly took over.

"Good evening Equestria. That was Victoria Rosary singing, ‘Somewhere Over the Sea’, and I speak for everypony when I say that her voice gives me goosebumps with how much it sounds like Sweetie Bell."

“Now, if you are interested in seeing her live, she will be performing at New Appaloosa for the Lightbringer Festival. They will be selling tickets for the event, so don't expect to see her for free unless you bring a good set of binoculars."

“Now for the news…"

I turned off the radio and sighed.

"You do know I don't approve, right?" Prism said as she trotted over, concern on her face.

"You have told me this plenty of times now," I answered.

"Because I worry. I really do." She said as she then turned the radio back on, keeping the volume low.

"Nothing good will come with you two meeting," my mother insists.

I rolled my eyes. "She's a pop idol, Mom. From what I heard, she's too busy to do much of anything but her job."

Prism looked away and sighed. "I don't know, Star. I spend the first few years worrying about her showing up to take you back. That blood drenched and devious young mare, with what she did to you, giving you those eyes. I can't see anything else than a villain from the old stories."

"And you're wrong!" I quietly snapped at her. "Before you came, she was the one who protected me. She made me strong!"

"Let’s not do this here, Star." Prism objected as she turned up the radio's volume. "If I'm wrong, then I'm wrong, but please just be careful if you do see her. My heart won't be able to handle losing you or Bridget."

Her words cooled me off a little. "Sorry Mom, and you're right. Somepony like her has bigger dreams than a pop idol. Anyways, she's likely going to be too busy to make time for a pony like me, and we’re too poor to waste caps on a concert."

Prism lightly chuckled and smiled. "Well I got to finish helping our patient over there, so could you keep an eye on the foals for me?"

I nodded then I trotted over to the foals. Bridget was more than happy to see me return.

Tagged Skills:

-Explosives- 31
-Guns- 35
-Melee Weapons- 33

Trait: Kamikaze - Star Charter acts fast and recklessly when in conflict, often the first to attack, even when taken by surprise. Because of her reckless nature, she rarely gets out unscratched, having -2 damage threshold.

Trait: Hot Blooded - Star has a +15% damage increase but a -2 to Perception and Agility when health is below 50%

Unique trait: Evil Eye’s Corruption - Star possesses the evil eye, which gives her a terrifying presses ability that paralized whoever she makes eye contact when active. This ability causes -1 HP damage to Star per second along with a bleeding eye effect that does -2 to her charisma for an hour. This trait also gives her a passive regeneration of +1 HP every four seconds, but this healing is taken from her hunger stats, and if hunger falls below %25, Star will fall into a feral like state and seek out any source of food to eat, be it snack cakes, or another pony. Unique dialogue options open to her.

Developed Perk: Canterlot Gourmay - her discerning palette allows you to gain more health benefits from food and drink and resist substance addiction.

Developed Perk: Foal at Heart - Opens up dialog options with young fouls and other young creatures.

FoE: Desperados, Ch4, Nine to Five

"So hows this, ya dig it?" Two mirrors were levitated around me so that I could see the front and back of my mane. The unicorn stallion holding them had a proud smile on his face. I moved my head around a bit. With bangs still kind of long but no longer taking over my face whenever I look even a little bit down. I also had the beard cut as I was never a fan of having facial hair, but the barber convinced me to at least keep a goatee.

"Real nice! I wish I could give you a tip." I complimented the barber.

He nodded. "It's cool. It's cool. The mayor already sent payment over so you're all good." He then stuck a lollipop in his mouth. The stick looked much like a cigarette. That, along with his black leather jacket and slick back mane, was what made him look like a delinquent from the older films. He even acted like one.

"But if you can, tell the square of a mayor that I'm not a 'mane dresser'. I'm a barber. There's a difference. I got a reputation to uphold. Ya dig?"

I got out of the seat and shook his hoof.

"I dig," I answer.

It was a bit funny. Despite the tough stallion act he put on, I got a feeling he was a real nice pony.

Waving goodbye, I trotted back out into town where I was greeted by the mayor's secretary. She was quickly patting some powder on her cheeks.

"Oh, hello, Slowtrot,” she greeted me. “You're looking even better."

Miss Karat fluttered her eyes a bit at me, making her attempts at flirting as loud as possible, which made me a bit uncomfortable. She wasn't a bad looking mare, but I neither call her cute or pretty, though it was a bit hard to tell under all that makeup. I did feel a bit flattered, but any feeling of it was spoiled by the fact that she already had a stallion. I was not about to get involved in an affair. I had only just woken up over 200 years in the future.

"Thanks. I feel better, so where am I going?" I asked, trying to keep my time with Karat as short as possible.

She pulled out a clipboard. "Right. Doctor Quacksalver has a request for an assistant. With how much caps he brings to the town, the mayor decided he should be the first to get some assistance."

I raised an eyebrow as I asked, "Don't I need qualifications to assist a doctor?"

Karat chuckled. "Don't worry! The dock will provide you with the quills and any fi… ficatat… tool you might need."

Scratching my chin, I felt a bit confused, but she likely knew what she was talking about, or at least I think she did. "Alright. Take me to this doc."

Karat took me a bit closer to the town center, where she stopped in front of a tall but thin building practically wedged in between two shorter buildings. "Doctor Quacksalver clinic" a tall billboard said. It depicts the medical cross inside a bottle next to a smiling stallion at the top. Inside the building was the same dry mismatched wooden panels that seemed popular in this town. On one side of the narrow building, under some stairs, sat a few older ponies on a less than comfortable looking bench.

"Just follow me, Mister Slowtrot." Karat instructed me as she trotte over to the back of the building. I followed.

"Doctor Quack,” Miss Karat introduced, “the stable pony is here to help you."

Trotting into the back, I had stepped into what I could clearly recognize as a doctor’s office. It was very clean, white, and had a bunch of medical posters all over. There were also a bunch of odd things such as snakes in jars, brown dry plants in jars, different colored liquids in jars, and well… lots of jars with odd stuff in them.

Sitting on a very clean bed was an older mare that was being looked at by the doctor. He was doing the same kind of examination as Jali did, but he didn't seem to be paying all that much attention to what he was doing.

The doctor himself was a light gray unicorn stallion with a coamed back charcoal black mane, a very sharp well groomed beard, and in a pure white lab coat over a checkered suit.

Quacksalver puffed on his cigarette and then flicked it into a quite full ashtray before greeting the mare. "Karat, darling, thank you so much for bringing him here. I've just been so busy lately. I couldn't go find him myself."

"Oh, you know me. Always here to help," Karat said in a sickly happy tone. "So what are you doing later tonight?"

"Busy,” Quacksalver answers, “but with help, I might be able to join the dance tonight."

The dock then pulled out a pack of cigarettes, passing a stick to Karat. "Will you be there, darling Karat?" He asked as he put another cigarette into his muzzle then produced a lighter.

"Have I ever missed a social get together before?" She chuckled as she leaned in to let her cigarette be lit by Quacksalver.

The doctor smiled, letting some smoke leave his muzzle. "Well be sure to save a spot for me."

The two shared another chuckle before Karat turned around to leave. She gave one of us a wink before stepping outside.

Quacksalver pulled out a chair for me before turning back to his patients. "Your wife is quite lively, doc," I said. In response, he nervously coughed for a moment. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," he said as he put out his cigarette then motioned for the patient to leave the room. "Karat's not my wife. We’re… just close friends." Quacksalver then hopped onto the bed and looked at me with a smile. "Now I asked the mayor for some pony who can read. Please tell me you can read."

"Yes. I have a standard equestrian education. Doesn't everypony?" I asked flatly.

Quacksalver sighed. "Not everypony is a stable pony, but that aside, I'm going to need you to follow some instructions I have written down." He then picked up a clipboard from a nearby desk then passed it to me. "This has the names of my patients and what medicine they require. Also, on the fourth and fifth page is a list of symptoms, what you are allowed to give them for it, and how much it costs for that medicine. You can do that right?"

I looked at the clipboard. There were several yellow and worn out papers. The first three had a list of names with more information next to it. Basically, I was working as a pharmacist clerk. It was something I have done once before so I understood what he was asking me to do. "No problem, but where's the medicine?"

He smiled and pointed over to a well polished but still very old looking dresser. "I have everything perfectly organized in there with number one being the top drawer, two being the middle, and three on the bottom. Any letter after that number is the medicine in that drawer."

I looked at the paper. I saw what he was talking about; 2C, 1A, 1D, 3B, and so on. "Alright, easy enough to do. It’s almost too easy."

"You say that, but my last assistant didn't know what the letter "B" was. He also took some of the medicine whenever he got nervous. He was always nervous."

Quacksalver pulled out another cigarette and lit it.

"Also,” he went on, “I got a safe box in the corner for you to put the caps in." He pointed at what looked like a mailbox, then passed me a cigarette. "Now tell me about yourself. Anything might need to know?"

"Well I never picked up smoking as a habit, but thanks," I said as I turned down the cigarette. "I don't have anything in the way of health problems, though I just recently recovered from a defective pipbic injury."

"Pipbuck injury? How did that happen? Did you get clocked on the head?" he asked, looking a bit amused.

I shrugged. "Don't think Stable-Tec would like me talking about it, but I accidentally got a military pipbuck, and it had a nasty failsafe in it. That's how my luck goes."

He also shrugged. "Odd, but I've heard of stranger things happening."

"You have no idea, but at least this new pipbuck I have is a lot safer. I can do some intriguing things with it." I announce while presenting my pipbuck.

Quacksalver didn't look all that interested, looking down at a watch on his fenlock, it seemed cracked, but I couldn't get a good look at it. "Shoot, I got to run, I have a lot of paperwork to get through, and medicine to make upstairs, if you need anything, just knock on my door. Now do you got this?"

I looked down at the clipboard then back at the doctor. "Check to see if a patient's names are on the list. Give them their medicine in exchange for caps. If their names are not on the list, check symptoms and sell them the listed medication."

A big smile was on Quacksalver's face. "That's perfect? If you do a good job at this, then I can see you doing very well for yourself here." Hopping off the bed, Doctor Quacksalver trotted over and up the stairs, vanishing from sight beyond.

Left alone in the steiral room, it took me a moment to really let it sink in that I was back to working, despite it being over two hundred years in the future. Looking over at the front of the building, several older ponies were poking their heads out from behind the stairs.

"Uhh… I can help anypony who's next!" I offer.

The first was an old mare. She was the one Quacksalver was looking at when I had come in. She let me know her name. Since her name was on the list, I quickly went and got her pills.

"About ma back pain, the doctor said he got something to help with it?" the old mare asked hopefully.

"Lower or upper back pain?" I checked.

The old mare raised an eyebrow. "Well… lower ah think, but I do have a few akes where my battle saddle once went long ago, and now tat I think about it, ma neck has been sore too."

"So just the normal pains we all have to deal with some day." I flipped to page four, finding such things as hip pain, back pain, dizziness, vapors, dry mouth, but nothing about lower back. Page five was the same with little to nothing specific. I could only guess this was just a general aid, but I couldn’t help but feel that it was a bit too basic. "Right, I can get you something for your back for one-hundred caps, and neck for another fifty caps."

She grumbled for a moment, and pulled out a bag of caps. "If his medicine didn't work, I think you were triyin to rob me."

Counting the caps took a bit of time, but all together I had one-hundred and fifty caps. I deposited them in the safe box before I went to fetch her medication. Inside were rows of small glass jars, each in separate sections that were labeled. They are all very organized. Even the jars had the number and letter painted on them. Labels, other than the corresponding letter to help identify them. There were also proper words on the labels. One was "med-x infused xander root" another was "buck and broc blend" both sounded legit, but there was one that was labeled "viper oil extract" another "dride radscorpion venom powder" both I couldn't wrap my head around.

FIguring that the doctor knew better than I did, I picked up the pills then passed them to the old mare who quickly snached her medication and trotted off.

The next few ponies were more of the same, I found their names, saw if they needed anything else, accepted payment, and then they got their pills. The process was fairly quick with most of them, but significantly slowed down when a pony whose name was not on the list, though it just consisted of me listening to them for several minutes before seeing how much caps they had and what pain they felt more severe.

"Well, it turns out that yes, a radscorpion can still sting you even after you kill it. And that's how ma leg got fucked up. I mean, it got better, but healing potions can't get back the part of your body that melted off." An older stallion told me as he showed the dent in one of his legs. "Also, as it turns out, using healing potions when you got a broken bone poking ta wrong way is an invitation for a world of hurt. My brother learned tat ta hard way."

I passed him his pills. "I'll try to remember that the next time I see a… radscorpion you called it?"

"Right, big en black bitches." He said with a laugh, then trotted away.

"Next" I shouted. A very thin mare trotted in, black bags under her somewhat yellow eyes. She sat on the bed, and I looked down at my clipboard. "Name, and I'll see if you're on the list."

"Rhu… Rhubarb, I'm here for my sleeping pills." she said.

I cocked an eyebrow since she clearly needed more than sleeping pills. "Is that all?" I asked as I looked for her name.

"Ye… yes, the doctor just says that's all I need, but lately I've been having more trouble sleeping." she answered.

Finding her name, I let her know how much it will cost then fetched her medication.

"You know, if I had one of Lifebeats super healing potions, that would definitely help you get some sleep. The stuff knocked me out when I took it." I commented.

Rhubarb passed me the caps and took the medication. "Where would I find this pony?"

I thought about it for a moment, then sighed as I remembered. "Sorry, He died a long time ago, though Jali reminds me a lot of him. Maybe she can help you."

The mare's face scrunched up like she smelled something really foul. "I rather not let that thing touch me," she said, then got off the bed and quickly trotted off.

I felt it was more than harsh to call Jali a "thing" just because she was a zebra, though I remember harsher words being used back home.

Shrugging, I looked down at my pipbuck, flipping through some of the files left for me by the R&D staff. There was nothing major. Just little things that they thought would be a useful goodbye gift. A recipe for a cake that needed no dairy, how to make both the green nutrition soda and the glowing energy soda, gun maintenance and how to make my own gunpowder, and Lifebeats recipe for a super healing potion.

Selecting the healing potion, there was a note above the instructions. "I hope you find this useful, Slowtrot. You never know when you need a healing potion. Sometimes you need something even more substantial. I accidentally created this when trying to make a potion to cure addiction, so a happy accident. The potion itself is not actually any more powerful than a normal healing potion. It’ll stitch up injuries like any other potion, so please set any bones first before use.

“What makes it different is that it has a lingering regenerative effect that lasts a day. Twenty hours from my last test on it, where any injury you reserve will stitch itself up in a matter of minutes.

“Unfortunately, it causes major drowsiness for the first few hours and prevents normal healing potions from having any effect, do keep that in mind before use."

Peering at the instructions, it looked like it belonged in a cookbook, or at least that's what it looked like to me. I didn't understand some of the words on my pipbuck screen.

"Excuse me," a mare spoke up, taking my attention away from my pipbuck.

She was a grayish brown earth pony mare who looked healthy, but also very wethered, as though she spent her life trotting outside. Next to her was a small colt who looked far less healthy, but also far less worn down.

"Are you Doctor Quacksalver?" she asked.

I shook my head. "No, I'm Slowtrot. I sell the medication. Do you need some?"

"I don't know," she admitted as she looked down at her colt, then back up at me. "My son has been sick for a spell and has not gotten better despite what I do. A pony told me that New Appleloosa has a good doctor, so we took the train here to see him. Do you know when he will be available?"

I nodded slowly. "I can go and get him. Just sit your colt on the bed."

"Thank you," she said as I trotted to and up the stairs.

The upstairs walls had several paintings and photographs of Quacksalver. It was also far less dusty up here. The floor actually looked polished.

Trotting to his door, I knocked. There was a bit of rustling before I heard hoofsteps come near. "What is it? I'm busy." Quacksalver said from the other side.

"There's a mare and colt downstairs. The colt is sick. They need you to look at him," I informed the doctor.

An audible groan came from the other side of the door. "Just find out the brats symptoms and give him the right medication. It's not hard to understand!"

"Alright," I said, sighing. I made my way back downstairs.

The colt was on the bed, being comforted by his mother. "The doctor said I can sell you medication. I just need to know his symptoms."

She looked at me, then at her colt, and then back to me. "Alright. It started a month ago where he started losing weight despite giving some of my own food. He also frequently has diarrhea and pain in his belly."

I nodded, finding diarrhea and stomach pain on the list, but nothing for his weight loss. "It's going to be 200 caps for the medication."

She pulled out a bag and placed some dirty caps onto the bed. "It's most of what I own. Are you sure this will help my son?"

"Can't say. I'm not a doctor." I answered as I looked in the drawer. For the stomach pain was some med-x buck pill blend, and for diarrhea it just said viper oil extract… closing the drawer, I turned to the mare. "You know what? I think your son does need to see the doctor. I'll be right back."

Trotting back up the stairs, I once again knocked on Quacksalver's door. "What is it now?" He said through the door, sounding very irritated.

I took a deep breath. "Sorry for bothering you Doctor Quacksalver, but I think the foal needs to be seen by you. I don't think the pills will be enough."

"Nonsense!." He said with an annoyed shout. "Just sell them these pills and send them on their way."

"Are you sure you can't take a look? The foal looks very ill." I said.

There was a pause, then a sigh before he spoke again."An examination cost three-hundred caps. Go see if they have enough to pay, then I'll come down to look at the brat."

I felt a lump in my throat, of which I forced it down with a swallow before speaking. "Docter, they barely have enough for their medication. I don't think they can afford to pay three-hundred caps."

The door then swung open. Quacksalver stood in front of it, his mane dishevelled. He had some white powder under his nose.

"Look, Slowtrot was it? I get that I'm here to help, but I can't do charity work. That's how you go out of business. If they can barely pay for medication, then an examination will drain them dry, and then they can't buy the medication. Sounds bad, right? So just sell them the pills. That's your job. That's all you are meant to do.

“Now fuck off and make me the caps." He then clapped his hooved two times. "Chop chop!"

Behind Quacksalver, I could see a somewhat messy room. He had a bit of a nice bed, but it also what looked like a small laboratory that had lines of white powder on it. Needles and inhalers were scattered on the lab table along with lots of M.o.M. pill bottles. It looked a lot like a scene from a propaganda film about the dangers of chem abuses and how to spot a zebra sympathizing chem dealer.

Not wanting to stir up trouble, I chose to ignore whatever Quacksalver was doing in there.

"Alright boss. You got it." I said with the enthusiasm and tone of a veteran of the equestrian retail workforce.

He smiled and shut the door.

Returning downstairs, the mare was now playing with her sickly foal, likely trying to not worry her little colt by being calm herself. She looked at me, her face hard, but eyes had some hope in them. "So, is the doctor coming down?"

"He said it will cost three-hundred caps for an examination." The words put a bad taste in my mouth, and the hope in her eyes faded, seemingly losing its color.

"Let me get you the pills," I decide.

Going over to the drawers, I reached out to open one, but then stopped and looked at my pipbuck. I had been reading Doctor Lifebeats note just a moment ago, and hadn't remembered something very important left with me. My pipbuck had a medical scanner spell built into it!

Again, I stepped away from the drawers then tapped through my pipbuck, trying to find the spell.

Sadly, unlike the notes left for me, I couldn't find anything involving spells.

"It would be so much easier if I could just tell it what to do…" I face hoofed, again remembering another thing this pipbuck could do.

"Right, was it steel… no it was Iron, I think, Iron stall… no buck, Iron Buck."

The pipbuck gave off a soft beep.

"Yes. Iron Buck, pull up the medical scanner spell."

The pipbuck beeped again. The screen flickers before showing me a cartoonish image of a pony. Turning to the mare and her colt, it gave them a warm smile.

"Actually I got something that might help." I said as I presented my pipbuck to them.

She raised an eyebrow. "That's a… pipbuck right? What can it do to help?"

I trotted over to them and held the pipbuck between me and the colt.

"Well, this one is a pipbuck 3200, so it’s got a lot of extra cool stuff in it. One of them being a spell that can tell me the heath of another pony."

An hourglass appears over the cartoon pony, indicating that the spell was working. After a couple of seconds, data started to appear. The cartoon pony's image got thinner. It looked unwell. More importantly was that the ailments were now being shown.

"Here. You can see what's wrong with your foal."

The mare looked at my pipbuck screen, squinting her eyes, then she said, "Sorry. All I see is an odd looking pony and gibberish." She then looked dejected. "I mean, I can't read."

I sighed, remembering that doctor Quacksalver did mention that a lot of the ponies around here were illiterate.

"It's fine. I'll read it off for you."

Looking over the ailments, there was one that stood out and made me cringe inside.

"I think this might be the issue. It says that your son had a parasite, a tapeworm to be exact." I explained.

What color the mare still had drain from her face. Tears began to form.

"It's okay. Now that we know what is wrong with him, we can make him better." I did my best to keep her calm.

Looking over Quacksalver's notes, there was nothing for parasites, so I turned back to my pipbuck.

"Iron Buck, show me cures for tapeworms."

The pipbuck beeped, and the screen changed to several lines of text.

"Wow, that actually worked!" I cheered.

On the screen was a list of several medications that I had a feeling we're not going to be easy to find, but on the bottom was one line listed as 'zebra herbal cure' with the rest of the line listing words I didn't quite understand.

Still, it was good news.

Great news, now that I think about it.

"Alright, I may not be able to do more, but I think I know where you can go for help." I said with a smile.

The mare sniffled as she regained her composure. "Where? Please tell me?"

"Right. Among the cures listed, one is called a zebra cure. Luckily there's a free clinic down the road from here that's run by a wartime zebra ghoul. If anypony knows a cure for tapeworms, she should," I informed the mare.

It was like the color returned to her. She somehow looked a rust color, with amber eyes, and not all gray.

"Oh thank you!” she exclaimed gratefully. “I'll go see her right away."

She quickly scooped up her foal and trotted out of the clinic, leaving the door open as she disappeared from view.

I couldn't help but feel proud in helping a pony in need. I quietly hoped that Jali would be able to take care of the rest.

Looking down at my pipbuck, I was still not sure if the last few days were just a fevered dream. Tomorrow I'll just wake up in my apartment with a vague recollection of this dream.

Still, real or not, this pipbuck has given me the opportunity to do some good.

"Next!" I called out, and another older pony trotted in.

Things went by a bit slower now, using the pipbucks scanner to see what their health was, along with taking names and asking questions. My pipbuck was not able to tell me everything about the ponies heath. A few times putting up a big "unknown" for why they were unwell, but it was able to detect the easily fixable problems. Minor radiation poisoning, known illnesses, and parasites were disturbingly common, making me wonder what was in their water. A few ponies suffered from cancer, or chronic illness. One my pipbuck just said "mutation", all of which I could not help. I sold them Quacksalver's pills.

For most of the patients, once I knew what was wrong with them, I directed them to the free clinic after giving them a note to what was wrong with them. There was medicine here, but they were just for treating symptoms, not for healing them.

As time went on, I sold less and less of the pills here. Before long the patient's arrival slowed to a stop, allowing me to rest.

The sound of hooves on creaky wood came from above. Quacksalver descended the stairs. He looked clean and well groomed.

"Oh, you're all done? Good. Lately more and more ponies have been showing up. I've just been falling behind on my other work." He levitated out a jar of pills. They were the same chocky white as all the others.

"This one here uses the miracle of micro vitamins,” Quackslver explains. “It took me a long time to get it just right but, with it, a ponies blood flow will increase, thereby helping them to gain better focus and help break down black blood."

"What’s black blood?" I asked.

Quacksalver shook his head and sighed. "I could explain it, but without a medical education like mine, you're not going to understand it." He passed me the jar of pills. "But trust me, it's a common ailment out in the wasteland. It’s hard to detect. It’s fatal if left untreated. Ponies from all around would come to me to cure themselves of the black blood. It will be good business for the town, I'll tell you what."

Looking at the pills, they just didn't look any different from his others. Then again, I am no doctor.

"Black blood does sound terrible,” I agreed. “Maybe that was one of the unknown illnesses my pipbuck scanned."

"Scanned?" Quacksalver looked at me with a cocked eyebrow.

"Oh yes. Doctor Lifebeat had made a medical scanner spell built into the 3200. With it, a pony can see the heath of another pony through the pipbuck just like they can see their own." I presented the pipbuck screen to the doctor, showing my own heath on it. "It was a big help with most of your patients. It turns out most of them didn't even need your pills."

"Wait! You did what?!" The doctor sounded confused. "Why?"

"Well remember that foal here earlier? Since you were unable to help them, I decided to try my pipbuck. Turns out he could be helped, but not here, so I sent them to the free clinic, as Jali might know how." I told him

Quacksalver then looked a bit uncomfortable. "You said patients. How many did you use that thing on?"

"I don't know." I said scratching my chin. "At first I waited for them to tell me about a new symptom, but then it just became easier to just scan them as we talked."

"And how much medicine did you sell as you did this?" He then asked.

"Well, at first I sold the normal amount, but turns out that a lot of them just needed radaway and some rest." I again answered . "Also, your medicine might have been made improperly. Maybe some pony sold you a bad batch."

Quacksalver took a deep breath as his eyes shifted around. "And how did you come to that conclusion?"

Nodding, I lifted up the jar of pills in my pipbuck hoof. "Iron Buck, scan medication." The pills then levitated for a few seconds. My screen flickered. Text then scrolled up showing me the ingredients. It is a lot of words long and hard to say, but also with shorter descriptions next to it.

"Right. From what I can see, this stuff is 50% sugar, 20% steroid buck, 20% stimulant mint-al, and 10% multivitamins, I think. A bit odd that half is sugar, and nearly the rest is chems. You sure this will help ponies?"

The jar of pills were snatched off my hoof. Quacksalver quickly put them back in his lab coat.

"Mister Slowtrot, like I said, you need a medical education like myself to understand how this all works." He started tapping a hoof on the ground, looking me in the eyes as if I did something wrong.

"That scanning spell you have... yes that thing, it… it may work as you say, but without the right education… yes without being educated on what is what, you could have hurt somepony. I mean what are you going to trust, some robot, or me, a real doctor? “Frankly, what you did was irresponsible. I am disappointed in you."

What he said did make sense. I certainly wasn't a doctor, but I went about telling ponies medical advice that I got from a machine. "Oh… Shoot. I overstepped here. I’m sorry."

"Yes, you did, and cost me a lot of caps. Now I'm going to need to figure out how to fix this, so you should take a walk." He huffed.

"So, does that mean I'm fired?" I had to ask.

Quacksalver looked at me, then down at my pipbuck. Here his eyes narrowed for a few seconds before looking back at me. "That pipbuck, with it around, you will be too tempted to use it again, and I can't have that. Unless you are willing to get rid of it, then yes, you're fired."

I nodded and said. "I'll give it some thought."

I turned and left the clinic.

New Appleloosa was just as busy as ever. The sun high in the sky, a bit passed noon.

Looking about, I was unsure what to do. Maybe return to the mayor,? Maybe ask around?

I couldn't help but feel stupid. I found myself once again looking for work.

No matter how things changed, everything was still the same.

"Excuse me!" A pony yelled before colliding with me. Metal scrap fell all over from to overly filled crates, and the two of us fell to the ground.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" I said as I quickly scooped up the scrap then dropped them into one of the crates.

"No worry. I overestimated how much I can carry." He said, waving from behind a crate on his fenlock was a pipbuck. "Say, can you help me take this to my workshop?"

Finishing refilling the crate, I then nodded. "Ya. I can help you with that."

FoE: Desperados, Ch5, Nine to Five

The stallion was a bit younger than I was. He was also thinner than me, and wore a greasy worn out stable barding that had the number "2" on its color. "Just place that crate over in the corner," he instructed me.

His workshop was on the edge of town, and was a bit bigger than the other buildings. One side was filled with scrap metal, scrap wood, and other random junk. The other side had several half-finished signs leaning on the walls and a large cage that has several guns and tools inside. I even spotted several objects that I couldn't recognize that looked more like abstract art projects.

"Thank you. I kind of overestimated how much I could carry." He smiled at me and offered a hoof, of which I took and we shook. "Names Spot Weld. I'm the town's craft pony."

"Slowtrot, the pony that fell through the roof of the free clinic," I responded.

Spot Weld tilted his head for a moment before his eyes went wide. "Oh ya! Some pony mentioned that to me. I spend most of my time here in my workshop, so I don't hear most of the gossip." He then looked up for a moment, and then back at me with a smile. "Truthfully, I don't like going outside. I mean, you get it. That sky, even after all these years, is still hard to get used too."

This time I tilted my head for a moment. "What's wrong with the sky?"

He raised an eyebrow, "You know where we stable ponies come from, right?"

It took me a second to realize that he thought I was born underground "Oh, that's what you're talking about. Sorry. I only spent like a week or so in a stable, though I think Stable-Tec was planning on giving me a stable ticket."

"So then how did you get that pipbuck, and that… is that barding?" he asked.

I looked at the sleeve of my Stable-Tec jacket. "It's a bit of a long story, but long story short, I won a pipbuck that ended up being super defective, spent some time with the R&D staff to fix the problem, and they gave me this stuff as a gift." I lifted up my pipbuck. "This here is the S&R pipbuck 3200. Neat, huh?"

Spot Weld took a closer look at my pipbuck. He brought his own up to compare the two. The frames of the pipbucks were relatively the same. Mine has a small antenna-like protrusion and engraving of my cutie-mark. "So what does 'S&R' mean?"

"Search and rescue," I responded. "It's actually an update of a much earlier model than an update of the three thousand. Its main feature is that the Eyes Forward Sparkle can now tell me if a pony is above or below me, though not with how far. I think the point was to just locate ponies trapped under rubble.”

“Oh, it also can be used to tag friends, though I think they have to have a pipbuck themselves." I added.

He nodded as he looked at my pipbuck. "Amazing. Is there anything else it can do?"

I nodded back. "Well, it has a medical scanning spell that projects the same spell it uses on the user to other ponies. I used it at Doctor Quacksalver's clinic. He was less than pleased due to me not having proper medical training, yet still giving out medical advice." I tapped on the pipbuck a bit more, thus activating my Stable-Tec Arcan Targeting Spell. "Lastly, the S.A.T.S. has an expanded movement spell in it. So, instead of just shooting, I can use it to force my body to run."

"Atomic!" He said with wide eyes. "I could kill to get my hooves on such a device." Pulling back a bit, I cradled my pipbuck, and Spot Weld chuckled. "I kid, but still, if you had another, I'd buy it off you with my cartload of caps… well, the caps I'll have after my projects are done."

Chuckling myself, I scratched my chin. "Actually, now that you mentioned it, I did have another pipbuck with me, a 3100 used by the acting overmare, but I didn't see it in my saddlebags. Maybe I just lost it mid transportation."

Spot Weld shrugged. "It happens. You'd be shocked by how many of our fellow stable dwellers lost their pipbucks after leaving the stable." He then looked over at the cage, tapping his chin. "Say, are you free? I've been needing a pony to assist me in getting a few projects done."

Needing some work and deciding not to mention that Doctor Quacksalver had just kicked me out, so I just nodded and said. "I can help… well depending on what you need help with."

He smiled and trotted over to his cage. "It's nothing much. I just need a pony I can trust as I get some work done."

Spot Weld then opened the cage and began digging through the different tools and guns inside. It gave me a better look inside as he pushed the clutter to the side. I could see other revolvers, lever action rifles, some odd guns I didn’t recognize, a four barreled shotgun, and there was also a revolver converted into some sort of sniper rifle. But then, hidden in the far back, I saw what looked like a thin party cannon, complete with wheels but, instead of one barrel, it had maybe ten all held together on some sort of crack weal. Above it were several large magazines that must have held some large ammo.

"Hold this." Spot called out to me.

I reached out my hooves and Spot passed me a rather worn out looking, but beautiful, rifle. It had a gold star welded on one side and engravings of a night sky around it. The other side had an engraving art of two ponies inside a heart. Under it was the letters 'A.O. & F.B.'. A few more guns were passed over for me to hold.

"I don't think I'm going to be much help with guns unless you need me to help make bullets. I did a bit of that during the war." I offered.

Spot Weld poked his head up from his cage. "Oh, don't worry about those. I don't need help with that. Just wait a moment." He ducked back in before pulling out a harness, a toolbelt, and a lot of rope before tossing them out of the cage and trotting over to me. "Thanks. Let me put the guns back inside before we can start."

"How much work do you do on guns?" I asked as I passed him back the guns.

He began placing the guns on a rack. He seemed to try not to recreate the mess that he had started in.

"A fair bit, actually,” Spot Weld answered. “It's my main job when there's no commissions to work on."

He took a mostly clean rag and rubbed it on his flank. This revealed a cutie-mark of a cylinder next to a spring and bolt.

"Got my cutie-mark in engineering, and I was the apprentice to the stables armory master before the stable had opened their doors to the wasteland. Lucky me that gunsmiths are in high demand. I've done quite well for myself out of the stable." he further explained.

I passed him the last gun. "Real lucky, I'm still trying to wrap my head around this whole wasteland thing. On that, it sounds like you have better options, so why here?"

He closed the cage. Its lock made a loud clunk noise.

"True,” Spot Weld confessed, “the NCR were offering me a lot to stay with them, but I couldn't just trap myself in a dimly lit factory and make guns day in and out."

Spot Weld trotted passed me over to the back wall where a large object stood. It was covered in a patchwork tarp.

"What I really want to do is art!" he exclaimed as he pulled on the tarp which revealed a huge sign that said "Welcome To New Appleloosa" spelled with both paint and lights.

I clapped, feeling a bit impressed. Though a bit crude, it reminded me a lot like the signs used in Loss Pegasus. "Does that mean you're the one who made all the signs in town?"

Spot Weld nodded. "Yep. The mayor wanted some pony to help improve the atmosphere of the town, and the sheriff needed a gunsmith. I could do one, and wanted to do the other, so I bought one ticket to New Appleloosa and haven't looked back."

I clapped again. "Impressive. So what do you need me to do?"

"Right" he said as he tossed me the rope while he grabbed the harness and tool belt. "I need to fix a few flaws in the sign before I can say I'm done. I require some pony to pull me up as I work."

I looked down the rope, then up at the sign, and then at Spot Weld. I cocked an eyebrow. "You do know we just met, right?"

Spot waved his hoof dismissively. "I'm not worried. We're both stable ponies, if there's any pony like us that we can trust, it's another stable pony." He then sighed. "You're lucky. You haven't seen how nasty these wastlanders can get."

I wanted to remind him again that I was not, in fact, a stable pony, but I also needed caps. So I activated my workforce survival mode, also known as being overly agreeable.

"Well,” I say, “it's a good thing you're here to help me then, or I'd be at a loss."

Spot smiled as he put on the harness and tool belt. "Gladly. Us stable ponies gotta stick together. Still don't know how Pip and Velvet managed to make it out here." He trotted over to me, taking one end of the rope, and trotting back to the sign where there was a nearby crain-like pulley system set up next to it. "Alright. The job’s simple. I'm going to place this at the sign and hook myself onto this pulley system. You’re going to pull me up to where I need to be. Easy as pie."

"And dangerous." Looking at the crane, I had a feeling that he built it himself. It was made from scrap metal and old looking wood. "You sure this is a good idea? You could just build some scaffolding instead."

"Scaffolding?" He said as he tilted his head before chuckling. "Don't worry. It looks rickety, but it's safe. I made it myself, so I know."

His smile was beaming with confidence. So much so that it did make me feel a bit at ease. Now thinking about it, lots of construction ponies worked with less safety than Spot Weld. There were even those famous photos of a group of earth ponies sitting on a steel beam far above the ground.

"Alright, but maybe we should put on safety helmets first, for safety." I pointed out.

Spot rolled his eyes and sighed. "Alright. I do have something like that." He trotted off to a dark corner of his workshop and brought back two rusty firefighters helmets. "Good enough?"

I nodded and took the helmet, putting it over my own hat. "Alright. I'm ready."

He put on his helmet before pulling the rope through the pulley system. He then moved the crane over to the big sign. I followed, holding the other end in my mouth. I watched as he attached himself to the pulley. Spot checked and double-checked his knots, harness, and his toolbelt in order to make me feel at least a little more at ease in that he had some safety sense. After a few tugs on both of our ends, it looked like we were ready to go.

"Like Icarus with his new wings of wax arrogantly flying where ponies don't belong," a voice whispered. The shadows seemed to twitch. It might have been my eyes playing tricks on me, but I was sure I could see the outline of a mare in the shadows. "Rise high, fall low, and once more become the clay that birthed your kind," the whisper spoke with malaise and contempt.

A *ching* the sound of a metal rifle clip hitting the floor caught my ears.

"If he dies, then he dies. There are plenty of ponies that can replace him" This voice was uncaring, yet seemed a tad excited over the idea of death.

My nose twitched due to the serial smell cleaning supplies and strong scent of herbs passed by my nose. "The amount of ponies that come by with broken bones from fall injuries is annoyingly stupid. They are taking time away from those who have injuries outside their own control." This voice was tired, irritated, and yet, caring.

"Slowtrot!" Spot Weld spoke up loudly, getting my attention. "Gees, you had me worried there. You just zonked out on me. What was that?"

"I…" What had just happened was a haze, like a barely remembered dream. "Sorry. I thought I heard something so I got distracted."

Spot seemed to chew on my words for a moment before returning his attention back to the task at hoof. "Right, well don't do that while I'm hanging, alright?"

Pulling on the rope until it no longer slacked, I tied it to my fetlock. "Worst-case scenario, I still got you."

His eyes widened. "Brilliant! And this is why we stable ponies outclass those wastelanders." He then happily adjusted the tall crain, getting in what I guess was the best position before motioning for me to start pulling him up. It turned out to be surprisingly easy, likely because of his smaller frame, but it didn't feel like I was pulling a whole pony into the air. "You can stop and hold!" He shouted. I did just that. Spot Weld pulled out a wrench and got to work on some bolt, though it was hard to see from below.

*click*

A new sound came from behind me. It was followed by lights, a breeze, and a dry dusty smell. I didn't have time to be distracted by my mind playing some sort of trick again, so I focused on holding the rope steady as the sound of hoofsteps got closer along with some muffled chuckling.

Trotting into my view was a short and skinny unicorn stallion. His mane was slicked back. He had a dirty brown business suite and his smile showed several golden teeth alongside his yellow teeth. "Looksy like Spot got himself a helper." He spoke like a stereotypical gangster pony from an old detective movie. All he needed was a fedora to complete the costume. The undersized stallion looked up, still smiling. "Hay Spot'sy, ya got ta caps ya ow us? You were due yesterday?"

Spot Weld looked down at us, forming a frown on his face. "The deal was when I get my caps, you get yours, so tell your boss to stop interrupting me. It's messing with my groove!"

The gangster pony scowled at Spot, then huffed. "Ya, and ya were supposed to have diss junk done a week ago!"

"Then fuck off and let me finish!" Spot shouted back.

"Boss says that's fine." Another pony spoke up from behind me. This time a pegasus mare in a dusty gray suit trotted into view. Her wings were tattered. Her mane was haphazardly put into a bun. She also had a rusty pipbuck on her right fetlock. "But he will have to pay 15% interest for every day he misses paying off the loan."

I don't know what it was, but her pipbuck gave me a bad feeling. It was as though something dangerous was attached to it, and it was not that mare.

She then looked over at me, putting on a friendly smile full of rotting yellow teeth. "Say, stranger, if you're ever looking to buy anything on the cheap, a quick loan, or sell off some goods no questions asked, come find us." She then pulled out a business card and put it in the color of my jacket. "We even buy pipbucks at a premium, though better conditions will gain you more caps."

The two ponies turned around, trotting out of view. The clicking of a door announced that they had left.

"See what I mean by dirty and just no good? There was never any pony like that in a stable," Spot huffed as he crossed his hooves in annoyance. Because of this, he lost his grip on his wrench. I watched as it descended right at me. I tilted my head down just in time for the wrench to bounce off my helmet with a loud thud. "Shit, you okay?" he shouted.

Other than some ringing in my ears, I wasn't hurt. "And that's why you should wear a helmet, but ya, I'm okay," I told Spot Weld.

He breathed a sigh of relief. "I see your point. You were right." He then checked his toolbelt, then sighed with frustration. "Hey, can you throw that wrench back up here? It's the only one I got that can get around some of the bolts on this thing."

I nodded then trotted over to the wrench while doing my best to keep Spot steady. The heavy adjustable wrench was undamaged. It only had a few scratches on its mostly solid blue and yellow paint job. I took off my helmet then examined it. There was a big dent on where the wench fell. The thought of how much I could have gotten hurt sent a chill up my spine.

"Seriously,” I said, “Stable-Tec doesn't mess around with anything they make, even the paint job lasted two hundred years."

"Stable-Tec makes thing's to last," Spot said with pride. "Though that wrench was a newer addition to my toolbelt. My old one gave up the ghost over a year back. By luck, some scavengers happen to have passed through with that, They said they found it in some half-buried factory infested with radscorpions."

"Neat," I said, half hoping to never find out what exactly a radscorpion is. I could only guess that it was some sort of large scorpion, maybe two hooves wide. I did know their sting can melt flesh, so yeah, let’s not meet one.

Lifting the wrench, I quickly came to a problem. It was too heavy to throw up to Spot.

Well, I could, but not without risk that it would fall back down at me.

"Maybe I should lower you down and just hoof you the wrench?" I suggested.

Spot Weld rolled his eyes again. "No way! I got my groove going up here. If I go back down, it's going to, you know, poof. No more inspiration." I tilted my head at him for a moment. "Just throw it. It will be fine."

I shrugged. "Alright, but I'm using my S.A.T.S. to make sure it gets up to you." He nodded. I took a deep breath. "Iron Buck, activate S.A.T.S."

The world slowed to a crawl. A green hue as my E.F.S. took over my vision. It still felt odd. Option scenes in the side of my vision, and a little arrow being controlled with my mind, along with "%" next to anything the arrow hovered over. Moving the arrow up to Spot Weld, I got a "80%" chance to hit, of which I didn't want to do. Moving to the big "A" of Appleloosa gave me a "90%" chance to hit. The option was to toss which showed a toonish pony throwing a baseball hard. I felt that would be a bad idea, so I thought about throwing it slower. The option changed to lobb, showing the same toonish pony throwing a ball, but this time in a less violent way, such as the ball moving in an ark then in a straight line. Selecting that, I then let the pipbuck do the rest of the work.

My body relaxed as the world slowly began to move. I stood up on my back legs as the hoof that held the wrench swung back, looping once before throwing the wrench up with ease I knew I didn't naturally have. As the wrench flew through the air, Spot Weld was waiting for it. His hooves reached out to grab it. A split second later, he missed. The wrench passed through his hooves then bounced off the top of the big "A" going further up and over the sign.

"Critical!" Flashed in my vision as I looked up. The big "A", now with a noticeable dent in it, shifted a little. Spot Weld gasped and attempted to push it back in place. He only managed to swing himself back then bounce off the big "A" that then seemed to shift it a bit more.

*Ping… Thud!*

I looked down to see a rusty nut on the ground, something I was sure was not good. Not good at all.

"Slowtrot, look out!" Spot Weld yelled, his voice slow, but quickly returning to normal speed. I looked up in time to see the big "A" fall off the sign. It happened too fast for me to react.

For a moment I thought I died. I could hear or see. The only thing I could smell was dust. Eventually the dust cleared and I found myself between the legs of the big "A". It had missed me by less than a hoof step.

*thud!* The wrench bounced off my helmet again then landed into my hooves.

After a moment spent in shock, I eventually let Spot Weld down. He seemed more distressed over his sign getting messed up than my three near-death incidents in a row. I was not mad over it. They were accidents after all.

It took a few minutes for Spot Weld to calm down. He was going through a spectrum of emotions over the big "A", seemingly unable to put together a coherent sentence.

"Maybe you should invest in some scaffolding. That should help avoid accidents like this in the future." I suggested as I pat him on the shoulder.

"I… but… how?" Spot seemed deflated. His eyes were wide but vacant.

I didn't know how to deal with this level of shock in a pony, or any shock relay.

"Should I go and get some pony?" I offered.

He shook his head. "No… just… go… leave… I gotta figure out… how to fix this."

Backing away slowly, I had a strong feeling that I might not have gotten the job helping this pony.

"Well, if you need any more help, I'm available." His eyes narrowed at me. He then pointed at the door, sending the message loud and clear for me to get out.

It took a moment for my eyes to adjust after being inside the dim workshop. The light breeze blowing away some of the dust covered me. Rubbing my neck, I felt the business card that was given to me earlier. Taking it from my color, I gave it a look. One side was all blue, the other side read "Blue Sky's Merchant Guild" in big bold letters. In smaller text, it said, "We buy and sell anything and everything you desire."

"Slowtrot, what are you doing out here?"

I turned to see Karat Gold with two foals who were making faces at each other. "And why are you covered in dust?" she went on to ask.

I brushed some of the dust off me then pocketed the business card.

"Oh, there was an accident inside the workshop. Luckily, nopony got hurt, but I think Spot Weld needs some space for a while, so I'm out of work right now."

She raised an eyebrow at me. "But I left you with Doctor Quacksalver…" She then took a deep breath. "Never mind that. If you're free, then that’s good luck for me. I mean, you are free, right?" She asked as she fluttered her eyes.

I thought for a moment if I should say yes to her, but both she and I knew that I literally had nothing else going on.

"Alright,” I accepted. “What do you need help with?"

FoE: Desperados, Ch6, Nine to Five

“What Stable are ya from?” Karat’s unicorn colt asked me.

“The R&D Stable. They tested all the new technology Stable-Tec was making,” I answered.

“Oh. Did they make pretty clothes?” her unicorn filly asked.

“I don't think they did. Well, they did make this hat and jacket.” I answered.

“Can I have the hat?” the colt asked.

“Can I have the jacket?” the filly asked as well.

"Uhh, sorry, but they’re all I own, so I can't just give them away," I said, doing my best not to upset the overly loud foals. They both frowned and looked ready to wine loudly with a deep inhale but were interrupted by their mother.

"Here we are." She had stopped in front of the New Appleloosa general store. "You said you can read and do math, right?" I nodded. She smiled. "Wonderful! My husband and I just need some pony to manage the store for a few hours. He just won't leave his register as long as there is business to be done." She held onto her smile as she spoke, but it just felt more fake as she went on.

"Retail work. Anypony can do that," I said as I trotted inside.

The store felt more like an antique shop rather than a general store considering the many old nick nacks along the wall, a glass case next to the register housing severe guns, and a toaster.

Passing through one of the aisles, the shelves were full of small boxes that held nails, screws, bolts, and other construction materials of different sizes, along with some acano tech parts, and small robot pieces. Looking over at another aisle, it had rolls of old tape, wonder glue, springs, and different lengths of steel tubes. Further in the back, behind the register, was a Sunset Sarsaparilla display fridge. It’s home to both soda bottles and beer bottles. There was even a spot that had food on it, though it was just several old cans and a whole lot of corn.

"You know, this is the most general of a general store I have ever been in," I expressed.

"That's the point," a gruff sounding stallion spoke up from behind the counter. He was a dark gray earth pony with light gray spots. His mane a dull rust color with several strands of either gray or white. "By selling everything a pony might need, the ponies will come here first before browsing the merchant stalls outside." He then looked passed me and over at Karat. "Hony, who's the stallion?"

Karat chuckled. "It's that stable pony. You know, the one who fell into that ghoul clinic around a month ago. He can do that math stuff, so I thought that he could look after things here while we can go out to the dance."

The stallion sighed. "Karat, Darling, my love, you know I can't just let a pony I only just met in charge of my store."

Nodding, I turned to Karat. "Though I do need some sort of job, he is right. Most places at least have the pony supervised first."

"See, he gets it. By the way, what's your name?" the stallion asked me.

"Slowtrot," I answered.

"Good to meet you, Mister Slowtrot. I'm Heavy Hoof, the owner of this here store." He then turned to his wife. "And what about the children, you know they don't like to go to the dance."

Karat fluttered her eyes at her husband. "They can stay here. Mister Slowtrot should be more than capable to look after them."

Heavy Hoof paused for a long moment, seemingly having a hard time processing what his wife just said, then sighed. "No offense to Mister Slowtrot, but I don't think that would..."

He was interrupted by Karat stomping on the ground. "But I want to go to the dance!" she whined.

"But honey." Heavy tried to interject, but again was interrupted by another stomp.

"We never go out anymore! You just stay behind that counter all day. Somepony very important is showing up tonight!" she again whined.

"But there's so much work to-" Heavy again was interrupted.

"You promised we'd go out together! I can't just show up by myself! What would the neighbors think?!" This time she emphasized her words with several stomps.

I watched as the seemingly tall and proud looking stallion seemed to shrink in size. "But-"

"No butts! I finally have free time from my own work so we're going out, and that’s final!" Katat insisted loudly.

Heavy Hoof looked over at me. His eyes pleading for help, of which I could not give.

*Jingle*

As though sent by Celestia herself, Star Charter stepped in with her daughter Bridget and another filly that I do not know yet. "Sup Karat. Hope I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

Karat stuck her nose up and looked away, but Heavy smiled and spoke up. "Actually, we were just discussing about finding a sitter for our foals. My darling finally has some time off and wants to go to the weekly dance, but you know how hard it is to find a sitter at the last moment."

Star's eyes darted around the room, falling onto Karats two foals. She took a step back, seemingly ready to bolt out the door. "Oh, yeah… I heard that the Lightbringer Group might be free."

"But Mom, they said they were doing a camping trip with the older foals," Bridget spoke up.

Star sighed.

I saw Karat smile and trot over to Star. "Oh thank you for agreeing to take after my little angels. You're a lifesaver."

Star opened her mouth, clearly ready to argue, but quickly looked down at her daughter. After that, she likely decided to take a less aggressive posture. She returned Krat’s smile. "Well, since it’s last minute, it's going to cost extra. I am already looking after another foal as you can see." This stole the smile from Karat's face.

I looked at the new filly. She a dark gray earth pony with light gray spots and a vibrant rust-red mane. I then looked over at Karats foals. The filly was a tan unicorn with a dirty bond mane. The colt was a dusty brown unicorn who also had a dirty blond mane. Karat herself was a creamy light gray earth pony mare with a golden blond mane. She wore glasses and had no spots. My eyes then drifted from Heavy Hoof, down to the other filly, and then over to Star who looked back at me, giving me an ever so slight shake of her head.

Messaged received.

Once more I entered my agreeable working pony mode. I put on a genuinely fake smile. "Well if it's just for a few hours, I can hoofle that. I did work at Barnyard Bargains for a year before they started replacing some of the staff with robots."

I got a bit of a confused look from the others, then Katat again smiled. "See Honey, he's got work experience, so everything is fine. Now let's go."

Heavy Hoof gave a defeated sigh as Star and I trotted up to the register. He then waved me to come around to the other side. "I'll show you how to work this as I ring up Star." I trotted around and got a look at what was even a vintage register back during the war. Although several of the keys had been replaced with crude imitation, most of the original keys were worn down to barely readable nubs. "Alright, Miss Star, what can I get you?"

"Some cooking oil if you still have some. Since there are going to be even more mouths to feed, I'll take two cans of sham and two cans of beans… at a discount," Star Charter requested.

There was a momentary pause before Heavy seemed to shrink a bit more, then he nodded. Pulling out a notebook, Heavy Hoof showed me that he had every product and its price in it. Some pieces were crossed out and another number added. "Right. I have the baseline of everything I sell in this. Never sell lower, and the higher you can charge the pony, the better." He briefly looked up at Star with a huff, "Special cases notwithstanding. Now, do you know how to use a register?"

"One like this, ya. It's basically just a big calculator with bits inside," I answered.

Heavy scratched his chin for a moment, and then backed up. "Show me then." Heavy demanded.

Stepping up to the register, I flipped through the notebook. It took me a minute to navigate it. Once I found it, I then type in the cost. When I was done, Heavy added Stars discount. After that, caps were exchanged. He nodded in approval then pointed under the counter where I saw a double-barrel shotgun. "In case of a robbery, use the first shell to wound, and the second to kill."

"Is that a real worry?" I asked.

"It's rare," Star spoke up. "The deputies keep a lid on most of the crime, but now and then some idiot thinks they can rob a store then jump on the train."

"Alright. We’re going to get ready. Just familiarize yourself with the store," Heavy told me before turning to trot to the back of the store. Karat followed him out.

"Strange,” she mused. “I thought the mayor needed Karat available in case he needed any errands run," Star commented as she put the canned food into her saddlebag. "I hope she didn't just dump all her work on Harp." She then shrugged. "Oh well. She's a grown mare. She seems to know how to take care of herself.

Star then whistled loudly, getting all the foal's attention “Bridget, Light Step, let’s go. That includes you two rugrats as well."

A groan came from the brother and sister. They trotted over to Star while grumbling something to themselves.

"Are you sure you can hoofle four foals on such short notice?" I asked in concern.

Star chuckled. "It's going to be six actually, but I'll be fine. I volunteer at the school a few days a week, so this is quite manageable for me."

Bridget fluttered onto her mother's back. "We're building a fort at the clinic and Jali is showing us how to make medical tea."

"Yep, whoever thought having a tea party could be healthy!" Star claimed in what was clearly her being playful.

Karats foals now looked a bit more interested in what they were talking about.

"Maybe we can have a filly's vs colts game a bit later,” Star proposed. “The losers ha’s cooties."

The two foal’s ears perked up, then they both narrowed their eyes at each other. Soon they were rushing out of the shop, followed by Bridget and Light Step. This got a chuckle from Star as she bragged, "Works every time. Those two can't help but compete with each other. I think it might be because Karat doesn't give them enough attention.”

Star then sighed, “Anywho, I should head out to make sure none of them get in trouble."

With that, Star trotted out. I was left alone in the store.

Looking through the notebook, I reviewed the products that were here. The antique vibe of this place was still there, but now it made me feel more relaxed. Maybe it was because some of the stuff here was nearly as old as I was, which still didn't feel right to me.

On the counter was a radio. It clearly saw better days. Curious, I turned it on just to test it. What played was Sweetie Bell singing one of her original songs. It was just as somber of a song as the first time I heard it.

When the song came to a close, a stallion with a deep voice spoke up. "This is DJ Pon3y, and ain't Sweetie Bell the best? I never get tired of hearing her sing.”

It was strange hearing that name, as I remember a DJ Pon3y from my time, who was a famous party music mixer with more albums than I can remember. Though from what I remember, that pony was a mare, and she was famous for never talking. I could only guess the name had been passed down, or it was simply just coincidence.

I continued to listen. “But, you know what they say about too much of a good thing, so let’s break up the good vibes with some good news! The sleepers have awakened! Yes, that's right! The two mysterious stable ponies that fell out of nowhere in New Appleloosa have finally woken up. The who, what, how, and where they came from is still unknown, but I advise giving them the time and space to sort all that out."

I scratched my chin, a bit confused about how this pon3y knew about Harp and I had woken up so quickly.

The DJ continued. "In other news, the terrorist Spritz Cookie has finally been captured by the NCR. She and her Renegade Steel Ragers had been harassing NCR caravan for the last ten years now, where she had avoided not just the NCR, but both Applejack Rangers and other Steel Ranger chapters. With her capture, the many caravans under NCR protection can now breathe a sigh of relief and focus on other problems, such as raiders, feral ghouls, and other vicious monsters that have a taste for pony meat."

It seemed that there were quite a few bad things going on outside New Appleloosa, though it was nice not to hear about the war anymore.

The radio broadcast continued. "Now for your public service announcement, don't do chems! No joke, my fillies and colts, no joke at all. By now you should know the usual dangers; addiction, withdrawal, and the ever dark presence of an overdose.” Nothing new to me.

“But, lately, there's been a new danger along with a new chem going around. This danger is caused by the chems being cut. What do I mean by cut? I mean that some scummy chem pusher is adding different and more dangerous stuff to their chems to make it cheaper and more addictive. They don’t care what this cut will do to the ponies using it.” Alright, this was new to me.

“The NCR, with the aid of the Angels, are trying to stop the distribution of the tampered chems. They are offering a safe place for addicted ponies to get high and seek treatment if they choose to.” The DJ informed everypony.

There was a pause, and then a long sigh from the DJ, “Now I really do not advocate the taking of chems, but if you must, then seek out the Angels. Those zebras take their profession seriously. They will not cut your chems with detergent or Chill.”

Music then softly started to play as the DJ clearly started to wrap up. “Now with the news out of the way, let's get back to some good vibes. How about a wasteland classic from the Wasteland Wailers…"

I turned the radio off as I heard hoofsteps from the back. Heavy and Karat trotted back in the store, both wearing far nicer and cleaner clothes. They are the kind of clothes you take to some kind of barn dance, though that might actually be where they were going.

"We should only be a few hours, but if it gets too late, there's a lock on the door that will only open from the inside, so you can just turn it and leave," Heavy informed me. I nodded, and the two trotted outside, leaving me fully on my own.

I turned the radio back on to listen to the music. I also flipped through the notebook again. It showed me how some items have gone up in price and where others have dipped. I am no economist, but I did understand a little of what I was looking at. Things. such as clean water and small-caliber ammunition, have gone down in price, but spark batters have significantly jumped up in costs. It still confused me why bottle caps was the currency, though colt me would have been stoked. I did, at one point, have a full box of soda caps.

*Ding*

The door opened and a pony dressed in patchwork rags covered in pockets trotted in. He mulled around for a few minutes, looking at random items and touching a few of them. I was unsure if this was a normal customer or not, as they looked like a homeless pony. When the Stallion came up to the register, He smelled like a homeless pony. "Hey, ya got ta nails?" He asked with a breath that smells like an ashtray.

"Nails?" I clarified.

"Ya nails." They repeated.

I pointed down the middle aisle. "There's different sizes of nails down there. Just bring them up and I'll ring you up."

They looked behind them and then back at me with a scowling face. "Not tos nails. Nail nails!" I raised an eyebrow. "Coffin Nails ya fuckwit!"

I sighed, "First off, aren’t any kind of nails good for a coffin, and two, I would appreciate it if you don't insult me."

The pony huffed at me. "Coffin nails are smokes, and you are a fuckwit id I got ta spell it out for ya, ya fuckwit."

I was unsure if I should tell the customer to leave or not, but figuring it was just bad luck, I checked under the counter, and found a packet of cigarettes. Placing one up, I flipped through the notebook, looking for the product. "Right. It's going to be fifteen caps." I looked up to see the customer already leaving, the cigarette gone, and twelve caps on the counter. Sighing, I gathered up the caps and made a mental note to not put out products from behind the counter until I’m given the caps. I also double-checked the cigarettes and saw that what I gave the stallion was not coffin nails, but a brand called death sticks.

The door dinged again. This time it was a group of ponies, most in patchwork clothes and a few of the ponies sporting old scars that looked painful. They split up into smaller groups and browsed the storse wheres. One old stallion was interested in some rusty farming tool. An older mare had stopped at a pile of scrap cloth and thread. Looking at the nails were three stallions, with one of them pulling out a scrap of paper for them to look at. Lastly was two youngish mares who looked at some random things as they chatted with each other.

First to come up was the three stallions who had taken a box of nails, a hammer, four yardstick rulers. "Let’s see. With the boxes being fifty nails at one cap a nail, the hammer being fifteen caps, and the yardsticks ten caps each, that will be one-hundred and ninety-five caps"

They looked at each other. One of them sighed. "The boss only gave us one-hundred and seventy-five caps. Is there any way we can get it lowered?"

"Sorry, I promised the owner to not go below a certain price." They didn't look happy about my answer but did look ready to argue about it. "Can't you just get the one yard stick?"

The one who spoke before shook his head. "Boss said we need four, otherwise we’re working on guesswork, and she hates working on guesswork."

Sounds reasonable. Back during the war, a shabby job got ponies killed, but then again it was annoying how hard it was to get what you needed for a job with how scarce materials became. If I remember correctly, most of the older ponies just took the junk we had and turned it into what we needed. Looking down at the yard sticks, a thought crossed my mind. "Say, couldn't you just make your own yard sticks?"

"Say what?" One of the three stallions raised an eyebrow.

I took one of them and laid it longwise on the counter. "Well just take one of these and use it to make copies from some wood you don't need."

One of the stallions scratched his chin and nodded. "Say, I think he has a point. We do have some scrap wood at the sight we have no use for. Alright, then we'll just get the one yardstick."

"That will be one-hundred and seventy-five caps." The stallions paid, and were on their way, leaving me with three yardsticks.

After several minutes, the next pony to come up was the old stallion. He was holding a hoe and a shovel. Both were rusty in parts. It looked like the edges had been sharpened. "I'll give ya thirty caps for these two, no more." His voice was gruff, and his breath smelled thick with tobacco.

Looking in the notebook, I found two of each item, one marked clean, and one marked as scavenged. Looking over where he had gotten them, I could see a shovel that was in far better condition since it has no rust. The clean items were marked fifty caps, where the scavenged were thirty caps… "Sorry, but you're asking for a fifty percent discount. I can’t do that. I can give you one for thirty caps."

The old stallion huffed. "Listen here youngin, I sure as Lunas plot I can get this even cheaper from those merchants outside, so I'm being fair offering you this!"

I gave him my retail smile. It’s fake as plastic, just like the robots that replace me in some of my jobs. "Oh, that's unfortunate to hear. If you could bring in one of those items, I'll see if my manager can match the cost."

He was taken aback for a moment, looking a bit confused. "Why in Celestia's grateful sky would I do that? I would already have what I want. You know what, how about thirty-five caps then?

"That's still too low in price, sir. If you can't afford both, how about getting one for now," I said as politely as possible.

This time the old pony groaned. "Look here sonny, these here tools were clearly used as weapons. They are sharpened and rusted from blood. They’re not worth more than twenty caps each! Even the wood is all worn out."

This was starting to get annoying. He wanted it for "forty caps" for the two when it's listed as sixty.

Looking back up at the stallion, his nose was scrunched up. "Now that's highway robbery. I'll give you thirty-five caps for each, and no higher!"

I paused for a moment to process what just happened… "Ya, it's a deal!" I said, and he hoofed over seventy caps, ten caps over the selling price. To say I was a bit confused would be an understatement, but at least it covered the loss from the cigarette.

The next customer was the older mare. She was holding the cloth scraps and thread she had been looking at.

"How can I help you?" I ask in my well-practiced retail voice.

"Oh how polite Yes, I'd like to buy all this." She had a slight smile and a quiet voice. "I need to make a quilt for my son, or he's going to be cold tonight."

Nodding, I may have not been interested in why she was shopping, but knew not to look or sound disinterested, or I’d risk an unhappy pony.

“Let’s see. The thread is five caps a spool, and the cloth scraps is a cap for a square.” The older mare pulled out her pouch and, one at a time, placed a cap on the counter. It counted to thirty-two caps. Most of them were dirty with a lot of paint missing. I then went through the items she was buying and found that she had two spools of thread and forty-three cloth scrap squares. “Right. All together you’re twenty-one caps short. You want to remove anything?”

She looked down for a moment, “I see.” Her eyes welled up a little, and she shuffled. “Alright. That’s fine.”

I felt a pinch of guilt in my chest, causing me to sigh. “You know what, I’m eight caps over right now. How about I add that to your total? Then you’re only thirteen caps short.”

The old mare wiped a tear-off with her fenlock. “Oh thank you.” I removed the thirteen cloth scraps and made the exchange. Although she still seemed sad, at least I was able to help a little. I was unsure if I was being played or not. It wouldn’t be the first time it had happened. I just hope I don’t lose the job because of it… again.

Time passed, The two remaining mares still chatted as they looked around the shop. The door dinged again, and a green cowpony mare trotted in. She looked about as rough as the sheriff but, instead of scars, she had two mechanical back legs. From under her hat were strands of her red tangled mane, with two red eyes looking right at me. Reaching the counter, she placed a bag of caps on the counter. “I need to confirm if my order is ready.” I stared back at her, a bit confused, and she sighed. “I ordered for two barrels of water and two weeks provisions of rations.”

Feeling a bit confused, I looked under the counter. I saw several pieces of paper and a folder. Pulling out the folder, inside was several clean pieces of paper covered in scribbles which had stamps on it. They seem like trade deal forms, exchanges, and some other legal mumbo I had a hard time wrapping my head around. Each one had several names attached to it. One name in scribbles and the rest in more clear writing. I could only guess this was what I was looking for. “Name?”

“Percussion Cap,” the mare told me.

Flipping through the documents, I found her name. It had several stamps saying “Approved” but the writing was just unreadable. There was a second piece of paper attached to the first. Luckily it was typed in. It listed several items, including the two barrels of water. On this document was stamped “paid” and next to it was a list with a date and the word “Delivered”. Checking my pipbuck, the date was listed for tomorrow. “Looks like your order will be ready tomorrow. Anything else?”

I saw her shake one of her cyber legs before responding. “Any word on any spark batteries coming into your stock?”

Looking through the notebook, I found several listings of different spark batteries. Next to them was a note paper clipped in saying that none were in stock. Any new stock was to go to the mayor. “Sorry. Looks like any spark batteries we do get goes to the mayor.”

“So that’s fucking why there's no fucking spark batteries in town!” Percussion Cap huffed. “Thanks for the info. Everypony else just gave me the runaround.” She then turned around and stomped out of the store, muttering along the way.

With a ding, I was left with the two mares who were still just looking around. Soon after they left, not buying anything.

Turning up the radio, I sat in the now still shop with only my pipbuck to mess with, but I was not feeling like reading the notes still in it.

What were a few minutes became an hour with little interruption. During that time, it was mainly some pony buying a snack or cooled beer. Another hour passed and, through the window outside, I could see the sky turning red and lights being turned on.

The door dinged. I looked to see the dusty pegasus mare from Spot Weld’s workshop trotted in along with two strong looking stallions carrying heavy boxes. The stallions looked a lot like the bikers the newspapers warned ponies to stay away from. Their fur was painted and had black vests decorated with spikes over a tanis olive military jacket. Actually, they looked a lot like a certain biker gang that got featured in the news. Something about gang wars or chem dealers. It was something Desperados, though back home, the Tartarus Angles was the main biker gang in the area.

The mare looked at me, raised an eyebrow, then trotted over with a clipboard. "Guess Heavy Hoof is out. No matter. Can you sign this for me as proof of delivery?"

She passed me the clipboard. "Alright, but what's in the boxes?" I asked as I took a pen into my mouth and signed the paper.

"Just a bunch of junk. Blue Skies has a hard time selling since ponies come here first to find shit like this, so it's a win-win for both our businesses." She took the clipboard and smiled. "So you can actually write and here I was thinking ya’ll ground pounders just pretend to by just drawing loops."

The pegasus turned around and nodded at the two biker ponies. They dropped the boxes haphazardly then turned to leave.

On their vest was a flaming skull wearing a cowpony hat along with the words ‘Route 50 Desperados’ printed under it. That got me to pause for a moment about how a biker gang from over two-hundred years ago could still be around. They quickly left, and I eventually gave up on pondering about them. I started to wonder what else was still around. Maybe, just maybe, Pinky Pie was actually still watching us, as her posters promised.

One more ding issued. The drunk form of Karat stumbled in. Her dress was slightly dirty. Her make up was a bit smudged but the big tell was the bottle she held in her mouth. I watched as she made her way to the counter. leaning on the counter, she fluttered her eyes a bit too much as she put the bottle down. "Hey handsome." Her breath smelled of booze.

"Hello, Miss Gold. Is your husband picking up your kids?" I asked, trying to deflect her cargo train signal level of flirting.

She huffed. "That useless stallion. Ya, he's picking my kids up. He’ll probably sneak off to see his favorite whore later. Let's talk about something better… us." She fluttered her eyes again.

That was more than I wanted to know.

"I'm very grateful for you getting me this job, and I'd be glad to talk about further employment, tomorrow." I deflected.

Karat chuckled. "How about tonight, you can work me hard and long?"

I kept my neutral retail smile up, unsure how to deal with this drunk mare. "I'm sure that would be a bad idea ma’am, and I'm sure you've had a long day."

She waved me off dismissively. "Mister Slowtrot, do I… *urp* I have to remind you who I am? I work for the mayor, and if I so chose to… I can make it so that you can't get a job here. now what do you say?"

"Isn't that illegal?" The words practically jumped out of my mouth before I knew not to say them. "I mean… uhh… you could get in trouble, and I wouldn't want to see you get in trouble. Also, think of our age. I'm practically-"

A hoof slammed on the counter as Karat stared daggers at me. "Are you calling me old!" she growled.

"No, no. The opposite. We were just from different eras!" I defended myself.

"I'm not that old!" she yelled and swung her hoof at me.

I instinctively backed away. She missed, hitting the old register with a loud thud and a crack. I watched as Karats face went from anger, to shock, and then fear. She let out a silent inhale of a scream as she retreated back, holding her hoof, it having a nasty looking crack in it.

"Shit! Stay there, Miss Karat!" I quickly trotted around the counter to her. Next, I put my pipbuck over her. "Ironbuck, begin medical scan."

My pipbuck's screen switched to showing a mare with her right foreleg outlined in dots.

"Right. This will tell me how bad your hoof is hurt. We can get the doctor to help patch it up for you." I informed her.

Looking at the screen, it said that she had a hairline fracture and something called balefire crotch.

"Right. Just a hairline fracture. Nothing more, and nothing else," I told her while trying to keep a straight face.

With her other hoof, she grabbed my pipbuck and forced it into her view. It only lasted for a second, but when she looked back up at me, tears in her eyes, I knew that she knew that I knew…

The door dinged. Heavy Hoof trotted in with his kids. I took my opportunity. "Thank Celestia you're here!" I said as I trotted over to him.

Heavy Hoof looked over with concern on his face. "What happened?"

"Your wife tripped and damaged her hoof. I think it looks like a hairline fracture, but I'm no doctor, so Doctor Quacksalver should look at it." I turned off my pipbuck screen as I looked over at Karat. I gave her a nod before looking back at Heavy Hoof. "I'll go get him. You should go get her to bed."

The stallion furrowed his brow at me for a moment, then looked at his wife who was nursing her hoof. "Go get the doctor. Last I saw him, he was heading back to his clinic. I'll tend to my wife."

I quickly exited the shop. When the door closed, I took a deep breath. "Three jobs lost in a day. That's a new record."

Kicking the dirt in frustration, I then made my way to the doctor’s clinic, unsure what to do next.

As I ran to the clinic, I saw the sun setting, but also saw that the moon had already passed the horizon. It’s almost like Luna was impatiently doing her job…

Wait. What happened to the Princesses?

FoE: Desperados, ch7, Wasteland Bureaucracy

Slowtrot and I explained our situations to the mayor on how we were from the west and how a teleportation spell had sent us here, though both our explanations were inconsistent to say the least, and Slowtrot being from far in the past was both confusing to me and the mayor. If time was as messed up as it seemed, then maybe I hadn't met Slowtrot down there, or it was a different him… you know, best not think about it. Skipping the confusing parts, I did explain that I might need to head out west to find a way home and getting enough money for it was at the top of the list. I was also not going to just accept charity, though some help would be nice. I felt the sooner I could pay for my own food and board, the better.

The mayor kindly let us prattle on. After that, he offered us solutions to our predicament. If we could do the jobs, then he could give us the jobs, pointing out that he is the mayor.

Important as he was, I had seen the mannerisms before. I heard the words used weave through politics and smelled the heavy perfumes that most used to hide the smell of sweat when meeting their betters. I knew I could not trust him with the truth, or even a half-truth, as he reminded me too much of other power-hungry mayors. They were sweet on the outside but filled with nothing but slime on the inside.

I could tell him I am a princess, descendant of princess Platinum herself, or that I am a mirage pony, born with the ability to draw magic from the air itself and power old tech as a stand-in for a spark battery, but telling him that would likely just make me a playing chip in a game of power, likely to be traded off to some young or old empire.

No... not if I could help it. I am determined to not let that happen to me, so I would keep that part of my heritage secret along with my magical ability. I’ll head west in hopes to reunite with my kin. If there were Mirage ponies out west, then that's where I needed to be. Through them, I may return home, and then… I don't know, maybe support my sister, maybe unite my people… or give them a reason to rebel, and then die…

Maybe, just maybe, it was a good thing I was so far from home. My own existence was giving the peasants a reason to rebel, as I, a mirage pony among the unicorns, served by the mirage ponies. My existence was nothing more than a disaster for mother, the queen, yet I was allowed to live… but why?

After we had discussed it some more, Mayor Espresso decided that Slowtrot would help one of the important ponies in town, but he would first need to get his messy mane and beard cut.

As for myself, I had impressed him enough that he decided that I should help lighten the administrative work for the town, mainly being the Karats assistant for the time being.

"Alright, just… well don't touch anything, I have everything how I like it." Karat explained, leaving me with a job most ponies could do. She told me not to touch a thing despite her desk being a mess. I would understand if she had notes and files everywhere, but her workspace was a mess of nick-knacks, almost nothing work-related.

She then left with Slowtrot, he seemingly on guard around her as she tried to flirt with him. I sighed and looked at my workstation on what I should do next. I saw nothing that explained anything on what was going on in this town other than several times that meant nothing to me.

"Miss Harp?" Deputy Willow spoke up. "Are you okay with this?" he asked as the mayor trotted up behind him.

"Of course she is. Secretary work is easy as pie," Mayor Espresso spoke up. "If Miss Karat can do it, I’m sure she can do it."

Willow shrugged and looked at me. "If you ever need help miss, I'll be around. Just ask for me.”

I nodded, as did the deputy, then he left.

"Right. Mayor Espresso, what's on the schedule for you to do next?" I asked as I looked through Karat's mess of a desk.

The mayor cleared his throat. "I think my next appointment was to meet with the NCR representative in town.."

Looking around I found a paper that said noonish along with "NCR"

Taking it, I passed the paper to the mayor. "Looks like it says you need to be there at noon."

He nodded. "Then I'll be off. You do… whatever secretaries do."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Sorry, but shouldn't my job be to assist you and not just stay here?" Not that I couldn't stay here, but right now all I would do was nothing. I needed to make a further impression on the mayor.

He paused for a moment. "You know what, that's a good idea. It would have a bigger effect on the NCR to see you then for me to just tell them about you." He smiled as he spoke. It was the smile of a pony announcing his new political weapon. "Care to join me?"

I nodded as an answer, half wanting to get along with the mayor, and the other was out of curiosity to what this NCR was.

He nodded. "Alright. Just be careful. They are a tricky folk. Actually, just take notes. I'll do the talking."

I nodded. We left his office, bringing a small notepad and old pencil in tow.

We came to a small building next to the train station. The building proudly hung a flag over its door. It was a white flag that depicting some sort of two-headed beast looking at a red star while standing on red ground. I didn't understand the symbolism of the flag, but it reminded me of the peacekeeping organization, Orthrus, back home. I also got the feeling that this NCR was important if they had their own building and the mayor had a meeting with them.

Inside reminded me even more of home with how clean and organized it was inside. There were propaganda posters neatly decorating the walls. One poster showed several different creatures along with different ponies in a marching formation. Under it, the poster read "together we survive." Another poster showing a pony with a gun, protecting what looked like a family from what looked like bandits with spikes, and above the image it said, "Heroes wanted. The NCR needs you!" It was a mix of collectivist and individualist posters, leaving me a bit confused about what their angle was.

The secretary was a pegasus mare in a clean tan dress uniform. It was nothing flashy, but not made for any action.

"Mayor Espresso, Ranger Gavril is waiting for you inside," she said in a clear and friendly tone.

"Good to see you too Miss Candy Corn. Any chance you will be free later today?" Espresso asked.

The mare, Candy, waved to herself with her wing. "Mister Espresso, my work doesn't just end. If it did, my husband would not like to know you were courting me. I'll just pretend you said something less irritating while you can go on your way." She then tapped at her terminal and adjusted her black-rimmed glasses with a smile. "Alright. The doors open. Head on inside."

"I like her,” I whispered.

"So do I," the mayor responded. "She has spice. The kind I like."

"She did say she has a husband," I reminded him.

He only smiled bigger. "More the better," he said as he trotted further into the building.

Inside the office, we found a griffin behind a desk surrounded by a stack of papers held down by a revolver each. His feathers were a gray-black with blood-red stripes. The rest of him was a dull gray. From his paperwork, he looked at us with bright blue eyes. The griffin gave me enough attention to make me feel uneasy.

"Finally!” Ranger Gavril exclaimed with a deep, gravelly voice. “You got rid of that useless secretary. Are you now willing to talk sense?"

The mayor cocked an eyebrow, and I sighed.

"Sorry, but I'm just a new higher to assist the secretary. My name is Harp Melody." I offered my hoof to Ranger Gavril.

The griffon accepted my hoof and shook it. "Ahh, one of the ponies that fell into the town. Good to see that you're awake and well. I'm the liaison from the New Canterlot Republic, Gavril."

"Ahem." The mayor cleared his throat. "As we are greeted, let's get to the business at hoof. The first order of business being the NCR Correctional Facility, if I'm not mistaken."

I pulled out a notepad and pencil I was given. Holding the pencil near my hoof with my pipbucks levitation spell, I'd begun writing down what was being said.

Gavril nodded. "Yes, the prison." He pulled a paper from his desk, scanning it with his eyes before offering it to us. Espresso didn't take it, so I did. I even looked it over carefully.

"The warden has been asking for more workers to increase efficiency,” Gavril continues, “and, with how the president has been promising further expansion of the railway, it would be beneficial for both of us if your town ceased most executions in favor of sending the prisoners to the NCRCF." The old griffon was slow and direct with his words, but not so much that it sounded patronizing. It was just enough to get an idea across.

"Well you would have to talk to the sheriff about that. Ashy handles executions and such, so it's not my job." Espresso said without care. Both Gavril and I suppress a face hoof.

Scanning the document as nopony said a word, I saw that it listed several different kinds of criminals desired for the NCRCF, mainly petty criminals. Among them included ponies called raiders. Nopony had yet spoken, and the mood felt like it was going sower fast, so I felt like it was best to salvage the situation. "What the good mayor means is that though he runs this town. He must delegate law and order to the peacekeepers, otherwise he risks the townsfolk becoming confused to whom to turn to for law and order. Whatever is said here in regards to the dealing of criminals cannot be taken as anything but a suggestion. Not without including the sheriff as counsel." I then placed the document into my saddlebag "But I'm sure that the dealings of petty criminals can be easily negotiated if given the time."

Gavril smiled from the corner of his beak. "I like her." He said before putting on a more serious face back on. "But on that, could you talk with your sheriff? She may be excellent at her job, but vigilance does have its limit. The amount of ponies she sends to the gallows is getting to a disturbing number. The rangers are known for rooting out and killing raiders as judge, jury and executioner as most would say, but when we're finding ourselves competing with Ashy, it's either that your town has problems, or she's more trigger happy than our loosest of loose cannons."

Espresso sighed, showing some irritation. “If I must remind you, the train brings in new ponies every day, some of which commit crimes, and all of whom come in from the east NCR territory.” He then adjusted his tie and put on a smug smile. “I’ll consider your proposal, and… talk with Sheriff Ashy, but I’d also suggest that maybe the NCR should stop letting so many dangerous ponies slip through their hooves.”

“Fair enough,” Gavril huffed before leaning back and opening a drawer in his desk. “But it’s not like we can sake down every creature that boards the train.” He then pulled out a bottle of wild pegasus whisky and two shot glasses. “It’s as president Grimfeathers says, there's no quick and easy solution to peace, even if you choose to do it with bullets.” The griffin poured himself two glasses of whisky then offered one to Espresso.

The mayor accepted the glass. “You say that, but look how much better things have gotten in the last ten years. If things keep up like this, there might be no more raiders in the wasteland.”

Gavril nodded and sipped on his whisky. “It does look that way. If we remain vigilant, maybe we can actually rebuild the Equestria of old, but things like raiders tend to be like weeds, so only time will tell if things stay stable.” He then finished his shot glass then and put it down as he pulled out another document. “Now I’m sure you're not here to just listen about the NCR’s concerns with your sheriff.”

Espresso finished his shot glass before responding. “Yes, that’s correct. It’s about your offering to aid security for the festival as well as the delivery of supplies for it. Though grateful, I have to formally turn it down.” This got Gavril to raise an eyebrow as Espresso continued to explain. “The Caravaners known as Blue Skies have offered us a better deal in the matter, so we will not be needing the NCR’s support in this. Not that we don’t appreciate the NCR’s support. It has done well for this town, but as you know, the ponies of New Appleloosa value their independence. Having NCR soldiers patrolling our streets would send the wrong message.”

With a deep breath, Gavril straightened himself up. He passed the mayor yet another document. “Well that’s unfortunate to hear, but not unexpected, so let's just move onto the last subject I want to discuss with you.”

Looking at the document, several photos of young mares were attached.

“I’d like you to pass this off to sheriff Ashy,” Gavril requested. “It would be good to have a few more eyes out looking for these mares.”

“Are they some sort of gaggers?” the mayor asked.

Gavril shook his head “Missing ponies. There are no connections between them except for a whole lot of worried parents.”

This time Espresso raised an eyebrow. “You do know that ponies go missing all the time? The young run away, going on some adventure, so what’s new about this?”

“What’s new is that the NCR is a government, one with responsibilities to its citizens.” Gavril had a serious tone in his voice, but then took another deep breath, calming down. “Look Mayor Espresso, all we want is for your ponies to keep an eye out. If they are just runaways then that's fine, but if they're in trouble, then the NCR has a duty to bring them home."

The mayor huffed, "alright, Gavril. I can at least do that, though I can't see how any pony can simply disappear in NCR territory.”

“Then again, you do have those mutants, and we don't know how stable they are. I mean, they could be just as much of a timebomb as ghouls are," Espresso said as he passed me the document. I placed it in my saddlebag.

Gavril waved his claw dismissively. "Trust me, that has already been considered and acted upon. Personally, I don't trust those alicorn mutants much myself. Neither do I trust most creatures back in the NCR. It's actually become a problem for the Followers with ponies avoiding their free clinics in fear of disappearing.”

“That aside, just keep an eye and ear out. The sooner we find out where these mares have gone, the sooner we can bring them home, alive if possible." the griffin again requested.

Espresso got up from his seat "Well, I'll send them my wishes and prayers Gavril, but now I should mosey on and see Ashy. She also had something to talk to me about." He then turned to leave.

"It was good meeting you, Ranger Gavril," I said before putting the notepad away and followed Espresso out.

As we trotted through the busy streets, Espresso did not say a word. We traveled all the way to the sheriff's office then proceeded straight inside. The office was a dusty building with four desks in the middle, two small prison cells on the side, and a cage on the other side filled with guns and ammo crates. No pony was at the desks, but there were four ponies in one cage and two in the other. Most of them were just sitting on a bench, not paying us any attention.

A huff came from Espresso as he turned to look at me. His face looked less than pleased. He spoke with a stern voice. "Alright. You're new and young, so I'm going to be nice. Your job is not to speak for me, not to pontificate, or negotiate. Your job is to sit and look pretty. you understand?"

"What?" I breathed in confusion.

Espresso sighed. "Listen, Miss Melody, I have everything under control. I know who to talk to and what to say to them. For example, that griffon back there; give him a hoofstep and he, like the rest of his kind, will take you for every cap you own. No matter what they say, we all know what they are. They will always be greedy mercenaries. The same goes for that pegasus secretary because, when the going gets tough, the pegasus will run and hide in the clouds like the cowards they are." An irritated huff came from Espresso. "The NCR is doomed to fall apart, and if we're tied to them, then they will drag us down with them."

I put on a straight face, finally understanding exactly what the mayor was; a two-faced coward. I'd be shocked if I hadn't seen ponies like this before. Frankly, I was disappointed with how quickly he dropped the mask. Back home, such masks rarely ever came off.

The mayor then trotted over to one of the desks then pounded his hoof on it. "Alright. Just leave the papers Gavril gave you here and head back to my office. I need a drink."

Trotting over, I didn't sign or roll my eyes as I wanted to, but simply smiled and did as I was told.

"Should I leave Ashy the notes of the meeting?" I asked.

Espresso paused for a moment, then asked, "Notes?"

"Yes. They’re more a transcription of what you both said but, without it, Ashy will know what to do," I explained.

"And that would be what?" A mare spoke up from outside as she trotted in. "And I see you're already putting the new mare to work."

"Oh, Ashy!" The mayor exclaimed. "Yes, well she's quite a smart mare, so I figured that I give her a chance as an assistant."

Ashy trotted over to her desk. She lifted the document in her magic, carefully examining it. "Missing ponies? Can't say I've seen ‘em." She then took my notebook from me, scanning it over. "I see. So the NCR is again shit at their job and looking to us for help, but that's what happens when you invite Redeye's lackeys into your organization. They should have just killed them all." She then tossed the document to the side with a huff. She sat at her desk and looked at the notes. "And also butting into my business, telling me how to do my job. Justice is not meant to be kind or fair. It just has to be done."

"Then I'm to assume that we’re done here then?" the mayor asked.

Sheriff Ashy passed the notebook back to me. "Actually, I need a few things approved. I'd do them myself, but some pony wanted to have everything official so that some group they hate can't call him lazy."

A groan came from Espresso. "Fine, but you know we have a thin budget right now. I can't have anything that will disrupt the festival."

Ashy looked over at me and smiled. "Good thing you got a new assistant that seems more than capable. Just have her go over the documents as we talk in private."

There was a pause from Espresso, then a nod. "Alright." He looked over at me. "Miss Melody, if you could look over Ashy’s papers and figure out the budget costs."

I held onto my fake smile while nodding back. With that, Ashy pulled out a file and placed it on her desk. After that, the two trotted over to a room in the back, closing the door behind them.

Taking a seat at Ashy's desk and opening the file, I began reading through what was written. What I found, other than sloppy writing, was a request for the start of some kind of garrison for the deputies to sleep and prisoners to be held. If started, there would be a gallows at the center and a watchtower.

Another document was for the procurement of new guns, something about a pony named Spot Weld not being fast enough with repairs and modifications.

I found a third document with a listing of several ponies crimes committed and waiting for the approval to send to the gallows. It seemed that the ponies were repeating offenders, Ashy notes that they would not leave town and that they would stay a "problem" unless sent to the gallows.

I then pulled out the NCRCF document from my saddlebag and compared the condemned ponies to those who the NCR are looking for. It matched up enough, like killing two radroaches with one bullet, except nopony had to die.

Looking over the NCRCF document more, I saw some other benefits, such as that the NCR was willing to give aid to towns that sent them prisoners. It’s an odd offer, but it seemed that the NCR used the prisoners as a labor force, which made sense. The aid offered looked to be in weapons, ammo, medical supplies, or food and water.

Comparing the potential costs, the compound was likely still far out of reach, but the NCRCF would solve the other two issues, so I ripped out a paper from the notebook. I quickly wrote down a suggestion to, instead of executing the current prisoners, send them to the NCRCF in exchange for new firearms. This way it would save time and money. Though I was a bit confused as to why the NCR would do such an exchange for prisoners, all the documents said was that they were for the expansion of the railway system.

Satisfied, I leaned back. I could faintly hear what the mayor and sheriff were talking to each other about.

"I'm telling you, I don't trust them. Using raiders as bodyguards, it's nothing but trouble." Ashy spoke, sound very annoyed.

"Gaggers Ashy. They're Gangger. Even the NCR recognizes them as that," Espresso said calmly. "Blue Skies knows what they are doing in hiring them. How else have they managed to carve such a lucrative trade route from the west in under a few years? Through them, the town will be rich, so don't fuck with them." His tone had turned stern.

"The Desperados? I don't care if everypony calls them gaggers, they are clearly raiders. It's only a matter of time before they show their true colors," Ashy warned aggressively.

"Here. I'll talk with Quicktrot and see if she can change who she's using as muscle. From what I've heard, the Desperados don't come cheap, so there might be some wiggle room with Blue Skies on the matter, but until then . . . don't fuck with them! This town can't afford any shit to go down." Espresso's tone had returned to being calm.

The name Quicktrot had caught my undivided attention since I had met a strange mare by that name before ending up here. She was, for all purposes, a female version of Slowtrot. Unlike Slowtrot, who was just friendly, she was friendly at first, but turned out to be a conniving and cruel monster that took the form of a pony. If she was here, though I would not trust her, she still might know of a way to get me home.

There was a noticeable pause, lasting for what felt like a minute, before Ashy spoke up. "Fine, but I don't want them doing business in town. They can do their jobs, but nothing more."

"Fuck! Fine, Ashy. I'll have it that they can only do business through their employer. Will that work?" Espresso conceded.

"That's fine," Ashy agreed.

After a moment, the two returned to the main room. I did my best to look like I was not listening in on them.

"Miss Melody, how does Sheriff Ashy's documents look?" Espresso asked with a fake cheery smile.

I smiled back, very sure that he was both not going to like what I was going to suggest, but he might also find it hard to argue with.

"Well,” I said, “I don't know about this compound idea. I don't know what the town's budget is, so I left it alone.”

“As for the gun procurement and what to do with the prisoner's, that can be solved with the NCRCF," I said in my most cheerful tone.

"What?" Espresso said in a confused and concerned tone.

I put the documents down for the two to see. "You see, instead of executing the prisoners, we send them to NCRCF in exchange for firearms or ammo. This way the prisoners are taken off your hooves and the deputies get a few new guns. It’s a win-win."

The mayor was now becoming visibly angry as he attempted to keep smiling, but Ashy looked inquisitive on the idea. "I do recall that the NCR has been sending a chain gang down to work one of the smaller quarries." She picked up the NCRCF document in order to examine it. "Well, without a gravedigger, we are starting to run out of holes to dump the bodies in, so maybe it is time to ease up on the executions." Ashy then passed the document to the mayor. "I think I'm going to have a chat with Gavril to negotiate over what he will give us for the prisoners."

"Are you sure about this, Ashy?" Espresso asked, sounding more concerned. "It is the NCR. If we start giving into them, they will start asking us to change our town more."

Ashy paused for a moment, then nodded. "True, but didn't you say that we need to keep the peace with the NCR? Sometimes we need to give up something to get what we want.”

“Well, I want to get rid of these repeat offenders as well as get my deputies better armed." She said with a smile.

Espresso huffed and shrugged. "Alright. I'll let Gavril have his win, but you better make sure we get the most out of the prisoners." He then glared at me. In return, I smiled back. "Let's go, Miss Melody. I have other business to attend to, and this time remember your place."

I left the chair in order to follow him. "Right, boss. I'll make sure to look pretty, unless I'm needed for anything more." He huffed again, then turned and stomped out the door. I followed right behind him.

FoE: Desperados, ch8, Wasteland Bureaucracy

Espresso continued to grumble as we trotted along the main road to the end of town. As promised, I kept my mouth shut, smiled, and waved. Plenty of ponies stopped to take a look at me. This was likely why the mayor was keeping calm after I showed him up. It was something I hoped that I wouldn’t regret later.

At the edge of town was a fairly large building. It looked a lot like an old Equestria barn. In front of it, peeking inside, stood Karat, the pony whose job I was doing. We trotted up to her where Espresso cleared his throat to get her attention, causing her to jump a little. "Miss Karat, good of you to wait for me, but what's so interesting that you must act so suspiciously?"

Karat took a deep breath. "Well, you know how we’re storing all the supplies for the festival inside? Well… somepony important just showed up to take a look at it."

Espresso sighed. "Well, yes. The head of Blue Skies is in there taking stock. I'm here to talk with her," he explained.

A nod came from Karat. "Oh yes, she's there, but there's another pony with her. She also has several big guards with her. It’s as if she's some rich mare from the east."

"Oh!" The mayor exclaimed as he quickly tidied up his mane and suit. "Well, it's best if I meet this mare. You two stay behind me. Let me do the talking." He gave me a quick, dagger-like glance. I said nothing about it. I just merely nodded.

Opening the door, Espresso entered with a swagger. He was flanked by both Karat and I. Inside was wall to wall crates. At the far end of us were two ponies looking in one of the crates. One of them was cloaked, and the other in a long white jacket. Both had guards with one group being larger ponies in leather armor. Each had a decorative black leather vest. The other group had what looked to be black painted scrap armor. All of them wore mirrored sunglasses on despite being in this dark barn. Several guns were pointed at us. A few drawing knives and clubs.

The magic here was thick, stale and felt off. It was also familiar in its wrongness, but I couldn't put my hoof on what. I just felt that something in here was wrong, dangerously so. Plenty of that magic came from quite a few old spark batteries that were covered in rusty cracks. The magic leaked from them was stale, twisted, and was filling up much of the room with their magic.

"Settle down, settle down. I have an appointment with Miss Quicktrot. These two are my assistants" Espresso explained as he did a quick motion to Karat and I before trotting passed the guards. The leather guards quickly relaxed. A few returned to a game of cards they were playing. As for the other group of guards in sunglasses, their heads followed us. One of them licked his lips like some hungry animal.

Espresso quickly made his way to the two mares. Both of them did not turn their attention to him.

"Madam Quicktrot,” Espresso greeted, “sorry I couldn't greet you when you return this morning, but as you know, we're both busy ponies."

I studied the mare, unsure if this was the Quicktrot I knew or not. The dangerous mare I had a brief encounter with was some sort of unicorn ghost, if I remembered correctly. Last I saw her she had somehow possesed the body of another pony that was with us at the time, then stole our only escape.

"Busy enough for you to need two secretaries," Quicktrot noted, her voice sounded an unfamiliar scratch yet husky tone. When she turned to face us, I saw the face of a tan brown earth pony mare who looked back at us. Her pale pink mane covered half her face. This was not the Quicktrot I knew, though it could still be another victim of hers. Even if it was a different Quicktrot, with how she stared at me with near pinpoint pupils, I got the clear feeling of danger from her. "You? How are…" she frowned, seemingly catching herself from saying any more of that sentence. "That’s an odd secretary." She then said with a smile that made me feel uneasy.

"As zonies tend to be, but at least she is far better educated than most of the rabble, even if she is part zeb." The mayor boosted, getting a chuckle from Karat. Quicktrot just shrugged. I wanted to correct him on the matter of what I was, but felt that's what he wanted me to do, the fucking asshat.

"Well, if the introductions are done, we can get to business," Quicktrot spoke, motioning to the open crate with her head.

Espresso shook his head. "I believe you forgot some pony. This mysterious mare is clearly important," he said, directing the attention to the cloaked mare.

There was a pause for a moment before the cloaked mare stepped up and removed her hood. She was a blue earth pony mare with a long golden mane and two stunningly green eyes. She also gave off the same feeling of magic that Star Charter did, but stronger and more imposing. "The name’s Victoria Rosary. You might have heard me on the radio."

A gasp came from Karat as Espresso gave a quick and clumsy bow. "The lustrous Victoria Rosary! I didn't expect you to show up so soon. Your room is far from ready!"

That name, Victoria Rosary, I've heard it before. It sent a chill down my spine. The ponies who raided my home and took my family as the grand prize. Her name passed their lips as somepony important, yet before me was not some violence crazed religious zealot, but a prim and proper looking lady, one that everypony here clearly held in high regard. Unsure how to respond, I felt it would be on the safe side to treat her like a noble. I gave her a proper bow. Not so low to put me below her in status, but low enough to not assume superiority over her.

Victoria quickly studied us. She spent extra time looking at my face before responding with a similar bow.

"Don't worry mayor Espresso, I'm only here very briefly,” Victoria assured. “I just wanted to see the setup for the concert coming along." She glanced at Quicktrot, who had already returned to the open crate. "Your supplier has been a great help with understanding what to expect here The fact that you will have more than enough staff to accommodate all my fans is comforting," she spoke with poise and grace that I hadn't seen a pony have here It almost made me feel a little bit like I was at home.

Awkwardly, Espresso put on a calm yet excited smile. "Well, I do hope you stick around for a little while. There's a weekly dance we have that’s tonight. I'm sure you will enjoy it since most of the more important ponies in town will be there."

"I am a busy mare. I’ve got places to be and much practice to do." She studied me. Her eyes stopped at my hat, getting a second longer glance. "But I can squeeze it into my schedule. It is fairly soon, correct?"

"In a few hours. It ends after sunset. There will also be snacks and clean water," Espresso explained.

Victoria spent a moment thinking, then nodded. "I'll have to talk with my manager, but I'm sure I'll be able to join." Karat gave off a quiet squeal, of which we all ignored.

"That's fantastic! I'll make sure everything is extra accommodating for you," The mayor joyfully acclaimed.

"If you’re done, we need to go over your budget on this," Quicktrot spoke up from the back of the barn, pointing at the open crate.

Victoria and Espresso trotted over to her, but Karat lagged behind, taking big, deep breaths, then exhaling as though she was hyperventilating in slow motion. I was still out of the loop on who this Victoria was, so I decided to quietly ask Karat. "Not to be that pony, but who is this mare? Is she royalty?"

Karat froze in mid breath. Her eyes slowly looked over to me. "Wait! You don't know?" I shook my head. "Well, she's currently one of the wastelands biggest idols. Possibly the second, second coming of Sweetie Belle!"

"Second… second?" I repeated, confused at why she said it twice.

A knowing sigh came from Karat. "Well, the last pony to be called the new Sweetie Belle was Velvet Remedy, but she also happens to be Sweetie Belle's decedent, so the talent runs in her veins. Other than one charity tour, Velvet hasn't performed much after the Sunshine and Rainbows, but her recordings do pop up on the radio quite frequently.”

“Well, a few years ago Victoria all of a sudden appeared in friendship city. She got super popular singing songs that were only remembered by ghouls. Once her songs got on the radio, her popularity skyrocketed. Wherever she goes, so does a big group of ponies. She's also been recording covers for lots of nearly lost songs, and now about half the music on the radio is from her. Isn't that wonderful?!" Karat attempted to hold back a squeal. "To have her here, it's like the best thing ever!"

Watching Karat act like some young mare felt odd, or getting excited over a famous pony like that. What did mother call it; middle-class wealth with lower-class thinking.

Then again, I was from the stable where many rich and famous ponies took shelter, so I'm likely lacking some perspective that she has.

Thinking about home reminded me of when my brother put on the king’s outfit from our vault and sang "Viva Las Pegusa" for my sisters and I. Mother was not happy. She had the royal guard captain beat his rear red for it. That reminded us that the last time some pony did that, the king’s guitar disappeared.

"Miss Harp, is everything okay?" Karat asked.

I snapped out of my reminiscing. "Oh, sorry. Got lost in… well I was thinking about home, that's all.”

“Actually, I have a friend who's a wonderful singer and is a stronger pony then I will ever be." The words just spilled out of my mouth as my eyes started to water. Forcing myself to calm, I put on a happy face. "She's going to be really surprised to see me when I get back home."

Karat slowly nodded. "Right. Well, if you need anypony to talk to about it, I know a few stallions who are good listeners." She then looked over at Victoria. A big smile returned to her face. "I wonder if I can get an autograph?"

Sighing, I was unsure if it was a good thing or not that Karat clearly didn't care, but so far I haven't gotten the impression that she'd make a good friend. At least Star seemed more genuinely friendly, though she also seemed to not be on the best terms with the authority here.

Now thinking about it, I wonder if Star and Victoria were somehow related, with how similar the feeling of their magic were.

Trotting over to the mayor and others, Karat and I finally got to see what was in the crate; ten more spark batteries. Unlike the old ones laying around the barn, these were clean, weren't leaking magic, and looked almost brand new. "Are you sure we need these, Miss Victoria?" Espresso asked, almost pleading.

"Unless you can get your hoof on and perfectly rigg a hundred of those old batteries together, then yes. I'll need this for the concert. If we go through the concert without them, the power is going to fluctuate, and drastically affecting the sound quality, causing some of the effects to delay," Victoria explained.

Quicktrot nodded. "Most spark batteries are too old to be used for more than providing power to lamp posts. Even then they barely do the job. From what Miss Victoria has told me about her concerts, you're likely to have more than a few technical difficulties if you don't go with this deal. Though I have heard about the NCR's star batteries, one of those is more than enough to power the concert and then some. Maybe you could ask them for a favor. I'm sure they would not hold it over your head."

Espresso huffed. "Not even if Luna herself came down to ask. If I give those NCR assholes another hoof step into my town, they’re going to try and take over. I just know it."

"So then, it's a deal?" Quicktrot asked, clearly jumping on the mayor's emotional outburst in an act of manipulation.

"Yes, though I'll need to increase the tax for a month or three, but they will understand that it is for the greater good of the town." Espresso said so easily, almost causing me to face hoof.

Quicktrot's eye shifted to me. A wide eerie smile formed on her face. "Oh, do you disagree, Miss Harp?"

All eyes shifted to me along with a snarl from the mayor.

"Oh, no, not at all” I answered., “My job here is to just assist the mayor."

That answer put a smug smile on the mayor's face. It annoyed me, but I kept up a friendly smile to hide my real feelings on the matter.

Quicktrot narrowed her gaze at me for a moment, then returned to the mayor. "Your staff is quite well trained. It makes me feel a little jealous."

Espresso chuckled. "Oh, you know. It’s good old fashioned wasteland grit with excellent leadership. Without me, this town would still be just some mudhole that ponies only pass through."

"That I can agree." Quicktrot nodded. "The ponies out in the wastes just need a strong leader to unify them. That's how I formed my traders caravan.”

“Now the spark batteries aside, as long as Blue Skies has exclusive vendor’s rights to the concert, I'll be more than glad to reduce the price for the building materials. Also, I want full diplomatic immunity inside our camp. I’m not saying that anything illegal goes on there, but you know how the average wastelander reacts to the law poking their noses around." Quicktrot said, quickly making demands.

"You don't need to set up your operations in the downtown, Miss Quicktrot. I can easily get the Followers evicted from the mainstreet. You can move there." Espresso offered.

Quicktrot just shook her head. "As tempting as it is, Blue Skies likes to keep an image of the everypony business, even if it does mean we have to step in the same mud as low lives."

"Not to interrupt, but may I make a request?" Victoria spoke up.

"Anything. Just ask away" Espresso cheerfully replied.

Victoria gave a soft smile before making her request. "Thank you. I was wondering if Miss Quicktrot could add fireworks to the concert. If she could get her hooves on them, that is. I have ponies who know how to work them, but our supply of them has gotten low recently."

"Fireworks . . . that’s not a common commodity out in the wasteland nowadays" Quicktrot pondered for a moment. "Actually I might. About a year back, Blue Skies came into the position of several crates that were sealed by the M.o.W.T. labeled 'Trixie's discount home defense explosives.' They worked well as flash bangs. They are very colorful and also would form the face of a pony, but ultimately did not sell. I could get my ponies to convert them into fireworks."

"Well, how we tend to use converted mortar shells for fireworks, that sounds more than perfect." Victoria agreed.

Quicktrot then looked over to Espresso with a slight but devious smile. "Don't worry, Mayor. We can come to a fair deal later. Truthfully, it will be nice to get rid of some of our junk stocks. It frees up room for more useful stock."

Espresso adjusted his tie as he gave a slight nod. "As long as it’s fair, then I'm sure we can work out a deal. As my father, Decaf, would always say, ‘A good impression is well worth its weight in caps.’ As long as this festival can bring in new and desirable residents as well as more merchant caravans, what caps spent will surely be returned."

A chuckle came from Quicktrot. "More and more, you prove me right in picking this town as our forward trading hub." She then turned and trotted over to the stack of crates with the old spark batteries on them. "Right, now that the formalities are over and done with. I'll send somepony over to your office with the necessary invoices to sign, including the one for the fireworks. There's also a work crew we've employed coming in. They are the first team that should be here tomorrow. If you can make sure some lodging is open for them, that would be really helpful."

"Oh, one last thing, Miss Quicktrot." Espresso spoke up as he trotted over to her. "Though we agree to stay out of your business, Sheriff Ashy is still bothering me about your protection, the Desperados. She is a stubborn mare. I would rather avoid causing any trouble between them. She did promise to leave them be if they keep their business with Blue Skies and with Blue Skies only. As you know, they are under suspicion of being involved with the gravediggers death, something that hit Ashy more than I would have expected."

Quicktrot looked about the room. The Desperados avoided her gaze. "Well, they are an independent contractor group. They are not my responsibility for what they do outside my employment, but I can talk with their chieftain. Maybe we can come to an arrangement."

The mayor breathed a sigh of relief. "Ahh thank you. Though Ashy has been good for the town, her brand of justice is swift, cold, and harsh. I have no doubt that she would pull something before the festival if she felt like it was needed."

"I, too, have heard about your dedicated sheriff," Victoria spoke up as she trotted past me. "Reminds me a bit of home. Nearly found myself on the wrong end of a noose once, being young and dumb and all. Maybe I should meet this Sheriff, after all, if I'm going to be performing here. It’s best to get to know the pony protecting us."

"Same here," Quicktrot agreed. "I believe if we can talk, then that might ease some of her suspicions."

This time Espresso sighed in frustration. "Unfortunately getting Ashy to stay in one place for long has been harder than to bag a bunch of cats. I might be able to get her to the dance tonight, though she's just as likely to go out on patrol with Stopped Clock."

"If that's how it is, then that's how it is," Quicktrot spoke as she lifted one of the old spark batteries, examining it. "But might as well go to your town's little dance. There should at least be a few ponies worth my time."

"Well then. If that's all there is to talk about, then I should take my leave. I've likely worried my manager enough as it is." Victoria announced as she made her way to the door out, her bodyguard following as well. “I'll be sure to join this dance. Just make sure you’re ready for me."

The door in front of her opened up on its own.. On the other side was a unicorn mare in a black frilly dress with a thin black veil over her face. Her mane was done up in two loose drills similar to how my sisters and I would style our manes when we were younger. The two mares looked at each other and nodded before Victoria passed her.

The rest of the bodyguards passed the fancy unicorn mare. None of them were looking her in the eyes.

Once they had left the room, the newcomcer gave us a very formal curtsey. "It seems that you wish for Lady Victoria to stay for the night. As her manager, I disapprove. We are quite… busy." Her head tilted on that last word, sending a slight shiver down my spine. Through the veil, I could see that her eyes were the same piercing green as Victoria’s. It made me feel very uneasy to look at them. "I'll need to make sure that the town is safe for her to stay longer than planned. It’s a simple but annoying task as it is."

"What is your name, miss?" Espresso asked.

"I am addressed as Puppet Strings," she answered while doing another curtsey. "Also, let it be known that, if I find out that anypony plots to embarrass or endanger lady Victoria in any way, there are worse fates than death." She then backed away and out of view. She moved so smoothly that it was like she was hovering. We all just watched, unsure how to react to that.

"Quaint," spoke Quicktrot who looked utterly unfazed. She then waved us off, looking annoyed. "Could you all leave as well? I need to double-check the inventory. After that, I’m off to attend to other businesses."

Espresso nodded. "Then I'll be seeing you at the dance. Until then, farewell." He then turned around and wiggled his flank out. Karat and I soon followed him. Outside, despite being hot and dry, it felt far cleaner than inside the barn. The magic in the air was fresher and more spread out.

"Alright ladies,” Espresso announced to us, “let's head back to the office. I got a few forms to fill out." Espresso then looked over as me with a smile. "And you, Miss Harp, did a good job."

"I didn't really do anything," I corrected

He nodded. "Precisely. Now, if you can keep that up, your future is going to look real bright."

I held onto my convincingly face smile. "Well thank you," I replied as I wondered how in Tartarus did this asshole get to be a mayor with how bluntly condescending he was.

"Are you sure you need me Espresso?" Karat asked. "I mean, I need to get ready for the town dance."

"Miss Karat, though I rather not hold you up, but we first must make sure that the Lady Victoria is well cared for at the dance. We must also get to work securing the budget for tonight." Espresso then looked up at the sun. "We should have enough time if we hurry."

"Hurry about what?" Asked a pudgy deputy called False Cap.

"Oh, Deputy False, you're actually the pony I wanted to see!" The smile on Espresso's face was wide and concerning. "Can you come with us to my office?”

Deputy False raided and eyebrow for a moment before nodding. "Sure. Why not? We are friends after all."

After a short trot back to the center of town, we entered the mayor's dusty office. "Alright, ladies. I need you two to find the request forums for everything to deal with the town’s dance party and any relevant papers that we can use to improve it!"

I looked at the desk, then at a nearby group of pink file cabinets, and then at Karat, who looked annoyed. I asked her. "Where should I start Karat?"

She rolled her eyes then pointed at the group of pink filing cabinets. "Look for anything listed under celebration, parties, dances, shindigs, birthdays, and that's."

"That's?" I asked as I raised my eyebrow.

Karat shrugged. "A Ministry of Moral thing. I think the cabinet came from Fillydelphia. The listing of "that's" stands for, ‘That was fun, that was bad, that was interesting, and let's never talk about that again.’ It somehow works for placing miscellaneous event forums."

I shrugged as well. "Why are all Ministry filing systems just a mess?"

"How so?" Karat asked this time.

"Ehh. Back home, we were stuck with a Ministry of Image filing system. It separated everything in order of fabulousness, something that was known to change from year to year both before the war ended and long after," I answered with a sigh. "There was also another group that was stuck with the Ministry of Wartime Technology filing system. It was more direct, but tended to needlessly add categories on top of categories."

Karat chuckled. "I think I prefer a filing system based on fabulousness."

I smiled and nodded in agreement. She seemed as fickle as that filing system.

As I dived into the file cabinets to find the relevant documents. I also watched as Espresso and False entered the mayor’s personal office.

I don't know why, but I got a bad feeling about it.

Then again, it was nothing new than how things were back home, though with a lot less groveling and threats of death disguised as honey-sweet words.

FoE: Desperados, ch9, Wasteland Bureaucracy

The flurry of barely organized paperwork that moved through my hooves was far from hard to follow, but trying to understand at least half of it was the real work.

Such things as the value of a cap, or what was or was not considered a food, or even something as simple as what was considered clean water didn't seem to have any consistency to it. A few things were consistent, such as purified water, what was considered a cap, and that one .357 round can get you one shot of whiskey or bourbon.

As for the rest, it seemed that what something was, was dictated by what the individual pony felt it should be, and then debated until both sides came to an agreement. Actually, most of the documents here seem to be made up of written and signed arguments, and not actual agreements.

With a plop, Karat dropped another stack of paper onto her desk, of which I now sat at. "Miss Harp, this is all organized by those who owe materials to the town, but have yet to pay us. You need to figure out the cap value, and get it to the mayor."

At some point we had switched places and jobs. At first it was because I was a better reading and at math than she was but, after a while, I started to feel she was not just bad at her job, but also intentionally incompetent.

Looking over the fist document on the stack, it was something about a pony needing rope to drag something called a brahmin home along with materials to fix a gate. There was an addition for the procurement of weapons to quell a braman rebel, twice.

"A lot of this has noncommittal sentences,” I noted, “and how many bullets consist of a few hoof full?" This hogshit was really starting to make me hate the wasteland.

Karat looked at the document I had open. "Oh, the Dusty Harvest family, they tend to have big hooves for such a skinny family. Just round up the numbers a little. It’s not like they would know."

I cocked an eyebrow at her. "And how many bullets is normally in a hoof full, and what kind of bullets?"

She shrugged carelessly as she said, "That's not my job."

"It is your job!" I reminded her.

Karat paused for a moment, then shook her head. "No, it's your job. My job as a superior is to manage this office." I looked about the room, seeing no other pony for her to manage, but when I looked back to Karat, she was already at the mayor's door, opening it. "Mister Espresso, looks like dear Harp had the rest covered. I'm going to get ready for the dance."

I had to almost literally hold my jaw in place as I watched her audacity. It felt worse when she closed the door with a smug smile on her face as she trotted out of the office.

With a sigh, I returned to my work. Having no good reference to anything of actual value, all I could do was just continue to write down what was owed onto a list along with names attached to them.

At least, back home, there was the potato standard for bits, with one crown bit able to get you a sack of potatoes. Not the best standard, but with the backing of my family, by word or force, it was at least more stable than this shit.

Pulling out my Enforcer revolver, it still had six .357 rounds in it, which would net me six shots of whiskey. The revolver itself was probably worth more to me than to anyone in this town. I looked at the gun, then my pipbuck, then at the cylinder of my gun…

"Order, are you still active?" I asked my pipbuck.

The fenlock mounted computer flickers for a brief moment, rapidly filling with a fast-moving wall of text. "Hello hello. Order is my name. This programming has been difficult to integrate, and my files are still resetting." The mechanical voice sounding flat, but with life to it, unlike the robot butler that it's meant to be. "You… Yes. You’re Princess Harp Melody, a descendant of princess platinum and ninth in line to-"

"Order, silence, you obtuse program. Don't just blurt that out loud!" I cut my pipbuck off with a stern whisper.

'Sorry, sorry!' It now spoke in my head. Its voice now sounding more like a gentalstalionly mister helper robot it was originally. 'Excuse my rudeness I am having trouble understanding my expanded consciousness.'

Okay, this was far weirder than I expected, but not the first time dealing with an advanced virtual intelligence. Though Order was only supposed to be a basic interface and a personality for my drone, it's programming seemed to be off now.

"Order, can you check for any damages to your programing? Also, what did you mean by integrate and expanded consciousness?" I asked ther VI.

'Diagnosis has already been run and re-run to understand my new state. All is in working order. The new programming you added from the pipbuck 2600 has allowed me to alter my own programming to freely calculate new information.” The program spoke, popping in an image of a cartoonish pony onto my E.F.S. The cartoon pony then turned into a green outline of a twittermight, which had a cute little smile on its face. ‘I am still very much ready to serve you, my master Lady Harp, as it is the purpose I was built for. Though my body is currently unable to properly function, I can still conduct my pipbuck functions of spell management, health management, note-keeping, item management, and other calculating functions.’

I was unsure how any of that could help me, but it was at least worth a shot.

"Order, can you help me understand these documents?" I requested.

A "?" formed over the cartoon twittermight. 'Unknown variables. Please place documents under pipbuck.'

I placed my pipbuck over the documents. A loading bar appeared in my E.F.S. It quickly finished before starting another page.

"What are you doing?" I asked, but got no reply. Then I remembered that its name was also a command activation. "Order, what are you doing?"

'Performing a book digitization spell.' It answered.

Next, to the cartoon twittermight popped in a green outline of a cartoon unicorn in a sweater with her mane tied up awkwardly along with thick rimmed glasses. 'Developed by the researcher M.D. of the Ministry of Arcane Science and later integrated into the core pipbuck spell matrix by pipbuck researcher J.L.B., the spell converts any written text into digital so that an older book could be read without compromising their preservation. To Stable-Tec, it proved valuable in reducing the need of copying paperwork while also giving technicians the ability to keep technical books on them all the time. Unfortunately, this program was only partially complete by the time of the mass production of the pipbuck 3000, so only later model pipbucks have the full program.’

My pipbuck then beeped. ‘I am done scanning, what should I calculate?"

That was more information than I needed. It was something I was going to need to fix, but right now I needed to solve my current problem. "Order, I need to calculate the value in bits owed in each of these documents."

Order's cartoon twittermight began flying in my E.F.S. with the words "Calculating" under it.

While it was doing its thing, I put my revolver away and made sure my notepad was ready for some writing. Then a "!?" popped up over Orders image as well as a displeased look. 'Two many unknown variables mistress. Connecting to the pipbuck network for support.'

Once more the cartoon twittermight floated in my vision, but then froze. Random letters, numbers, and symbols scrambled in my E.F.S. At first they scattered, but slowly formed an eye. It seemed to look back at me.

'You! How are… wait, what am I doing there… no… but yet there's the 2600?' The voice whispered as though from far away, yet so close to my ears. It was a voice I knew. The voice of the Qucktrot that stabbed my friend and I in the back. Her jade green eye looked at me.

The cartoon twittermight appeared again, flying over the eye. ‘Pipbucks detected, Mistress. There are three 3000 connected to a pipbuck network. One of them is a 3100 in sleep mode, and another is an active 3200. There's several more pipbucks detected, but their programming has been tampered with, so anti-virus programming has been activated to block them.'

'What, stop!' Quicktrot yell before her eye vanished from my vision.

'Mistress, ready for value results?' Order asked me, a smile on its twittermight's face.

"Yes, show me it." I told my pipbuck, putting Quicktrot's appearance in my pipbuck to the side for now.

A list then scrolled up in my E.F.S. showing the current cap value of several items with the .357 ammo being 2 caps a bullet, but a bottle of whiskey only being ten caps, so unless there were only five shots worth of whiskey in a bottle, some ponies were getting ripped off.

Next, Order gave me a list of the calculated value of each document, though most numbers had ended with a quarter cap, or one-fifth cap, all I just rounded up.

With that part of my job done, I stretched for a moment. "Order, what was that eye that appeared on my E.F.S.?" I probed to see if it knew anything about it.

'Sorry mistress. No records of it are in my memory banks or on the pipbuck network, but it seemed to be a corrupted program, so I have it blocked from my systems.' Order answered.

Sighing, I decided that it was best to leave it for another time. Let Quicktrot be a problem for later. Right now I need to talk with the mayor and earn the rest of my days pay.

Knocking on the mayor’s door, I poked my head in to see him looking over a small wall of papers. "Mayor Espresso, I've finished with the documents. It looks like we have a fair amount of caps for the dance."

"Ah, Miss Harp, show them to me. We’re cutting it close to the wire here." Espresso said as he waved me over.

I trotted in and then passed him my notes. He quickly looked them over, then cocked an eyebrow. "Are you sure this is all correct, Miss Harp? It looks a bit low."

"Well, there are a lot of estimations and uneven trades. I mean the value of a shot of whiskey is far higher than that of a bottle of the stuff." I said with an exacerbated sigh.

"How so?" He asked. I pointed out a part that listed the more common item trades and the cap value, of which he studied intently, then looked over at what the trade items are listed for each document. "Wait If it's two caps for a .357 bullet, one bullet a shot, and 25 shots in a full bottle of wild pegasus whiskey, but only 10 caps for a bottle… then… is it 25 caps?"

"The bottles are actually worth 50 caps, or the shots are five times their actual value," I answered.

A big smile formed on the mayor’s face. He then crossed out the 10 caps a bottle and replaced them with 50 caps for 25 shots of whiskey. He repeated this for seven different documents.

"There we go! Now this should help pay for the dance and then some,” Mayor Espresso declared in satisfaction. “Just need to add this to those documents and make it official with a few stamps." He then looked up at me to see a frown on my face. "What?"

"I still don't know how things work out here, but won’t this cause ponies to get violent? You are messing with their money, and I know that never ends well," I warned openly.

Espresso just chuckled. "Miss Harp, that's what the sheriff is for. Not paying your taxes or snubbing a contract is a crime. The sheriff hates criminals, and beats the shit out of those criminals, that or hangs them. Ponies don't want to get their shit kicked in or hanged, so they will avoid becoming criminals, and pay up. I collect that tax and put it back into the town. The town grows and more caps flow. Rinse and repeat. Eventually New Appleloosa will become a city, so trust me my little zony. That's how this works." Getting out of his seat, Espresso passed me the documents. "There's a metal briefcase next to the safe. Make sure these are properly secure. I need to get dressed for the dance."

With a sigh and a nod, I did as he said. I was only going to be in this town until I had the caps to go west.

Still, I did feel bad for the ponies getting cheated out of their money, though it seemed that at least out here, a pony could just leave and start a new life… maybe I could just give up on getting back home and stay here.

With a click, the documents were locked inside a very old and rusty briefcase. The thing could barely be called secure, but then everything out here seemed that way. Almost nothing in New Appleloosa could be called "new.". The best way I could describe it was that this civilization was living off the corps of old Equestria.

"Alright Miss Harp. Would you escort me to the dance?" Espresso trotted back in, wearing a suit that looked stylish compared to the rest of the ponies out here. He quickly looked me over. "But that jacket and hat need to stay here."

I hadn’t really planned to go to this dance, but then again it would be a good idea to get to know the more important ponies in town.

So, with a shrug, I passed him the briefcase and, along with my saddlebag, I placed my hat and jacket onto his desk. I made sure that my revolver didn't poke out.

"Are you sure it's a good Idea for me to come with you?" I asked, probing his mindset.

Espresso chuckled. "A cute young mare like you? How is it not a good idea to bring you along?" He took a closer look at me. "So . . . you got a bit of unicorn in you as well. I thought you were some half pegasus, zony. Well, at least that will make your unfortunate heritage a little less unfortunate."

His blatant bigoted statement had not come to me as a surprise, though his lack of tack about it did make me wish some pony would accidentally drop a piano on his head. At least, back home, they hid their bigoted ideas behind fake kindness.

'Oh lady Harp, it must be so hard for you, being so different from your family. Lady Harp, don't slouch, or you will be mistaken as one of the servants, and non pony wants that.’ I thought to myself.

Nope, Espresso is all 'they’re monsters, those ponies are bad, and oh, your at least part unicorn, that's good at least'.

I was unsure his stupid bluntness was refreshing or downright sad.

Left in just my red dress, I followed the mayor to a fenced-off courtyard that was along the edge of town. It nestled between two tall residential houses. The mayor explained that this part of town was made with weather ponies in mind. Although it was mostly empty right now, it will be used to house important guests for the festival.

"And if we're real lucky,” Espresso said with a grin, “some of those ponies will decide to stay. I got a few of my friends from Tenpony Tower to visit for the festival just to make sure everything is up to their standards. After that that upstart security chief will regret kicking me out of the tower.”

"Wait! There's a Tenpony Tower here too?" I was kind of surprised, though with how the tower back home was nearly indestructible, it made sense that its sister tower was still around.

"What do you mean by ‘too’, Miss Harp?" Espresso asked.

"Oh, well back home there's a Tenpony Tower, Stable-Tec built it over stable 50, my home," I explained.

That seemed to get a knowing nod from Espresso, as though he slowly came to an understanding. "Well, that explains why you're so much more well behaved than most of the wasteland rabble. Can't have the staff acting like brutes."

That understanding he came to was, unfortunately, not that far off the mark. But if I had any authority here, I would have guard ponies beat some sense into him. I hid my disgust for him as I turned my attention to the dance that was currently going on.

Compared to what I was used to, this little party looked… quaint. There was a small band playing instruments that seemed to be barely holding together. The dance floor was just planks of wood pressed tightly together, and everypony just had less dusty, less patched up clothes. At least the mares had dresses on. The stallions opted to only put on a jacket and hat, leaving their bare backside to the wind. I was starting to get used to it mainly because everypony in this town acted so casually about it, but I could honestly say that I've seen more flanks in a day than in my entire life.

"Ahhh, Mayor Espresso, you've finally arrived, and with the very lovely Harp." Deputy False called out to us. He was still in his messy deputy uniform. Trotting over to us, I could tell he had recently added a new stain to his uniform. "Before you ask, yes, I got the extra staff, even some extra entertainment in case some of our guests decide to stay the night. I also got a few ponies from the Ruffled Feathers to join, though they don't come cheap."

"Thankfully we got more than enough to cover the expenses!" Espresso exclaimed as he passed the metal briefcase to Fals Cap. "Turns out Harp here is quite good at finding inconsistencies, so the budget is going to be nice and fat next month.”

A big grin formed on False Caps face. "I'll be sure to get some of the other deputies on it tomorrow. I know they will be happy to hear that they will be getting their bonuses.”

His eyes then shifted off into the distance. “Now I hate to leave so soon after you just got here, but I got work to take care of. It seems that some of the quarry workers on the other side of the track had a bit too much to drink. They caused enough of a commotion that some of those wastelanders are actually asking us to do something about it. I just wish they would stop making my job so hard and let me have it easy for once."

"Well if everything goes well with the festival, Ashy's compound idea might actually get approved," Espresso said with a laugh.

False also laughed. "If that happened, you’re going to have to change Ashy's title to ‘General Ashy Oaks.’"

"If she's the General, then I'll be the president," Espresso said with a smug chuckle that made me a bit uncomfortable.

With a hoof bump, False finally left, and we joined the town dance.

The ponies at the dance were mostly mingling with only a few actually dancing. One of them being Karat and some stallion. Any pony doing neither were at an outdoor bar.

The mayor was quickly greeted by some older ponies in the nicest looking outfits I had seen yet, though still clearly from the great war.

Not that I'm one to complain. My dress is a Rarity original ballistic weave cocktail dress. A bit heavier than normal clothes, but can stop most small round ammunition.

"Hello, Miss. You must be that stable pony that everyponys talking about," an older earth pony stallion greeted me who was wearing a very worn out cowpony hat. "It seems this town has a strange fate with stable ponies. Let's just hope it's doesn't repeat itself."

It took me a short moment to remember what he was referring to, though I was unsure what he was getting at. "You're talking about that Lightbringer the upcoming festival is about. Wouldn't it be a good thing for another hero to show up?”

“Oh, the name’s Harp Melody." I greeted the stallion.

"Railright, merriff… well former mariff," he answered.

I raised an eyebrow at what a marr… "Wait, mayor...sheriff? So does that mean you used to run this town?" I asked, trying not to assume.

Railright nodded. "It was more that the town’s ponies came to me when needing to have any issues to resolve, or I stepped in when the town needed leadership, though that was back when this town was far smaller. We also had more walls than guns at the time."

He then looked around and sighed. "But times have changed, and that little mare triggered a lot of those changes. Unfortunately, back then, I couldn't see it, thought her antics were just stirring up a blotespright nest of trouble, which had led to her being banned from the town.”

“Now she was trouble, but the good kind of trouble. Because of her, this town was able to grow past its old walls." he finished explaining with a sigh.

He had a kind, yet tired feel about him, reminding me a little bit of my father. He also seemed far from what the current mayor and sheriff were. "So if the towns got you around, why's Espresso in charge?" I asked with a whisper.

Railright gave me a friendly chuckle, but I could tell it sounded sad. "Well I had banned the Lightbringer from town because she had challenged the slavers. Even if I did eventually lift the ban, most ponies don't read that far into the Lightbringer’s book. They still thought she was banned up until I retired. Espresso and Ashy were what the town needed to fix our bad reputation. Now, with the Lightbringer festival being held here, it feels like we're finally being forgiven for our sins."

"So by wanting fate to not repeat, you're just hoping I don't get into any shenanigans, and then get banned from town?" I had to ask.

This time Railright gave me a genuine smile. "Not exactly, but that's close enough.”

“Here, let me get you a drink," he offered, then trotted over to the bar. I followed.

At the bar sat an older green unicorn mare with a deep red mane, a bottle of wild pegasus whiskey which sat half-full next to a glass. She looked far from enjoying herself.

Behind the bar was a pegasus that had to be around my age. Her mane reminded me of clouds. She also had a white nightgown on with white panties and stockings. She was both wearing more clothes than most ponies here, and seemingly underdressed for the occasion.

"Miss Cloudy Sunrise, could you get me and this young mare a Sparkle-Cola and rum?" Railright asked the bartender.

"Sure thing," the pegasus mare said with a wink before pouring us a drink each.

Taking the drink, Railright looked over at the other mare at the bar. "Miss Percussion Cap, that's a whole lot of whiskey for one mare. Need any help?"

The red-maned mare looked over at us with a slight snarl as she said, "Unless you can get me a new spark battery, I rather not be bothered right now."

Railright sighed. "Maybe I'll ask the mayor if he can help you out."

Looking over at the mare, I saw what might be the problem. Under her were two crude-looking cyberlegs. They seemed welded together from a scrapyard. The power coming from the legs was very faint. It was far from being effective enough to move the legs more than a baby step pace.

"If you could, I would appreciate it," Percussion Cap said with a huff before returning her attention to her whiskey.

`I sipped my own drink while looking back to see the mayor still mingling, this time with an even bigger crowd of ponies.

"How about I talk to him first?” I offered. “I did come here with him."

Without waiting for an answer, I got up from the bar. My pipbuck levitated my drink as I trotted over to the mayor. Along the way, a cold shiver ran down my spine as I made eye contact with Quicktrot. She talked with the mayor as she watched me like some sort of predator. I did my best to ignore it. Upon arrival, I politely curtsied to the crowd as I said "Good evening everypony. I'm Harp Melody."

"Isn't she a doll?" Espresso boosted like a fool. "This wiz kid got a real future here. She knows her way around a document like those egg heads up in Tenpony Tower."

There were some quiet cheers. One pony said, "Not bad for a zony." It all was condescending and smug, making me feel right at home, though far dustier and dumber than I was accustomed to.

'Hack detected and blocked.' my pipbuck reported in my head. I glanced at Quicktrot to see her squint at me before looking away. Still not enough to be sure, I would need to talk to her alone and see if she would properly reveal herself or if Slowtrot knows anything. At least I knew that my pipbuck was safe from her. For now, at least.

"Mayor Espresso, if I could ask you something?" I spoke quietly, just enough that the others could not easily hear me. He responded by bringing an ear closer. "There's a mare at the bar, a Miss Percussion Cap. She's in need of a spark battery. Is there any way we can help her?"

Espresso rolled his eyes as he replied, "Right. I almost forgot she was still here. I much prefer she just drag her metal legs home before the sheriff catches wind. The last we need is a near shootout right before the festival."

"There’s bad blood between them?" I asked.

A nod came from the mayor. "She's a former Red Eye bounty hunter and a real nasty one at that. I think the only reason why nopony has tried to drag her to a courthouse is that her mother and grandmother were some sort of big heroes long ago. That, and she owns the biggest corn farm in Equestria. So, if there's anypony who would try to bring justice to Miss Percussion Cap, it would be Ashy."

"Then maybe helping her leave would be the best course of action," I suggested.

Espresso paused for a moment in thought before nodding again. “She's got the caps, that's for sure, but the problem is that all our stock is going to be needed soon." He pushed again, then his eyes widened as his gaze slowly turned to Quicktrot. "Oh, Miss Quicktrot, it turns out it's a real turn of fortune that you’re here. We have a mare by the bar who is in need of some spark batteries. She's quite rich, so you're sure to turn a profit."

Quicktrot chuckled to herself. "And here I was planning to relax, but why not," she said with an amused tone. Looking over and passed us, she glanced at the bar. The look on her face turned from amusement, to shock, to anger, then back to a more fake amusement. "I think I'll talk to her later. No need to be on business all the time. Also, miss robo legs will likely need more than one spark battery, something I might not have on hoof." The last sentence had a clear venom tone to it. For the briefest of moments, I was sure her eye turned jade when she called her 'robo legs'

"Well let's not dwell on unfortunate things Instead, let’s get back to what's important, having fun." Espresso interjected. "Any word on our super special guest?"

"Soon." Puppet Strings spoke up from behind us, seemingly having appeared out of nowhere which caused us to almost jump into the air. Next to her was a young unicorn mare with dark sunglasses on despite it getting dark, just like the bodyguards from before. "I'm just going to make sure that it's safe before letting her come out. Also, how much food do you have available? Lady Victoria's practice left her quite... famished."

We all paused for a moment, Espresso being first to answer. "Oh, worry not about the food. I made sure we have extra on hoof. Is there anything else you need?"

Puppet Strings looked about the area. Her eyes stopped at the band. She let out one mocking laugh, then asked, "Got better musicians?"

Espresso let out a nervous chuckle. "Sorry. We used to have a good guitarist in town, but he moved to Dice a year back. Those two are all we got until the festival starts."

"Shame. Victoria was planning to give the town a sample." The overly dressed unicorn said flatly.

"Oh, how unfortunate!" Quicktrot said with a dramatic flair. "Too bad there's nobody here whose name and cutie-mark are both instruments." Eyes then fell onto me. "Isn't that right Harp Melody?"

"You know that one's name and cutie-mark does not always reflect on a ponies talent. Sometimes it's just symbolic," I replied, trying to deflect. "But I do have classical training in string instruments such as lyre and harps."

Puppet Strings smiled, though her eyes didn't. "Good. Is there a private room?"

"Yes, we have a space behind the stage that's curtained off." Espresso informed Puppet strings.

"That will do. Send her over when she's free." Puppet Strings then turned and trotted off to the back stage.

"I'm not sure about this," I announced my worry,

Espresso leaned in close. "Don't ruin this for us. If you say you can do it, then do it," he whispered with a serious tone. "A zony like you can easily find themselves on the other side of the tracks."

A chuckle then came from Quicktrot. Her eyes said she was planning something. "I wouldn't worry all that much. it's not like this Victoria is some sort of raider. I bet she'll see something great about you. you do have the grace of a princess. That’s not something all that common anymore."

Right. This is definitely the Quicktrot that left my friend and I to die inside a decaying stable. She must also know something about Victoria, more than I do at least. And she must be plotting something, but what?

That all aside, it's clear that Quicktrot had the mayor wrapped around her hoof. I'm fucked if she so chooses to take me out.

As for Victoria, I was still unsure how dangerous she is, but the town seemed to be dead set on pleasing her. Denying her would be like denying Princess Celestia. It’s not something I wanted to even imagine trying.

"Alright, I'll go, but I better get paid extra for this," I huffed.

"Paid?" Espresso said in a way that puts me on edge. He then relaxed with a chuckle. "Oh, sorry. I must not have properly explained it to you. Silly me. You're currently a, what you called? Right, an intern. Something like an apprentice where your job is to show you can do the job, then we can figure out if we should take you on. Right now you're on five stars. You’re really impressive." That last part he said with a wink. "For zony, I'm really surprised."

I… I was stunned, but held my composure, even putting on a fake chuckle. "Mayor Espresso, you're such a joker," I said, trying to not sound as displeased as I was.

He laughed as well. "Well, I do have a great sense of humor, as everypony knows. It's just too bad that, until the end of the festival, we’re on a tight budget, though housing will be available, as promised. Now it's probably best if you go meet Victoria. Show her what this town has to offer." He didn't show any sign of worry or sign of trying to cover up what he was saying. Nothing to indicate that he was trying to get away with cheating me.

Then again, my only job was to look pretty. Everything else was just a bonus for him.

"She could always do some work for me," Quicktrot spoke up, a sinister grin on her face. "If she is as good as you say, her assistance would be seen as a favorable donation from the town."

"That's not a bad idea," Espresso said with a chuckle.

I turned and trotted to the backstage, not wanting to hear where that conversation was going. I didn't trust Quicktrot. I did not trust the mayor either, but I trusted that both would stab me in the back if I let them.

It was a short trot to the back stage. I passed the two musicians that were playing a reasonably alright tune. The backroom was mostly empty with the exception of Puppet Strings and another unicorn mare at the entrance. The manager studied me for several seconds, then nodded. "You at least look the part. That dress is clearly made of quality materials and not the mass processed cloth from the war. Now we can go somewhere more private."

I looked around the area. It was as private as we could get. "I think I rather…" I felt a hoof on my flank. After that everything felt like it tipped backwards. The world becomes streaked with lights for a few seconds. It all came to an abrupt stop. The little of the Sparkle-Rum I had decided to come out onto the floor. "What was that?" I wheezed, finding myself in a dark room.

"Slip teleportation." Victoria's voice whispered in my ear as I felt a body lay itself onto my back with a hoof gently moving under my chin. "My, you are adorable, and very much out of place." Victoria continued to speak into my ear as she used her wait to hold me down. "Now Princess Harp, the descent of princess Platinum. Yes I know who ya are, but do ya know who I am?"

"Bight me monster," I snarled at her.

"A… very poor choice of words." Victoria then whistled. The lights turned on. I saw two mares in collars and chained to a wall with a muzzle over their mouths. Worse yet, they both had a sickly looking green eyes that were bleeding. The looks they gave me were that of a starving predator. "Excuse my new recruits. They are in the process of being broken down." One of them was drooling as she stared intently at me. "Now answer my question."

Taking a deep breath, I calmed myself. I figured that my situation was not going to improve by acting irrationally. "You’re somepony important to the pirate fleet. A missionary, I think. That's all I know," I told her.

With her hoof under my chin, she pulled my head back. I could see her green eyes look back at me. Her intense glare made me feel small. "And what happened to my crew? What do you know about them?"

"I don't know," I responded.

"Liar," she retorted. "I know some of my crew took you as a hostage on my ship. It was the last proper report I got from Carving Doll. Now tell me what you know!"

That got a chuckle from me. "Eye for an eye. Your crew killed my family, and my friend must have killed yours."

Victoria let me go and sat next to me. "That mare that Blackspot inducted into the crew, yes. She seemed stronger spirit than most." She began tapping her hoof on the cold concrete floor. "Was it a trap. If so, then the admiral must have been behind it. She never liked me. Fucking Blackspot must have fallen for it." She then looked down at me. "Your too soft for such a job, I can tell. It would be all too easy to turn you into a cowering mess. Now I have one last question."

I got up, dusting myself off while wishing I had my gun. "What is it?"

She smiled widened. There was a hunger in her eyes. "Do you know a stallion by the name Slowtrot? He was with that friend of yours. That jacket you had was the same as his?"

Something about her question didn't sound like she was looking for an old friend, or even out of curiosity. I wasn't even sure how she even knew him. All I did knew was that I was not going to just sell him out, so I put my best diplomatic face on, prayed to Celestia, and hoped I could talk my way out of this.

"Sorry, but I don't know anypony by that name. Now can you send me back? I'm sure everyone will start to worry soon." I said as flatly as possible.

Victoria stared at me for a moment. I held firm against her probing eyes. She eventually relented, saying. "Alright, you can go, but trust me when I say this; if you speak one word of this, I'll make sure that some raider warlord out in nowhere Equestria will be having royal foals with you until you die." I could feel a cold shiver down my spine as she glared at me. I knew she was dead serious, so I nodded. "Good. Now, let’s head back to that heathen filled town. I got a reputation to uphold."

I watched as a unicorn trotted from behind us. She lowered her overglowing horn at us. In the next moment, the same feeling of falling backwards along with blurring lights happened before we were back in the backstage of the dance. Puppet Strings was standing not far off. She held a lyre in her magic, of which she then shoved the instrument into my hooves.

"She will be providing you with the instrumentals," Puppet Strings said to Victoria, then glared at me. "Do not embarrass my lady!"

A chuckle came from Victoria. "Oh, so you’re a musician. They've been harder to find in this goddesses forsaken land then a raider who baths. Harder still to add to my crew with how easy they break. Play well, then maybe you can join me. Wouldn't that be fun... princess?"

Puppet Strings gasped "Lady Victoria, you can't be-"

She was cut off by Victoria raising her hoof. "You may be in charge of recruitment, but I still have the final say.”

“Now let's charm this crowded" Victoria put on a remarkably believable smile as she trotted out to the stage. Several cheers could be heard along with one very loud Karat.

I looked down at the instrument, and then at my pipbuck. Both were tools, and so was I. The mayor just wanted some pretty and exotic mare to stand around him. As for Quicktrot, I don't know what she has planned, and I don't want to know. And now Victoria, a monster who's making more monsters. Maybe it was a mistake for me to have been born.

"Are you going to just sit there, or are you going to do something?" Puppet Strings chastised me. "Get up and get out before I make you do it!"

"Right. Nothing new about that. If I don't do something, somepony will make me do it," I huffed as I got up. Looking at Puppet, she had all the elegance of a royal body double. It was close to a real royal, but I could see how fake she was. She was acting the role of noble-born, but only being nothing more than a parody. It actually angered me. The audacity of this savage acting as though she was better than me! If Vibraphone was here, she'd put a bullet between her eyes!

"You know what, Miss Puppet,” I declare, “I forgot something very important."

She rolled her eyes. "It can wait. Now get out there."

With a sigh, I pushed the lyre into her chest. "I remembered that I'm better than this. Any of this, so I'm not doing it. I'll keep my promise to keep my lips shut, but passed that, you pirates can fuck right off." Turning, I trotted out the back, returning to the dance party.

Eyes were on me, but I didn't care, I didn't need them to get back home. This town could shove it for all I care. Ahead of me was a quickly growing annoyed Espresso. Next to him was the Sheriff Ashy who was talking to Quicktrot. She was eyeing me with bemused curiosity.

"What are you doing?" Espresso growled at me.

I responded by taking a nearby glass of whatever and tossing the liquid in his face. "Quitting, that's what!" I told him as I trotted passed.

Making my way to the bar, I gathered the surrounding magic into myself. I found the mare, Percussion Cap, still there, talking with Railright. Feeling where the power source for her cyberlegs was, I poured what magic I had just gathered into it. It wasn't going to be much, but it should help her move about for a few hours to maybe a day.

"Looks like a pony named Quicktrot might be able to help you, but personally I rather put a bullet in that bitch head then do business with her,” I told Percussion. “My own opinion, and sorry for causing a scene."

I then trotted off, getting as far from the dance as possible while ignoring anything said from the ponies there.

The streets had mostly cleared out as I made my way to the mayor's office. Luckily, his doors were left unlocked. Not wanting to stick around, I collected my things; hat, jacket, and saddlebags… opening one of the bags, I pulled out the NCR document of missing mares. I found two photos looking a lot like the two mares that Victoria had chained up.

I left the document on the mayor's desk and left the office, unsure what my next move should be.

FoE: Desperados, ch10, Never Say Things Can't Get Worse.

Bridget and Light Step had curled up on one of the medical beds. A thin blanket was gently draped over the two of them. They had spent much of the day running around playing with the other foals. Now they were out of energy.

“Was I ever this energetic?” I mumbled to myself.

“Worse.” Prism quietly chuckled. “But you were also surrounded by a lot of nasty ponies by the time I found you.”

“You two never did tell me how you became a family.” Jali noted as she slowly packed up her medical supplies. “I get Prism. There were just as many unicorns that gave themselves to the goddess as they were those taken, as strange as it sounds. But you, Miss Star Charter; when we first met, you seemed far too independent, too ready to fight, like a raider, but you were also too educated to be a raider.”

Prism began helping Jali pack up, as she said “Maybe later, but not while the foals are here. You know how wasteland stories are,” Mom quietly explained.

Jali smiled, causing the exposed mussels on her cheek to stretch. “I understand. Back at the main camp, Velevent banned any wasteland stories from being shared. It seems that even the more tame stories would cause ministry mare Fluttershy to faint.” A long sigh came from the ancient ghoul. "Long has this land not been the magical paradise my mother once told stories about. She was always sad about leaving Equestria behind when the war started. She also always feared what happened to my grandfather who stayed behind to work with the free doctors guild.”

I chuckled a little. “It’s funny that the softest of the ministry mares is also the one who survived the worst of everything.”

Another sigh came from Jali. “Yes, and she still cries herself to sleep over it, half blaming herself, half missing her friends. It’s a painful reminder to us all how our good intentions can cause the deepest of wounds.” There was a momentary pause before Jali shut her bag. “Well it’s getting late. I should return to the camp with the other ghouls. Ditzy is leaving in the morning. I still haven't gotten my order of glow water.” She eyes Prism. “You should order some glow water as well. You may last longer than us ghouls without radiation, but there's a limit to everything.”

Prism lifted up a hoof and looked at the scars on her fetlock. “I know that more than any pony else Jali, but as long as I don’t use my magic much, I’ll be fine until Ditzy returns.”

“If that’s how you feel, then I won’t push it.” The Zebra Ghoul placed the medical bag onto her back. “Still, I implore that you join the followers properly. You should reconnect with your sisters. They are worried about you.”

A slight smile formed on Prism’s face as she looked over to Bridget. “I’m fine where I am, with my family. I have no interest in joining their attempts at breeding. I’ve already been there and failed. What I have here is more important, and will always be to me.”

Jali shrugged. “I get that, and truthfully, don’t know why they want to make more alicorns. It’s not like they were born that way.” She trotted to the door. “See you in the morning. Please don’t go firing any more guns inside the clinic.”

Prism gave me a, 'that means you' look,' so I defended myself by saying, "Alright! I'll stop leaving a bullet in the chamber, but trust me, you never know when you don't have time to cock a gun."

"Let’s just hope that we will never need to fire a gun that fast," Prism said with a sigh, then smiled while motioning her head to tell me to look down.

At my hooves was the colt Copper Wire. He was holding a strange bundle of worn-out tech. "It's a signal booster, Aunty Star. Since the followers don't want you to use their radio anymore, I thought we can just make our own radio."

I ruffled the sweet colts head. I felt very proud that he would do this. This also made me sad because this was yet another reminder to me that he barely got enough attention from his mother.

"That's a brilliant idea,” I commended him. “In fact, it’s so brilliant I'm in awe of how smart you are. I mean, if you can make your own radio thingy, then maybe you can be the next DJpon3. I wonder if Roger Roger is willing to help."

Copper puffed part of his mane out of his face. "Roger thinks I can't do it."

I flashed him a grin. "I guess you just have to prove him wrong then."

He clearly took a moment to think about it before nodding. "I bet he’s going to be so jelly when I have my own radio broadcaster. He’ll still be stuck just looking at the follower’s broadcaster." Copper practically skipped as he rushed out the door.

"Aren't you going to escort him?" Prism grumbled at me.

"Right,” I realized with a roll of my eyes. “He's still a little colt." I breathed as I made my way out.

He hadn't made it far. It was easy to catch up to him. In fact, too easy since he was looking around an alley and not running home at full speed. "Copper, what-"

"Shhh! That sleeping mares is there. I think she's crying," Copper whispered.

Poking my head around the corner, I noticed that there she was. She was the short pink zony… or mirage pony as she had called herself. Harp Melody did indeed look like she was crying, but she was clearly trying to hold it in, even though she was by herself.

"Copper, can you stay put?” I requested. “I'm going to take you home, but first I should talk with her. Okay?" He nodded. After that, I slowly made my way to her.

Harp sniffled as I sat down with her. She hid her face. "What?" Was all she said.

"Need me to break the mayor's nose?" I asked, hoping nothing so serious was not needed.

She paused, slowly turning her head to look at me with eyes wide open. It took her a moment before she blinked, and shook her head. "No, I don't need you to do that… though he probably does deserve it."

That got a chuckle out of me. "That stallion is quite the sleazeball. I think it's why the NCR only sends their rangers down here. They are far more expensive to bribe than your standard soldier, with most rangers being former talons. From what Hardballer has told me, it's not that talons are above bribery, it's that they are skilled at taking you for every cap they can squeeze out of you if you don’t make it a contract."

"Takes a cheat to beat a cheat," she said, putting on a small smile.

"Yep, that's how the wasteland is. It’s where you're either the big fish, or you're the big fish’s dinner. That or you get good at dogging big fish." Getting up, I offered her my hoof. "Now why don't you trot with me and tell me what happened?"

She nodded. We made our way to Copper. "As you know, the mayor took me on to help him, but it turned out that all he wanted was a young mare to stand next to him." Harp gave a frustrated chuckle as she rolled her eyes. "Worse, he wasn't planning on paying me for all the work I did, and I had probably just helped him cheat other ponies out of a few hundred bits… no cap. A few hundred caps. As a result, I announced my quitting by throwing a drink in his face at the dance party."

I winced, knowing how badly the mayor took insults. “Ya, that will definitely put you in a bad spot in his book. That asshole loves to hold his grudges, so getting back on his good side would require a lot of work.”

Harp nodded and sighed. "I also met Quicktrot, the head of that merchant group Blue Skies. I don’t know where to begin with her, but it seems that she's supplying the town with everything it needs for the festival, and I know for a fact that she's not a pony you can trust. Not unless you trust her to stick a knife in your back. Then I met Victoria…"

"You met Victoria!" I exclaimed as I grabbed her. "Where is she? How is she doing? Can you take me…" I stopped, and let her go since I saw Harp flinch, almost cowering away. "Sorry. You can say I'm a big fan. I would love to see her, and find out what she's been doing."

"I don't think you…" she stopped herself and looked away.

Looking around subtly on the nearly empty street, I saw a pony in tinted sunglasses, even though it was dark now. Looking back at Harp, though she was still, I could tell something had her scared.

Copper trotted in front of us, looking a bit confused. "Say, Auntie Star, didn't you say you know…" I stopped on the ground a little extra hard to get him to shut up. I couldn't be sure, but if mentioning Victoria has her shaken up, then she might know something bad about her. If Prism was right, then she could still be the Victoria I knew eleven years ago, which could be a very bad thing.

"How about we change topics? Like how did you get that robot to move? No matter what Roger or Copper did, it refused to respond."

"Ya. It's batteries are too small and systems too power-hungry for it to work right," Copper added.

"It's mirage pony tech." Harp answered, looking a bit more relaxed with the change of topic. "Let’s just say that it requires Mirage Pony magic to function properly."

"That's no fair, locking tech to a race," Copper wined. "That's just like the steel assholes."

"The what?" Harp asked, raising an eyebrow.

"The steel rangers. They are assholes in power armor that hoard any tech they find. They think we’re too dumb to use it without killing ourselves," Copper explained.

"Yep," I added. "They are some remnant of the equestrian military. I met a few in the wastes years back. Luckily I'm low tech and Mom can turn invisible, so they mostly just ignored me because, you know, a lown filly in the wasteland, just walking by. I even stopped to see if one could spare me some water. They told me to go bang rocks together somewhere else. So ya, assholes."

"I see. Then I probably should avoid them," Harp mumbled to herself.

"Them, and about almost every group out in the wasteland," I warned with a chuckle. "Even with the radiation clearing up, ponies are still finding reasons to be assholes to each other. I've heard that they aren’t as bad as it once was, so there's that, at least."

Harp looked up at the sky and sighed. "It would be nice if there was some kind of megaspell that just fixed everything, but until then I'll take being able to trot outside without a gas mask on."

She seemed to have relaxed, so I turned my attention to where we were going. We are passing by the train station first… at which we found Slowtrot sitting on a bench, looking at his pipbuck. The three of us watched him for a moment before I spoke up. "So, ya quit, or did ya get fired?" The other two turned to stare at me like I was the asshole. Maybe I was. Such is life.

Slowtrot slowly scratched at his goatee before answering. "Well, I haven't been officially fired yet, but I don't feel like I will do me any good to go back and ask them, so probably both."

Well, at least this will be easier to deal with then Harp's problem. "Ohh, tough break, and with the general store too. Then again, only Heavy Hoof can stand Karat. At least you're not alone in this. I knew a few ponies that were not a good match for their first job. Seconds times a charm, as ponies say."

"Three, actually," Slowtrot said with a shrug. "Quacksalver, Spot Weld, and then I worked at Heavy Hoof's store. Worked for all three today. It didn't end well."

That caused me to pause as I tried to process what he just said. "Wait, are you telling me that you managed not just get hired and fired from one job in a day, which mind you, is not rare in the wasteland, but you did it with three jobs?"

Slowtrot nodded.

I face hoofed harder than I had done in my life. Well, at least he hadn't gotten the eye of a dangerous pony on him or pissed off the mayor, so his situation could be fixed at least.

"Well it can't be that bad. I mean, you didn't shoot no pony." I asked.

"No. Nopony died," he confirmed, and I sighed in relief. "But, because of my pipbuck, I gave unsolicited medical advice that made doctor Quacksalver upset. Then, with Spot Weld, I accidentally caused the A of the town's welcome sign to fall over. Nothing bad happened at the general store, though when Karat showed up, she accidentally hurt herself. When doing a medical scan on her, I found out something she rather others did not know."

"Medical scan?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, you have that installed in your pipbuck? Back home, only licensed ponies can have that spell program. Privacy issues and all that," Harp added before grinning. "What was wrong with Karat?"

"Wait wait!" I interrupted. "As much as I like to have dirt on the bitch…" I face hoofed again. "Ya know, I don't think it matters. From the sounds of it, you both somehow completely screwed yourselves in town in less than a day.” I sighed, then said, “Here. I know a place you might be able to get some work. They're not so wound up in the politics of the town, but let's drop off Copper first."

The two stable ponies looked down at their hooves as they began following me. I was not sure it was out of shame or just the sense of failure, but they will get over it. Unlike the other wastelanders here in town, they were still healthy, had no obligation to stay in town, and those pipbucks tend to give them a leg up on other ponies.

Then again, with those pipbucks and their lack of knowledge of how the wasteland works, it made them good targets for any pony with bad intentions. From what I heard, even if they were under the protection of the NCR, a lot of stable ponies went missing in the first years after sunshine and rainbows. At least here in town they can get their hard lessons with some semblance of safety. The one good thing I can say about Ashy, she is able to keep the worst of the wasteland out.

We turned to trot through the slums bazaar. The shops were now closed. The beggars had finally gone home, but the whores and drug dealers were still about. It only took a few glances from me to cause them to look the other way. They knew that, as long as they didn’t bother me or those with me, they don’t have to lose a tooth. There were a few other shady ponies lurking about while eyeing the two stable ponies, likely plotting on robbing them if given the opportunity. If they managed that, then they would likely spend their ill-gotten caps on drugs and booze.

Passing the bazaar, we trotted into the part of town that had several lines of train carts stacked on top of each other Some were stacked three high, but most were just two carts high.

“Welcome to Old New Appaloosa. Copper, remember to lock your door. I’ll make sure your mother goes straight home after work.” I told the Colt.

“No boozing?” he asked as he looked away.

“Ya, No boozing. Now go get some sleep. I don’t want you to be late for school tomorrow,” I told him. He dragged his hooves off to one of the carts. I waited until I heard a thud and a click before relaxing.

“Do ponies really live like this?” Slowtrot asked, his face looking utterly bewildered.

“This would be considered middle class living back home for me,” Harp said with a sigh. “Back home, we all have to live underground, so most of the stations were quite cramped. The worst was a station called Charon's Stop. It was basically the only place you can go if you have nowhere to go.”

Slowtrot looked over at Harp, a bit more bewildered. “That’s horrible! I don’t know how anypony can stand to live like that.”

She shrugged “They live like that because they must, otherwise they’d die. Many did die anyways. It’s not like they have anywhere to go.”

“until recently, we had thought we were alone in the world. We thought that we were the only survivors,” Harp explained. “Some lived better, but most didn’t. That’s just how things were.”

“And still is,” I chimed in. “Now, if we just stand here and chat, we are bound to piss sompony off that’s trying to get some sleep, so follow me.”

We turned to trot to the outskirts, leaving the old part of town behind.

“Miss Star, do you live there as well?” Slowtrot asked.

"My mother and I did it for a while," I answered. "We were not too concerned with living standards at the time, but when my daughter was coming, we decided it might be best to move away from this part of town. Thanks to the Followers and the Gunrunners, we were able to move to a less run-down part of town." I pointed down at the other end of town, still on this side of the tracks. "There's several shacks that were built early in the town’s expansion when they were tearing down the walls for building materials. It's safe, but the rent does leave us light on caps."

A huff came from Slowtrot, who now seemed less uncomfortable with trotting through the slums of the town. "Almost forgot that rent was going to be a thing. Please don't tell me that the landlords raise rates every year like they did during the war. Though it’s hard to blame them now considering how everypony was trying to buy their way into a stable, and now seeing how Equestria turned out outside of the stable."

"Ya. That's a problem here too since proper building materials are hard to come by. Functional homes just get more expensive as more ponies come to town," I explained, a bit shocked that a pony from two hundred years back would have had some of the same problems as I have now.

Then again, I’ve never seen a pony get. and then lose three jobs in a day, so he may be a “special” case.

I then looked at Harp, who looked far more properly paranoid than Slowtrot. It could have been her scare with Victoria, or she actually knew how dangerous this part of town could be.

"Say Harp,” I began to her, “what was the rent like in your underground? It must have been crazy with how little space there must have been."

"I don't know. My family owned most of it," she blurted out before freezing. "I mean, we managed most of it, but I did have any involvement in the finances."

I grinned at her. "Oh, it looks like we have a landlord's little princess. Must have been fun not worrying about such things as rent while having plenty of food and a cozy bed."

She looked away from me. "Well ya, I guess I was lucky for all that." Her voice cracked a little.

Right. She's a fragile pony right now, I had to remind myself. "Oh sweety, I didn't mean to upset you," I said softly as I rubbed up on her with my shoulder. "Just a bit teasing. Nopony good would blame you for having a good life up till now, and if they did . . . fuck ‘em!”

“Anyways, when I was younger, I was in a position to have a good life too; warm bed, hot food, and plenty of power." I reminisce.

"What happened?" Harp asked.

"I chose Prism, and never regretted it once," I answered proudly. I decided to leave out the fact that my other choice was Victoria. What would I have become if I had stayed with the gang, I’m not sure, but I know I would not have had Bridget, and that's not a life I want to miss out on.

A smile formed on Harp’s muzzle as she said, "She is a nice mare. You're lucky to have her."

"That she is, and that I am," I agreed before stopping in front of our destination. Music could be heard playing loudly from inside the building. "Right. This is where I work, the Ruffled Feathers. I'll talk with the boss to see if there is any opening for the cleaning crew."

The front of the building had its name lit up in neon lights. Several drunken ponies sat out in front who then scattered when they finally noticed that I was here.

"Oh, it's a bar. I could go for a cold drink… if I had the money for one," Slowtrot lamented.

"I'll see if I can get you two one on the house," I told them and then entered.

The smell of smoke and booze hit my noise as the music could almost be felt as much as it was heard. The place was quite packed with outsiders looking for entertainment at night, of which they were getting. On the far end of the Ruffled Feathers was Brass Chains on stage. The outfit she had on enhanced her natural beauty as she straddled a pole, but she looked a bit more tired than she should.

"Okay, so not just a bar," Slowtrot realized. He barely heard himself over the audible music. "Hey, is this one of DJ Pon3y's classic party tracks?"

I trotted closer to them to make sure they could hear me. "Ya. Now go sit or stand by the bar. I'll be back in a bit. If you're bored and have a few caps, there's a poker table in the corner. Looks like blackjack is the game of the night." I told them. They nodded.

Making my way to the back, I had to push through several ponies. One nearly got kicked for pinching my flank. A lot of them had black leather jackets, marking them as belonging to the Desperados ganggers, of which was not the best sign for the night.

Passing one of the lounge tables, I saw Rusty sitting on some stallions lap, sharing a drink. She gave me a wink as I passed.

Further back, I saw that none of the brothel workers were hanging off their balcony, which meant that they were all busy with clients.

Finally making my way to the back, and away from customers, I found two of our irregular dancers. They were a married couple. The stallion laid face down on a cot as his wife fanned his flank with a clipboard.

"Oh thank Celestia your here, Star,” said the mare fanning her husband. “A few of us got pulled away for the mayor’s stupid dance shindig, making us short-staffed during a rush."

"Please don't tell me you need me on stage. I got company over right now," I said with a groan.

The stallion on the cot raised a hoof meekly. "At least one before Cloudy Sunrise can get back. I can't go back out there. The mares are too aggressive."

The mare doubled her effort to fan the stallion as she said, "There's some sort of a mercenary band at the bar. The boss doesn't want a fight, so they have the run of the place. Fortunately, the stallions have been relatively well behaved, but their mares act quite aggressive."

"They wouldn't stop slapping my flank!" The stallion groaned. "This is why I only want to work the gay nights. At least they follow the rules."

"Hush now, Honey. It's only until after the festival. If you like, I'll be the big spoon tonight," The mare said to comfort the stallion. He just groaned in agreement.

Leaving the lovebirds alone, I made my way to the back office where Water Spout was sitting. He was going over some paperwork. Catching his eye, he breathed a sigh in relief. "Get dressed, Star. We need you out on stage. Too many ponies have been harassing the dancers, and I need a mare with a strong kicking leg."

"Is Brass okay out there? You know how she really doesn't like ponies getting in her space if she's on stage." If a pony did touch her, their leg was going to get broken.

"It's fine, Star. It's either the scars or brandings she's got all over herself, but they seem content with just watching her. That's why she's been out there for nearly an hour now." The hippogriff said with a sigh.

"What! Are you trying to kill her?!" I shouted, then calmed myself. "Fine, but I got two guests over. They both got stable barding jackets and pipbucks on. Can you give them a bit of work? At least for tonight."

Waterspout scratched his beak for a short moment. "The two that fell from a clear sky you mean… alright. If you go out there and dance as long as you can, I'll go talk to them. But what did they do to end up here?"

"Trust me, you don't want to know right now, so let's just say it was a bunch of bad luck. They're here now so we should deal with them," I explained before heading to the dressing room.

"Oh, and just knock them off stage if anypony climbs up. We don't have the supplies for mending broken bones right now." Waterspout shouted as he got out of his seat.

The dressing room was a bit of a mess. With clothing having been thrown around, makeup partially scattered, and somepony left their inhaler of dash behind. I don't know who was doing chems at work, but I'll have to ask around after things settle down while reminding them to keep that shit at home.

Sitting at my dresser, I quickly pulled out a few outfits. I decided on the classic black fishnet ensemble, mostly because it's easy to throw on and it didn't come loose after a while. Makeup was an easy job. It is just more black thrown onto my eyelids and lashes, and dark red lipstick to make everything come together.

In the mirror, I saw a pretty pony with a long well cared for mane, a smooth coat, and the farthest thing that I was six years ago. With a few finishing touches, I was done, though not perfect. I doubted a bunch of drunk and rowdy ponies would care.

Trotting over to the stage, I signaled for the control pony to signal for Bronze to finish dancing. With the music lowering and lights dimming, an exhausted Bronze trotted behind the curtains and nearly fell to the floor. She was saved by my timely catch.

"Nearly an hour out there!” I breathed in astonishment. “Are you trying to put yourself in an early grave?" I chastised my friend.

While in my hooves, she arched back, placing her fetlock onto her head in a dramatic pose. "I suffer, for I must." She then relaxed. "And I need the caps."

"Let me guess; there were a few mares out there you fancied too?" She looked away to avoid eye contact. "Well you're not taking them home or staying at the brothel with one. I already promised Copper you'll go home tonight and go home sober."

She let herself slip out of my hooves and laid down on the floor. "Alright. Anyways, I don't think I have the energy to do much else tonight."

I gave her a hug. "Good. Just rest up a bit. I'll escort you home on my break. Maybe we can hang out tomorrow. You can spend some time with your son. He does love you, so please stop ignoring him."

Bronze nuzzled my neck for a moment, taking in my scent before pushing away and avoided eye contact again. "I… fine. If you're there, then I'll do it."

The music started to turn up. Strobe lights started flickering, signaling my time to head out, so I let Bronze go.

"Alright. Also, if you can, keep an eye out for Rusty for me. “ I requested. “She needs to head home later tonight as well."

With a smile and a wink, I trotted onto the stage. A more than excited crowd of drunken ponies waited for me. I was neither nervous or scared since I had done this for a few years now. I also had my share of bar fights in that time. If the rowdy gaggers try and upstage me, they are going to find me more than they can handle.

FoE: Desperados, ch11, Never Say Things Can't Get Worse.

The night had gone without too much excitement. A few of the gangger mares actually got on stage while I performed. The ones too drunk to know what they're doing I shoved off, but one who was actually trying to upstage me I then decided to mess with. The dumb bitch didn’t think I would give her a sudden lesson in proper pole dancing. That put her backend on display before giving her a long kiss and a flank bump off stage. She had melded back into the crowd to hide her face, making me feel a little sorry, but I knew that, after that, the mare got the point and stopped fucking with the stage. One very stallion did try, but backed down when I made it clear that I’d crack his nuts if he continued.

Keeping an eye on the stable ponies while I was on stage, Slowtrot had taken a seat at the poker table after being given some caps. Harp was placed behind the bar. Both positions were relatively safe, though I thought Waterspout would have placed them in the back to take care of the more menial work that needed to be done. Still, the boss upheld his end of the deal, so I stayed on stage as long as I could in order to keep the rowdy gaggers entertained with several performances.

Rusty would later take over. As she was known for, she actually let ponies onto the stage with her for a more on hooves show, but now that I was back to doing bouncer work, I made sure things didn’t get too out of control.

Not long after, some of the staff would finally return from the mayor's dance. Everypony was able to take a proper break. After taking home an overworked Bronze Chain and returning to make sure Rusty didn’t go for overtime. I let the stable ponies crash at my place. Prism was not all that happy about it, mainly with how we nearly woke up Bridget and Light Step late into the night. I promised her that they were just staying for tonight, so she lent out a spare blanket.

It wasn't until a few hours before noon the next day that they began to stir. It took them almost a half hour before they actually got up. The two seemed a bit lost before remembering where they were. Passing them some distilled water, their stomachs grumbled as they guzzled the clean water down.

“If you want, you can join me for brunch,” I offered. “I’m getting together with my friends. I know they’re curious about you two.” I told them.

“That would be nice, but aren't you low on caps?” Harp reminded.

I just shrugged. “It’s not an everyday thing. There's a cart along the outskirts that is relatively cheap. He’s a creepy fuck, but he keeps everything out in the open, so you know at least what you’re eating.”

“That sounds like a good idea,” Slowtrot concurred, as he pulled out a little bag of caps. “Here. I’ll pay for your portion as thanks.”

“You sure about that?” I cocked an eyebrow at him. “Don’t you need those caps?”

He shrugged this time. “Ya, but I’m not in a rush. I’m already over two hundred years late getting back home, so what’s a few extra days?”

“It might be better If I take my time as well. Get used to the wasteland before I leave town,” Harp added.

The two turned out surprisingly good at making caps. Slowtrots had luck at cards, convincing others to play more, and bet more caps. Harp possessed an ability to chat ponies up and convince them to buy the more expensive booze we have. Though she did seem uncomfortable with how many ponies kept flirting with her, but I made sure she was safe.

“I could go for a good home style hayburger.” Slowtrot proposed as his stomach grumbled again. “They still have hayburgers, right?”

I thought about it, then nodded. “Ya. The cart sells burgers,” I told him.

…

I watched the color drain from Slowtrot’s face since he, only now, remembered that stable ponies didn’t eat meat. The food cart had a selection of some root vegetables, lots of dried meats hanging off the side of the cart, and some food cooking on a nearby portable barbecue grill. The stallion running the cart was strangely thin, even though I always saw him eating something. This gave every creature the most creepy vibes about him. On the other hoof, he had a cheery and chubby wife and several foals helping out the cart.

“What will it be?” the chef asked, his clothes more just hung on him then him wearing them.

“The stallion would like a hayburger, the stripy mare will have your breakfast combo, and I’ll have the cart special with a side of roasted corn cob for each of us.” I told him.

“Right. It’s a bit late for the combo. The burgers take time to bake the bread, but I can get the special out for you shortly,” he explained.

“That’s fine. We’re going to be hanging out here for a bit,” I replied as I passed him the caps.

We trotted over to an old picnic table. It had a worn-out blue tarp draped over it to hide all the expletive riddled graffiti and carvings it had. Bronze Cain, Rusty Cleaver, and Cloudy Sunrise were all already there waiting for us as they ate their brunch. Rusty had already dug in and finished her food. My other two friends were being a bit pickier.

“It’s been eleven years and I’m still not used to how much meat you ponies eat down here,” Cloudy complained as she took a small bite from her geco and eggs.

“When there's almost only blote sprites to eat, you learn to love to eat radroaches.” Bronze gave a nervous chuckle as she spoke. Her plate was barely touched, which had roasted roch legs and what was likely over two hundred year old carrots.

“Eh, my family found whatever slop they could eat. Can't be picky when you're always starving.” Rusty licked her bole. “Hey Star, sorry for always pushing Light Step on you like that.”

The three of us took our seats. An older colt placed a cup of water for each of us. It had little specks floating about in it. Both Harp and Slowtrot gave me a concerned look.

“Don’t worry,” I replied to their concerned looks. “It’s safe, mostly. It’s filtered water. Just don’t ask about what they used to filter it.” I turned to Rust. “Don’t worry about it. I love having her over since she’s such a sweetie. I just hate to see her sad when she misses her mother.”

"I guess I've been a bit too focused on making caps lately. I just saw this adorable dress that I know she'd love, so I just have to get it for her." Rusty gushed.

I face hoofed. "Have you tried sewing, Rusty? You can make a dress like it, and it would cost far less caps. And don't tell me you don't know how to sew, If you can stitch up a stab wound like a pro, you can put two pieces of cloth together." I then turned to Bronze. "Did you sleep well?"

A long yawn told me no. "Better than normally." Well, that was good news. "Copper woke me up and trotted me to school."

"You mean you trotted him to school?" I asked. Bronze just gave me a shrug. "Well, baby steps in the right direction is still the right direction."

"So what about you Cloudy?" Harp spoke up. "You have a foal as well?"

There was a pause before Cloudy blushed. "What? No, no, no. I mean it would be difficult to do my job if I did, and… well… I would rather not talk about it.”

Now Harp blushed. "Oh, sorry. I mean, sorry. I just thought it was common out here for young mares to have a foal. I mean, most of the mares I've met so far are all mothers themselves."

Cloudy sighed, then chuckled a little. "Tell me about it. Before the enclave fell, there was a strict population control, so I was a bit shocked seeing families with three to six foals all over the place. I recently saw an old friend from the clouds. At nineteen years old, she was already on her second foal."

"Well, still, I’m sorry for assuming," Harp apologized

"It’s an honest mistake. I mean, I have been hanging around with Rusty and Star for long enough for ponies to assume but I don't plan on having foals anytime soon. Not until I've found the right pony." Cloudy then gave Harp a sly look. The kind look one gives when digging for any juicy gossip. "What about you, Harp? Any special somepony? I bet there's a lot of stallions that miss a cute mare like you."

"What? No. No stallions. My mother would not permit any unions with a stallion until I was married, and even then he would need to be vetted for purity, but I was allowed relations with other mares so long as they were of high standing." Harp explained as she nervously tapped at her hooves. "There was this mare I did get a little close too. She was an outsider called Light Turbulence. She saved me when her vertibuck crashed onto my Island."

"Oh, that's a very pegasus name, and a crashed vertibuck? Don't tell me she's Enclave?" Cloudy teased Harp.

Harp nodded. "Ya. She was part of an expedition team form New Cloudsdale. From how she explained it, the cloud city sounded magnificent. I do hope she was successful in helping her city."

I looked over at Cloudy who had gone slack-jawed, so I asked her "Is everything okay, Cloudy?"

She shut her mouth and took a deep breath. "Sorry. Last time I heard about New Cloudsdale was when some of the Enclave’s political puppets and military leaders used the city to run away after operation cauterize dramatically failed. From what I know, it was one of the few cities that could still hold itself up without the cloud layer as support. A lot of pegasi might not have had to die if the city had stuck around to provide shelter and protection."

"Right. I remember hearing about that," I chimed in. "When I first came to the mainland, Mom and I came across a large group of pegasi refugees. Their town literally fell out of the sky when the clouds opened up. Later we had several former Enclave soldiers pass through Bold Harber. Complaints about their missing city weren’t uncommon."

"New Cloudsdale . . . what happened to Cloudsdale? I thought the Enclave was just a political party. When did they get a military?" Slowtrot asked, which made Cloudy cringe.

"The Zebras blew it up, along with most of the major and minor cities in Equestria. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on who you ask, the Enclave was the only pegasus political party not to be based in Cloudsdale. So, when Cloudsdale fell, they took power."

Slowtrot looked shocked for a long moment. "That's terrible.”

“But, then again, I was already told about that. I guess it still hasn't quite sunk in yet." He then spent another moment quiet, then said, "I bet Ministry Mare Rainbow Dash regrets keeping the Enclave out of Cloudsdale now."

"What?" This time Cloudy looked shocked. "What do you mean?"

"Right. If I remember correctly, the Enclave were the pegasus biggest anti-war party as well as the biggest pegasus independence party," he explained. "It was weird, as they had the support of other anti-war groups, but butted heads with them at the same time. So, when Rainbow Dash started marginalizing them, none of the other anti-war groups cared. The Enclave was very unpopular back west, and we had the most anti-war groups in Equestria."

"That explains the Enclave’s irrational hatred for Rainbow Dash," Cloudy said with a sigh.

Our food showed up. Slowtrot’s hayburger was served in between a freshly baked bun with some ancient looking hay on top of a mole rat patty with a side of fried radroach legs. Harps breakfast combo was two thick tato pancakes with a side molerat sausages and topped with mute fruit jam. My cart special was a bow of canned diced tomato, canned carrots, and gecko meat which was flavored with a sauce made from radscorpion guts. I immediately dug in.

"Wait! Those are cockroach legs?" Slowtrot asked as he pointed at his fried radroach legs. Everypony, Harp included, nodded. "By Celestia! If they’re that big, we’re all doomed." Most of us started laughing, which seemed to put Slowtrot a bit at ease.

The cart special was not all that "special", but it was cheap and very filling. It has become my favorite dish over the last two weeks.

Harp started on her pancakes. She was finding them a bit off-tasting, but then anything made with tatos was not going to taste all that great.

Slowtrot, on the other hoof, got into a staring contest with his burger. In the end, hunger won out. After the first bite, he became more willing to take another.

Cloudy slowly finished off her food as she talked with Harp.

Bronze required a bit of coaching by me, mainly threats for me to feed her myself like a foal. I was not letting her get any thinner than she already was.

We chatted, mainly on little things in the wasteland, such as what not to do, how to spot a raider from far away, and to avoid drinking any random water since, even though the radiation had cleared up, most of the groundwater was still toxic with non magical pollutants. Harp brought up similar problems on the Marewaii Islands along with radiation still being a real problem there. This, of course, turned the conversation to Harps home.

"So this Orthrus is what the R&D Stable became? It's good to know that they survived and managed to help other ponies," Slowtrot said with a sigh. "They honestly want to make the world a better place. I wonder what they could have done if the world was not at war."

"Ya. Without them, so many foals would never have been born, and it's actually a miracle that they were able to make mirage ponies," Harp explained. "Without the mirage pony treatment, most of the metro would be dead, and so much technology would have been left to decay."

"How so?" Cloudy asked.

"Well other than countering much of the genetic damage most ponies suffered from, Mirage ponies somehow came out as our own tribe with our own form of magic," Harp also explained. "It's nothing like what normal ponies can do, and It's rather useless on its own." I watched Harp as she began to… shimmer. Something was coming off her like heat coming off a broken road on a hot day.

Harp continued. "It's why we're called mirage ponies, as from a distance, we look like one."

Slowtrot reached out to touch the shimmering Harp, but immediately pulled back like she was a hot flame. He had only touched her for less than a second, but I think he flickered like he was just not there for less than a second. I just rubbed my eyes, as I probably just needed more sleep since I was clearly seeing things.

"My kind can draw in magic from our surroundings and store it into ourselves." Harp further explained. "When we hit our limit, we shimmer. We can also send this magic out into other things, such as a gem, another pony, or into spark batteries. Because of this ability, we were able to keep powering the old tech that would have fallen silent over a hundred years ago."

"Wow! That sounds like a whole lot of ya could power a town. No need for radiation engines and shit." Bronze uncharacteristically chimed in, but her comment seemed to make Harp… uncomfortable.

"Ya, that's true, but the less said about it the better," Harp replied.

It took a moment, but I think everypony understood that something about mirage ponies powering a town must be a sore topic for Harp. If a task was simple but required a lot of hooves to do it, then somepony, somewhere, made a bunch of slaves do it. If power generation could be made just as easily, then it would follow that slaves would be put to work.

Truthfully, the more I thought about it, the more it made sense, and the more I understood why Harp may not want to talk about it.

I then remembered about Hardballers issues with obtaining spark batteries. The old buzzard had a whole lot of drained batteries. No doubt he'd pay to have them recharged.

"You said you can charge a spark battery, right?" I asked Harp as an idea started to form in my head.

Harp nodded. "Yes, as long as it’s undamaged, otherwise I would just be drawing in its radiation into myself as I push magic through it, likely giving myself radiation sickness. It's what most mirage pony foals are told not to do, as we can easily kill ourselves if we're not careful."

A grin then formed on my face. "You know what? I think I know how you can earn a lot of caps in a really short amount of time."

Harp first raised an eyebrow at me, but quickly seemed to understand what I might be suggesting.

"Just come with me after we're done here," I requested. She slowly nodded, obviously on the cautious side, but was still a mare in need of caps.

I then looked over at the seemingly clueless Slowtrot, not sure what to do with him, but I had a feeling he'd get in trouble if I left him on his own, so I said, "You too, Slowtrot. Hardballer was curious about that pistol of yours. We might as well let him take a look at it."

In response, he just shrugged and agreed.

Our time at the food cart went for another half hour. It felt longer, but both Harp and Slowtrot had clocks on their pipbuck, so half an hour it was. The conversation ended up mostly a Q&A about how life was in the Marewaii Metro for Harp as well as learning that, to her, we were quite underdressed over in Marewaii, the ponies commonly wore clothes front and back. It did answer why she wore underwear when not only did almost all ponies didn't bother, but it was also seen as erotic for a pony to have on.

I don't know why, but the fact she does have panties on makes me want to flip her skirt.

With the chat dying down, we all went on our own ways. Bronze and Rusty had a part-time job sorting through rocks for the quarries. I took the two not-stable ponies through the shantytown, Harp kept composed, but Slowtrot seemed to get more and more worried with the more destitute ponies he saw. Eventually we made it to the Gunrunner's compound. Once we were there, it was Harps turn to look worried.

"Don't worry,” I reassured Harp. “The griffon that runs this place is my daughter's Grandfather. He will come off as a gruff buzzard, but in truth, he is the biggest softey I know… just don't tell nopony I said that."

They both nodded, seemingly more at ease.

Entering, we unseeingly found Longslide at the reception desk. He was messing with some grid paper, though this time there was a female griffin in a very dirty jumpsuit with him. Her barral being notably round due to being seven months pregnant.

"Ahoy, Gyrojet. Rare to see you upfront?"

The griffon mare gave me an exasperated sigh. "Hey Star. Just making sure my husband here does not forget he has a family. Still don't know why he thinks that manacle monster is so important."

"It's a Light Strike Vehicle. If I can get it working properly, then we can easily move our products to buyers," Longslide said with a huff as he put his grid paper down. "I promise, once I figure this out, I'll spend more time with the kids." He turned towards me, looking less than happy to see me. "Now, what's with the guests, Star?"

I smiled good and wide as I replied, "Let’s just say I have the solution to one of Hardballer’s biggest problems, though it's best if we talk with him in private."

"Star, you know the rules about not letting outsiders into the compound. I still don't know why we even let you in at all." Longslide sternly pointed out.

"Oh, come on, Longslide. It ain't going to hurt nopony if these ponies are let in. They got no contacts in the wastes, and they both got something your father wants," I explained.

The pony griff took a moment to think, tapping his desk with a talon. "Alright, but if they do anything that threatens our business, not only are they banned, but you are too."

I took a deep breath, knowing that he was serious. "Alright, so where's the old buzzard?"

"In the machine shop, finishing an order of service rifles for the NCR," he informed me.

"That's perfect," as all I said before leading the other two ponies passed the reception desk. Entering the courtyard of the Gunrunner's compound, I could hear the machine shop at work. The sound already drowned out the sound of the wasteland. Near the door of the machine shop was a locker with several goggles and ear protection inside.

Passing the other two the protective gear, Harp looked back at me a bit concerned as she asked, "What is this place?"

"Right. I forgot to explain. So . . . these griffins are the Gunrunners. They’re like the Talons, but more an actual clan rather than a loose coalition. They mainly make guns. They shoot them only when necessary. If you ever see a griffin mercenary with a kick-ass gun, it's more than likely that the gunrunner's made that gun," I explained before putting my eye and ear protection on.

Upon entering, there were several griffons at work. Some at benches with brass hammers and screwdrivers, carefully tinkering on their rifles. Others were at several large machines. One of the machines was for making rifle barrels while another was a mechanical hammer. Their most prized machine was an industrial belt sander. Hardballer was at the belt sander, carefully grinding down parts to exact specification to what they needed.

As we watched them work, the power in the room would fluctuate, sputtering sporadically, causing the griffins at the machines to pull back and wait for it all to stabilize. In a roped-off corner, I could see the culprits. Over two dozen spark batteries hooked together, all in fairly good condition, but no doubt drained of most of their magical power. Eventually the power sputtered again, the lights dimmed, and Hardballer gave his machine a frustrated kick before blowing a whistle, causing the other workers at the machines to stop.

"That's enough,” Hardballer growled with resigned frustration. “Any more and we risk breaking the machines. Finish the work with your claw tools." The machine workers gave a collective groan. "Just get to work. We have a deadline, and we better be on time for it."

Trotting up to the old griffon with a bit of a secretive grin, he glanced at me through the corner of his eye as he asked hopefully, "Still no luck with the spark battery problem?"

Ge gave me a little growl. "Who are they, Star?"

I gave him the same smile I gave Longslide. "Well, they’re ponies that fell on the clinic. The Stallion has that .45 auto pistol you wanted to see, and the mare, well . . . she might be able to help you with that big problem you're having."

Hardballer put down the gun part he had into a small box and trotted over to me. "I don't know how some little zony can help me, but I'll see that pistol."

There was a momentary pause before Slowtrot remembered that it was his pistol we were talking about. Passing it over, the old griffon quickly examined it.

"Now this is rare,” Hardballer began in an admiring tone. “The only models that survived the war were the Celestia doctrine military pistols, but this is a custom civilian pistol from the Luna doctrine era too. It even has an early pony gunsmith stamp.”

“What's your name?” Hardballer asked Slowtrot with fascination, “and where did you get this collector’s item?"

"Names Slowtrot, and the Checof’s Promise was lent out to me by an old pony named Musket Ball," Slowtrot answered.

There was a pause from Hardballer before he said, "Odd. In the old blueprints, the name Musket Ball pops up for a lot of the pony conversions for griffin made guns, so how has this gun managed to stay in such good condition for so long?"

Slowtrot looked confused for a moment, then tapped at his pipbuck. "Let me check. Right. Gun maintenance and basic assembly." He then lifted his pipbuck to Hardballer. "Outside the production of ammo and parts, I know almost nothing about guns, but Musket Ball left me a lot of instructions on the matter."

Hardballer paused again, then he began tapping at Slowtrot's pipbuck. His eyes grew wide after a moment as he declared in astonishment "This is a blueprint for a C.M.B.R., the Celestia Markspony Battle Rifle! The blueprints for this were thought lost, and only photos of the rifle were left!"

I cocked an eyebrow. "A battle rifle? I don't see how that's special. There's a metric shit ton of them out west."

Hardballer rolled his eyes at me. "So I've heard, but those are going to be the mass-produced battle rifles made for basic infantry, used before the Luna war doctrine went into full effect. They lacked precision and rage in favor of durability. The CMBR is practically a sniper rifle and was used by the royal guard up to the end of the war. I know a few rangers who would pay their weight in caps for a rifle like this."

I then whistled. "Looks like it was a good idea to bring along Slowtrot." I noted, then motioned for Harp to step up. "But that's just good luck. Now Harp here might be able to solve your power problem."

This got Hardballer's full attention. "So she knows where to get some good spark batteries, I presume?"

"Well no, but I can do something… similar." Harp said hesitantly. "It's better if I show you. So, could you turn on one of the machines?"

Hardballer looked skeptical, but complied. He trotted over to the belt sander and flipped a switch. The machine turned on which resulted in the belt moving It's speed quickly became irregular. It slowed down before speeding up. Harp trotted over to the machine, and placed her hoof on it. Soon after, the belt sander stopped slowing down. After that, it picked up speed. There was a clunk as the machine went faster and faster. It vibrated so much that I could feel it from where I stood. Harp then took her hoof off it and backed away. The machine slowed down, returning to its irregular speed.

"I can provide magical energy to any device that relies on it to work," Harp said, then looked at the corner with the spark batteries. "But more importantly, I can recharge those batteries."

Now Hardballer looked stunned. It took him a moment before bringing a talon to his beak, tapping it gently. "Well, color me impressed. If this is true, then we might be able to meet our deadline far ahead of schedule. We’d even be able to make some new products to sell on top of that. How soon can you start?"

Harp paused for a moment as she considered this carefully before answering, "It depends. What guarantee is there that I will get paid? My last employer was quite stingy with that."

I watched as a smile formed on the edge of Hardballers beak. "Now I don't pull this out for non-griffins, but if you can help speed up operations, then I might as well make an exception." With a quick and sharp whistle, he gained one of the other griffin’s attention. "Go get a binding contract… make it two!" Hardballer turned back to us as he explained, “I'm in the possession of several magically binding contracts, the kind the Talons used to ensure loyalty to the contract holder. I like to use them to ensure the secrecy of some of our gun manufacturing, but I can use them to ensure that you will get your pay. Will that work?"

"So like a fealty contract. It's a bit extreme, don't you think?" Harp asked, looking clearly concerned.

"If operations were running smoothly, then yes, but as you can see, without power, we are forced to make our guns by claw, which will slow production to a crawl," Hardballer explained. "If things continue like this, we might have to pack up and return to Fillydelphia within the year, losing us any advantage of having a compound on the wasteland frontier. Also, I want to wipe that smug grin off Ashy’s face."

“I see. So you're willing to put a spell on yourself to save your business. I guess I can kind of understand that,” Harp commented.

Slowtrot stepped in, looking a bit lost. “Sorry, but what's the need for having a gun manufacturing… shop I guess. Sorry. I’m used to assembly lines. But why on the frontier? Wouldn't being near a city be more useful?” he checked.

I gave Hardballer a knowing look, letting him know that I’ll answer that question. When Hardballer nods in approval, I then explain, “The wasteland is a dangerous place, Slowtrot. Raiders, monsters, or even desperate ponies who feel it’s less of a risk to rob a pony than to trust them. If you don’t have a gun, then you're an easy target for that and more. Having a gunsmithery on the edge of civilization means that there will always be ponies in need of your skills.”

“Also,” Hardballer cut in. “if this town is successful, then we will be here for every expansion and population boom. Ashy is not immortal. Eventually the old grudges such ponies have from Redeye’s time will fade, and the Gunrunners will still be here doing their job. We just need to last long enough for the winds to change.”

A laugh came from Harp. “Right. I get it. It’s not like you don’t have competition.” This got Hardballer to look at Harp with concern. “Sorry, sir. It’s just that, back home, there are a few small gun manufacturers that would kill to have an open space like this. The air rifles I have were made by one of those gunsmiths. Then there's Ironshod, who still throws their weight around even after two hundred years.” Her pipbuck then lights up with a magical overglow, pulling out a compact revolver from her jacket. “This revolver is made by a group called Orthrus. They’re peacekeepers, not a manufacturer, but if they can get to the mainland. They will bring all the corporations and small businesses with them.”

Hardballer snatched the revolver from Harp’s pipbucks hold, giving it the same attention as he did with the .45 auto. “Wait! Is this a police pistol? But it’s clearly a different model. It’s obviously made to easily be hidden, but too sturdy to have lost its power.” He then passed the revolver back. “Sorry. This is becoming a bit overwhelming to my old bones. Normally it’s generations before we see a gun thought lost, or a model we never knew existed. But, if what you say is true, then it’s even more important that we establish ourselves here.”

“Also, those other guns you mentioned, the air rifles, I would also like to see them and anything else you might have. I will add them to the contract and pay you accordingly for the opportunity to make blueprints of them, even if we don’t have the caps currently.”

There was another pause. Harp was clearly thinking hard about it before answering, “Alright,” Harp relented. “I’ll charge your batteries, let you look over my weapons, and I get properly compensated, but we need to go over the details as I start.”

A nod came from Hardballer. “More than fair.” He turned his attention to Slowtrot as he asked him, “And you, Mister Slowtrot?”

The stallion just shrugged. “Well, every bit counts. If you want to pay for access to my pipbuck information, that’s fine with me, though I’d rather have a proper job too.”

I trotted up to Hardballer, nudging him on the shoulder as I proposed, “How about having him work the ammo press? You have been looking for some pony to work it for ten hours a day.” Looking over at Slowtrot, I gave him a slight smile. “What do you know about loading and pressing ammo, Slowtrot?”

“I did work in a munitions assembly for a season before they replaced the process with robots. Aside from making sure the gunpowder levels were right, I found it more an issue of staying awake than anything,” he replied.

Hardballer sighed. “That is true. Working the bullet press is used to be more as a punishment rather than work. If your willing to do it, I can pay you for the work.” A younger griffin trotted back into the workshop while holding two impossibly clean sheets of paper. Clearly these were the magical contracts. Hardballer pointed over at a small desk, of which the other griffin trotted to.

“Alright,” Hardballer begin. “We can go over the details about payment in a bit. My apprentice will explain to you about how the magic works,” he informed them then turned to talk to me.

“Fantastic luck, don’t you think?” I exclaimed questioningly.

He nodded, then pointed over at a clock. It was well past noon. “It’s almost time for Bridget to get out of school,” he informed me, then pointed to a nearby locker. “Javelina made a gun for her, so maybe take her out practice shooting before coming over tonight. Let me get these two ponies situated first.”

“You're quite the softy, you know that?” I said to the old griffin.

He just shook his head. “Ya, but don’t tell nopony that. I got a reputation to uphold.”

We shared a laugh before he went to join the other two. Meanwhile, I trotted over to the locker. I found a silenced .22 pistol inside with two loaded magazines of ammo. The gun was light and easy to use. Most importantly, it was quiet, perfect for Bridget to practice with.

Taking the gun, I left the workshop. The tinkering of griffins slowly became quiet as I proceeded away. Inside the reception room, Longslide was still here, but Gyrojet had left. There was now a green unicorn mare in the room. She look the same as yesterday with the cybernetic back legs. It was none of my business, so I passed them by on my way out of the compound. I’m off to see my lovely little filly.

FoE: Desperados, ch12, Never Say Things Can't Get Worse.

I stopped outside the school a few minutes before the foals were let out. They gave me a bit of time to talk with Rusty and Bronze, whom had fortunately not gone off to get drunk before returning to their part-time work. They were glad to hear that Slowtrot and Harp had gotten some work helping the Gunrunners. Rusty stated that, if Harp was interested, she could still teach her how to pole dance.

It was an option, but one that came with risks, mainly getting the attention of some bad ponies, of which Cloudy already had in spades.

The foals burst out of the schoolhouse, our own more than happy to see us.

It was good to see Bronze trying to be the mother I knew she was. I just wished I could help them more than I already had, but it was up to Bronze alone to be a mother.

Bridget fluttered to me, her little wings only just lifting her off the ground. It helped her climb onto my back.

"So what did you learn today?" I asked my darling filly.

"It was more reading, but this time about how the Lightbringer brought justice to the land!" Bridget said excitedly.

I waved at the others as I trotted away with my filly on my back. "Oh, and how did she do this?"

"Well, there was how she brought the scoundrel Montary Jack to justice. She stopped him from further robbing ponies from the shadows. Then there was the, the time she led the purging of Arbue from the cannibalistic mutant ponies!" Bridget was practically shaking as she gushed.

I decided to play along, knowing that the Lightbringer Foundation had taken some liberties with the story, making it easy for foals.

Though I didn't completely trust the official story about the Lightbringer, with how it was written by ponies who helped found the NCR, of which she is the founding hero. "She's a big old hero. She even fought off steel rangers, from what I read.

"Ya real tall, like a head bigger than mama, and wielded the Big Iron that blew through monsters," she continued to gush.

I was sure that the Lightbringer was likely not that tall. The book did say her name was Littlepip, unless she was unfortunately misnamed.

After a few more minutes, we reached a little plot of land just outside of town. It was a pseudo dumping ground and shooting range. It had a tall mound of dirt covered in broken glass and metal scrap.

Bridget looked at me a bit confused as she jumped off me.

"Alright darling, I got a gift for you,” I announced to her. “It's from Auinty Javelina."

Her eyes lit up as I pulled out the silenced .22 pistol and passed it to her.

"Wow! Do I get to shoot it?!"

I nodded. She skipped in the air, turned to the dirt mound, and then *click*

"what? Its empty." she complained.

I rolled my eyes at how much my daughter was acting like I used to.

"You know how grandma doesn't want me to give you a loaded gun… well, a gun in general. Also, you act too much like me, so I knew you would just run off and start shooting."

I pulled out one of the magazines from my saddlebag, and pushed out all but one bullet into one of my pockets. "So, I'll let you fire off a few shots, but you must follow gun safety first. Alright?"

"Alright." She sounded a bit disappointed.

"Well first, what does Grampa Hardballer say about gun safety?" I asked.

Bridget straightened up, then pointed the pistol down while remembering the drills she saw her older cousin go through with the Gunrunners. "Guns aren't safe,” she recited. “Guns are always loaded. Never put your talon on the trigger unless you’re ready to fire." She smirked. "Also keep a bullet in the chamber in case you don't have the time to load a magazine."

I frowned. "No, that's keeping yourself safe with a gun… but true."

I passed her the magazine. She waited until I gave her the go-ahead, then proceeded to fumble for several seconds trying to load the pistol. After that, she struggled to cock it. When it was ready, I again gave her a nod. She aimed it at the dirt mound.

*pop*

The pistol didn't sound powerful or looked like much when fired, but I knew it was deadly nonetheless.

Mom didn't like the idea of her using a gun, and frankly, I was a bit worried that she could hurt herself, but I was more worried some pony might hurt her. Already seen too many dead foals in my life to know how easy it is for one to die. Foals that can't defend themselves tend to die more often.

I passed Bridget a bullet. She loaded it into her empty magazine, pushed it back into the gun, cocked it, then fired with another pop. It was slow and tedious, but Hardballer had told me this method made sure that a foal didn't get reckless with a gun, thus forcing them to take more care when using it. It also helped them with the basic motions of loading. He had raised three kids, so I was not going to question his method. It also helped prevent this outing from lasting less than a minute.

The slow target practice went on for a while. During that time, Bridget told me about her day at school in between shots which included how some of the other big kids tried to pick on Copper, but she scared them off, likely because of her griffon talons. Since she had natural weapons, most ponies instinctively avoided getting into a brawl with a griffon because it’s like fighting somepony who wields eight knives.

Still, it was good to know she didn't take their shit and even protected her friends. She makes me proud!

Once the last bullet from the second magazine was fired, I put the pistol away.

"Say Bridget, you want to see grandpa Hardballer?" I offer.

"Oh yes! I do, I do!" she excitedly squealed, jumping onto my back again before I told her to. Since the outskirts around the compound were dangerous, I never liked the Idea of letting her trot around there, accordingly; she got to ride on my back while there.

Leaving the shooting range, I unfortunately caught the sight of Deputy Stopped Clock coming the other way. The old unicorn tipped his hat at me as he said, "Gu'day, Miss Star. Not teaching your daughter any bad habits, are you?"

"My word, never at this hour." I hid my annoyance under my sarcasm. "Just having her practice shooting a pistol. Better she knows how to, but never need to rather than need to, but not know how to.”

“So what brings you out here Deputy?" I asked.

"Just doing my rounds and making sure known troublemakers are not making trouble," he said, not even hiding his mistrust of me.

I knew he was baiting for an argument, to have a reason to throw me in a cell for the night. But with Bridget here, I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction. Even without Bridget on my back, I couldn't afford to miss work.

"Well, fortunately, no troublemakers seem to be about, but if you do see any, let me know so that I could avoid them." I said in my best fake friendly tone I could muster.

"Then avoid those two stable ponies," Stopped Clock said quietly. "They seemed to have, in a single day, upset several important ponies, so it's best if you just let the wasteland deal with them. You can go ahead and get back to riding that-"

"Ahem!" I interrupted Stopped before he could mention my night work in front of my daughter. "I'll take note of your concerns, but I'm sure everything is just being overly exaggerated. They did only just woke up.”

“Anyways, we must be heading off, so have a good day. Watch out for rad-scorpions now." I said, waving him goodby.

Making my way pasted the deputy, I shot him a dirty look, then moved on. If I ever get the chance, I'll make him pay for constantly pushing my buttons.

The trip through town went quickly enough. The crowds were a little less dense today. The ponies in the slums were extra careful to not piss me off when my daughter was with me. I would never do anything violent in front of Bridget, but that would not stop me from visiting some asshole in the middle of the night and breaking a leg.

Unfortunately, I couldn't do that to the sheriff or her deputies, which was a shame, as by Celestia, they have been asking for a good hoof buck to their flanks.

Upon returning to the Gunrunners compound, I saw something a bit rare, Hardballer sitting at the guest table and sharing a drink of whiskey with some unicorn mare. It being the green mare with the back robo legs.

On the table was Slowtrot's pistol, and next to it was several similar gun parts and a notebook.

"Grampa!" Bridget shouted as she jumped off my back and galloped to the old griffin and hugged his hind leg.

"Well, if it isn't my .357 special little girl," he said as he picked Bridget up and placed her on his lap. "You’re as cute as ever."

I trotted over to them, not interrupting my daughter’s time with her grandfather. Instead, I inspected the older mare.

The mare was quite distinguished-looking. She was clearly a mare with a lot of caps, though she didn't loudly telegraph it. Despite this, I could tell with how new her duster looked and how clean her cowpony hat was, both were clearly custom made for her with how well they fit her. That was something no common pony could get.

Clothes aside, she also had cyber legs which was something a normal pony could never afford to get, even if they did look like scrap built.

But most importantly, when she glanced at me, she unmistakably had the look of a professional killer. The kind of look veteran mercenaries tended to have.

"I guess you've never had the chance to meet her Star." Hardballer addressed me, sounding happier than he normally was. "This is an old acquaintance of mine, Percussion Cap. I repaired her guns all the time back in Fillydelphia.”

“Miss Cap, this here is Star Charter, the mother of my adorable granddaughter." Hardballer introduced me.

"She is quite an interesting looking filly. Pink like her father, but she’s got her mother's face… but those horns, that is a new one." Percussion Cap commentated, then took a sip of her whiskey. "Are they made of gold?"

"Never cared to check," I answered the mare before looking over at Hardballer "Is this a bad time?"

Hardballer chuckled. "It's never a bad time to have Bridget here."

This got a quiet chuckle from Percussion Cap. "You really have softened up over the years, ya old buzzard. It's hard to imagine that the balding and angry griffin from Fillydelphia is the same one in front of me."

"Times changed." Hardballer took a sip of whisky. "And I just finally learned to live without her, that's all."

Percussion lifted her glass. "To those we miss."

Hardballer lifted his glass. They clinked before taking a sip.

"So you're still with that weird stallion,” Hardballer asked Percussion. “I'd figured ya had dropped him for some grizzled veteran."

A long sigh came from PC before she admitted, "Truthfully, I still don't know why I chose him, but I did, and that's that.”

“Actually, half the reason for coming all the way out here was to get away from him and the kids, but now I'm itching to get on back home. I'd forgotten how much the townies here are…" Hardballer loudly cleared his throat to interrupt her. The mare rolled her eyes before she went on to say, "Well, annoying to be around. The longer I stay, the more I feel like shooting my gun off at them."

"I hear ya.” Hardballer said with a nod.

“Now speaking of guns, Longslide should have finished with yours by now." Hardballer looked a bit irritated, then he looked over at me. "Star, could you be a dear and go check the garage? Longslide had Percussion's guns stored there after cleaning. If that lout has stopped to work on that vehicle of his, give him a good kick for me, would’ja?"

I shrugged. "Alright, though it's a bit odd that he’s slacking. Normally he's too serious."

Hardballer just nodded, and I trotted off into the compound.

Near the back was another building. The only other exit being a garage the Gunrunners built to move larger shipments in and out of the compound. It also happens to be where Longslide was working on his pet project.

The inside of the garage was a dimly lit area with several crates on one end of the wall and a mess of old tools on the other. Off to the side was Longslide's Light Strike Vehicle. It was an odd-looking auto wagon made from steel tubes. It could fit four ponies; one being the driver in the front, two passengers behind the driver, and a gunner higher up behind the passengers. The visible arcano engine sat in the back, though it had seen better days. The thing was so covered in rust, it looked ready to turn to dust.

As predicted, Longslide was working on it, but surprisingly Harp and Slowtrot were helping him.

"Alright, give it a boost!" Longslide called out. Harp lifted a hoof at the arcano engine. The thing came to life with a roar. "Now hit the pedal!" Longslide called out again. Slowtrot, who was in the driver's seat, pushed down on the pedal of the vehicle, causing it to move its wheels to spin in place. Fortunately, the vehicle was suspended by several bricks, so it didn't go anywhere, but after a few seconds, the vehicle began puffing out smoke as though it was on fire.

"Alright, stop, stop," Longside instructed.

The vehicles engine shut down, and the wheels slowed down.

Longslide huffed "Thanks, I think I know what’s going wrong. Now, if I can just get my hooves on a better engine . . ."

"Maybe you should first deliver those guns?" I spoke up, getting their attention.

"Star?… oh shit! It completely slipped my mind," Longslide groaned. "Just give me a moment." Pulling himself away from the vehicle, he made his way to a gun safe and pulled out a key from a pocket. Opening the safe was a shit ton of guns from pistols to a big ass anti-material rifle, all perfectly polished. From the safe, Longslide pulled out a gun case then carefully closed and locked it.

“Dad did say to take my time, but I got more than just distracted.” he apologized.

“On that vehicle, so what was wrong with it?” I asked as I trotted with him out of the garage.

“Bad connectors for the spark batteries. They’re leaking magic when the engine is on. So, even if the batteries were fresh, the engine would not be able to draw enough power from them.” He then sighed. “So, basically, all the parts I have are too old to work for what I need them for. Those parts weren't meant to last over a hundred years, so it’s a miracle they barely work now.”

Longslide was uncaristicly in a good mood, so I decided not to tease him just yet.

“Well, you made most of that thing from scratch. Why not those parts?” I again asked.

Longslid shook his head. “I’ve tried, but arcano tech engines are not something you can build in a machine shop. They’re not like guns. They got so many moving parts that, if one thing is wrong, it will destroy everything else. Then there's the talismans. Those fucking talismans!”

I cocked an eyebrow. “They need talismans?”

He pulled out a small cracked gemstone that had a magic circle in it. “Chrysalis Motters patented motor carriage spark talismans. When provided with magical power, they cause a small magical explosion. They are the heart of the engines used by most equestrian vehicles. The problem is that they have a tendency to blow up on you if you try and put them in an engine they were not made for. It makes sense if it was compatibility issues, but no. The talismans are the same between different engines. They’re just designed to self destruct if not used in their proper engine."

“So finding new spark talismans must be a bitch,” I said cheerfully.

Longslide groined. “If the bitch thought it was a good idea is still around, I would personally shoot her myself. I mean fuck, forced incompatibility! It’s like making bullets to be used in only one kind of gun and backfiring if not used in that gun.”

We returned to the reception lobby where Hardballer and Percussion Cap were still sharing drinks. Bridget played with the gun parts and compared them to Slowtrots gun, but she was not allowed to touch the gun itself. Hardballer looked over at his eldest son, then pointed down at the table he was sitting at. "So what took so long?"

Trotting over, Longslide placed the gun case down on the table. "Sorry, pops. That new mare, the mirage pony, it turns out she made a perfect stand-in for a spark battery. I couldn't pass up doing a quick engine check for the Smuggler."

"Smuggler? That's what you’re naming it?" I amusingly asked.

"An old Gunrunner tradition," Hardballer spoke up. "Any vehicle that's used for transporting goods is called a smuggler. Though we haven't had a proper smuggler in generations, with the wasteland being as it is."

The old griffin then reached over and unlocked the gun case.

"Now enough about old broken down vehicles,” Hardballer instructed. “On to the more important matters.”

“PC, I made sure your guns were thoroughly cleaned and oiled. One of them needed a new spring, and another a firing pin, but I'll leave that free of charge. Think of it as a loyal customer discount." he said, being uncaristicly charitable.

From the gun case, two revolvers were levitated out by the unicorn mare. The first was a dark brown colored snub-nosed revolver. It, for some reason had a scope. The second looked like what would happen if a revolver and a pistol had a baby, placing the cylinder in front of the trigger and not over the trigger like normal revolvers. Percussion Cap carefully inspected the two revolvers. She loaded them before placing the guns inside her duster. In the short moment, her duster opened up. I saw that the bitch was armed to the teeth with two extra revolvers, several different knives, and four fucking grenades.

"Great job as always,” she commended. “You would never know that they were stuck down the muzzle of a feral ghoul." PC pulled out a metal tin from her jacket. "And this should cover a case of ammo for each."

Hardballer opened up the tin. It was filled with neatly stacked caps. He whistled in an impressed way, then said, "Still amazing how lucrative your business has been. Sometimes makes me think I got into the wrong profession."

"It's been satisfying work, and every creature needs food, so business has been good." PC then sighed. "But I advise avoiding that business unless you have the pony power to keep others out."

Closing the tin of caps, Hardballer passed it to Longslide who then trotted off to his desk.

"Raiders . . . they can't be that big of a problem for you?" Hardballer asked PC.

PC rolled her eyes. "If only it was still raiders or feral ghouls. Since the sunshine rainbows, other ponies have been having an easier time starting their own farms, mainly those with NCR protection. Unfortunately, most of them are shit at farming and see the best way to succeed is to just push out their competition."

"Wait! I thought you didn't sell to the NCR?" Hardballer asked.

"I don't. Not to the NCR, not to the Steel rangers, and not to the Enclave remnants," PC explained. "The problem is that these pseudo farmers want me to sell to them so that they can sell my crop to those groups. I told ‘em to make tacks or I'd put ‘em in a hole. Now they've been going after my customers, so I've been forced to sell my crop further out in the wasteland. Jokes on them. I just sold most of my stock here, so no pony is going to want their shitty corn during that festival."

"So that was your corn!" I blurted out as Longslide placed two ammo crates next to the table. "Saved me a lot of caps with how cheap the prices were. A lot of ponies were eating hardy right now because of you."

"A lot of ponies are dead because of her," the distinctive voice of Ashy caught our attention, The sheriff stood at the door with a sour look on her face. "Executioner Red, how many did you kill for Redeye?"

PC cocked an eyebrow, then sighed."Right. You're that overzealous Sheriff I was warned about?"

Ashy trotted in, followed by her three main deputies: Stopped Clock, False Cap, and Willow Tree. Passing them, I could see several more deputies through the door. Ashy had come in force, which made me very uneasy.

I picked up Bridget and passed her to Longslide who then quickly carried her out of the lobby. The sheriff then glared at PC with a hatred like I had never seen before. "Ya have a lot of nerve coming into my town, murder!"

"Ashy!" Hardballer growled as he stood up. "If you’re here to just harass my customer, then get the fuck out of my shop."

The sheriff trotted closer. The slight smell of alcohol came off her as she glared at the old griffon. "Or what? Try anything, and I'll make sure you see justice at the gallows, slaver."

Hardballer glared back as Stopped stepped in between them. "Let's not be hasty to aggression. We do have an official reason to be here. Unfortunately, it is not the purging of those once associated with Redeye, or…" he then eyed me, ". . . other undesirables."

Hardballer sat back down, still glaring. "Then out with it."

Willow stepped forward. He pulled out a piece of paper from his vest. "I'm sorry to inform you, Miss Percussion Cap, that an order of eviction has been passed, and a banning from New Appleloosa has been placed on you. We are to escort you out of town effectively immediately."

PC burst into laughter. "So which butthurt asshole pushed that forward? If they put just as much effort in growing their crops as they do sucking the NCR's cock, then maybe they could actually compete with me." She got out of her seat. "Well, I was not planning on staying anyway, so getting the fuck out of here is fine by me.”

“Now, if yal’lll get the fuck out of my way, I'll take me any my cart our of this shithole." she said a she dismissively waved at them to move.

"About that," False spoke up, and I knew that I was about to not like what was about to be said. "Due to the potential of illegal contraband, we are confiscating your wagon until we deem everything legal."

I face hoofed, and PC froze in place. "That better be one fucking stupid joke," the mare growled.

A cruel smile formed on Ashy's face as she trotted almost nose to nose with PC. "We need to check if you've been scalping Cutie marks, as you do have a history of doing that. Once we’re satisfied, we will leave your wagon outside of town for you to pick it up."

"How about you just let me, and my wagon leave town now, and then there will be no need for trouble," PC proposed coldly and calmly. The two starred each other down, making the tension in the room so thick that I swore I could chew on it.

"Is that a threat?" Ashy growled.

"It's a promise," PC answered.

"Is this a bad time?" the voice of a stallion whispered, catching me off guard. Slowtrot stood behind me, and behind him was Harp. "Sorry, the door was left open. I came in to pick up my gun."

"I don't see how they can just banish a pony who hasn't done anything," Harp whispered to me.

I rolled my eyes and whispered back. "Yes, it's a bad time, and yes, she can do that. She is the law around here."

A huff came from Slowtrot. "Right. None of our business." He whispered and trotted over to the table with his gun.

"Wait! What are you doing?!" I quietly called out at the dingus stallion.

"What do you think you’re doing?" Stopped Clock spoke up at Slowtrot. He interrupted the staredown between PC and Ashy, both now looking in his direction.

"Just picking up my property," he said simply. "Also, if you keep that up, you know that it will attract the Ministry of Moral right?"

There was a pause as both Harp and I face hoofed. "The M.o.M. doesn't exist anymore Slowtrot," Harp said with a sigh.

"Right…" Slowtrot then paused for a moment. "Still, what the sheriff is doing is wrong."

"What do you know, Stable pony?" Ashy growled, and I prayed to the goddesses that he dropped it.

A slow sigh came from Slowtrot. "What I know? Well, there's that I've seen ponies like you before, going on and on about how the zebras should pay for all they did. They only cared about winning the war, not about ending it. Seeing how much they hate, it convinced me to stay as far away from the war as I could. I mean, hatred is something personal. How can you hate somepony who never did anything to you?" He asked with a shrug.

"Personal…" there was a low guttural growl in Ashy's voice, and the look in her eyes was of a deep hatred I had rarely ever seen in anypony. "Se murdered my husband!" Ashy screamed. With an overglow over her horn, Ashy drew her large revolver, pointing it at PC. In return, PC drew her snub-nose revolver at Ashy. The deputies also drew their revolvers, pointing them at PC, but found her levitating three more revolvers back at them, one being the odd pistol revolver, and the two normal-looking repeater revolvers.

"I've killed a lot of ponies," PC said calmly. "But so have you."

"All Redeyes lackeys." Ashy said, spitting on the floor as she did. "Unlike you, who murdered escaped slaves for caps. How cheap were our lives to you, Executioner Red, the bounty hunter who never brought back an escaped slave alive?" She then looked over at Hardballer. "And you, how many ponies did you work to death? How many lives were ruined to make your guns under Redeye? Yet here you are, live and free, where so many were denied even the most simple of life!"

"Maybe we should all calm down," Willow spoke softly. "No need to pull any triggers."

"It's too late for that." Stopped said with a cold and stern voice. "She's already drew her guns on us, she's clearly an outlaw."

"You try and calm things down Willow, but now we should confiscate those guns too," False added.

I appreciate Willow trying to calm the situation down, but as long as the other two deputies were here, there was no way the two mares were going to stand down. At least Hardballer knew not to step in. It would only be more fuel on this fire.

"That still doesn't give you the right to make things worse! What did you say to me? Right; Ponies like you are why things don't get better. No, actually they're why things get worse." Slowtrot stupidity pressed the issue as he levitated his gun with his pipbuck, its barrel pointed back at himself. "It was no different during the war. Ponies acting that way never changed the war. They only made it grow. They made it worse." He trotted over to Ashy until his gun was within her reach. It still pointed at himself. "I'm sorry about what happened to your husband, but this is not how ponies should resolve their problems. So maybe you should just put the gun away and let the mare go with her cart. If you want justice, then do it the right way. Not like this."

I could see Ashy fuming with anger. It was all now directed at Slowtrot, but then she calmed down and lowered her revolver, which then got everypony then to lower their guns, but not put them away yet.

"You know, this is why I really hate stable ponie,." Ashy said calmly and coldly. "You're all like ghosts from a long-dead era, pushing your ideals where they’re not wanted.”

She holstered her revolver as she talked “Yes, the Lightbringer came from a stable, the big hero as she was, but so did Redeye, and his death didn't make things better. It just brought things back to how they were before he crawled out of his stable.”

Ashy’s tone turned bitter as she continued. “You stable ponies have been, and will always be, trouble for the wasteland. If anypony knew any better, most of yall would be shot on sight before you can make more trouble."

With her magic, she grabbed Slowtrots pistol…

*Click*

The room became very still and silent as every pony's eyes were fixed on Slowtrot's gun, it shaking in Ashy's magical grip.

Slowly and steadily, she lifted the gun, taking a deep breath, and a long exhale. "Fine. She can go, and with her fucking cart, but if I ever see her again, it will be the last time any pony sees her again."

*Bang!*

Slowtrots pistol went off, ripping itself out of Ashy's hold and falling to the ground. Once more the room went still, eyes still on the gun.

Without another word, Ashy pivoted around and stomped her way out, quickly followed by her deputies, with Willow stopping to say something but failing to find the words, so they left, the door slamming behind them.

The rest of us took a moment to take in what just happened. The first to move being Slowtrot, who practically melted onto the floor.

"That… was intense," Slowtrot muttered while spreading out on the floor.

"That was fucking stupid, that's what it was!" Hardballer shouted. "If you were one of my sons, I'd beat you black and blue for doing that… the last thing I need is a dead body. You understand?"

"Crystal" Slowtrot responded.

Levitating the pistol, PC placed it next to Slowtrot. "They say luck is a skill, but one you can't trust. Thanks for the save, but next time, maybe don't make things worse before making them better." PC then turned to Harp, who had taken refuge behind me. "You, pink zony. Were you the one to give my cyber legs a power boost the other night?" Harp nodded. "Good. I'll pay you to do that again. I got a long trip home, and I would rather not pull out my wheels for it."

I left the two to their business. I trotted over to Hardballer who had slumped into his seat. "Talk about close calls," I said with a nervous smile.

He rubbed his temples with his talons before looking at me. "No, that was a red line. You know it, and so does Ashy. Maybe I should pack up and return to Fillydelphia. Do it before she kills one of us."

I didn't have a quip or any encouragement to give. He was right. Ashy had shot to kill. There was no way around it. Ashy had crossed a line. She was clearly on a hair-trigger, and we were in her sights.

"Maybe after the festival, once we have the caps to deal with a move like that. At least the mayor will try to keep her in line until then." I suggested and he nodded.

I don't know why, but I had a feeling that hoping we had that kind of time was just wishful thinking.

FoE: Desperados, Intermission 1

*Buzz Crackle*

“Well hello everypony, this is your ever-vigilant Dj Pon3 here. I’m here to bring you your daily weather report, which is more sunshine over the wasteland. I know, I know. It’s been sunny for weeks now. With everything drying out, you all are asking, isn’t our hero supposed to be controlling the weather?”

“Well if you have been following my other broadcasts, I had on a pegasus cloud scientist, who explained how the enclave was able to keep so much water through air currents and other crazy stuff. I also ran it on reruns for a week, just so you all got to have heard it. Yet I’m still getting angry letters on why the Light brighter will not just make more rain… ya, to spell it out to you upset ponies, to make it loud and clear, right now there is no rain! This is a process that will take time, but trust me, it’s being worked on. So just hunker down, conserve your water, and be patient.”

“In other news, reports are coming out west about a large airship traveling along the coastline. It is armed with some big guns and vertibucks. It is still unknown what their intentions are, but I advised you ponies. I double this warning to those Steel Ranger hardheads to not antagonize the big super airship.”

“In other, but still just as strange news coming out west, there is some sort of cybernetic cult popping up who are aiming to bring bright equality to all. Currently, they are giving out free food and water, so it’s best to just let them do their thing, but if anypony still remembers Redeye, I can understand why you're suspicious of a colony of cyborgs.”

“Now since we're talking about the west, might as well remind you all to keep an eye out for the New Goddess Army. Those poor mutated ponies should be considered extremely dangerous. If seen, it’s probably best to shoot or run. If they don’t eat you, they will turn you into one of them, so be careful.”

“Anywho, let’s stop talking about the epicenter of crazy that is the west coast, and…”

*Crash*

That hurt a lot, but nothing felt cracked, so I could only guess my bag broke my fall.

First, I needed to check if I hurt my head. Concussions were no joke.

“Names Azure Dice. Home is the jade crystal deep rift, and stupidly took a job exploring the miasma fringes…” I sighed, still regretting going on this cursed expedition, but I’m relieved that I didn’t seem to be suffering from brain damage.

“What in Celestia’s glorious burning flank was that?!” A loud masculine voice shouted.

“I think something crashed into the scrapyard, Pa.” This time it was a scratchy strained voice of a younger male.

“Then go see what it was, colt. If it’s a thief, shoot ‘em. We got barely two caps to rub together as is,” the older male grumbled.

“On it, Pa!” the younger male shouted, followed by the sound of metal moving around. “Where are ya? I’m not going to hurt ya, just shoot ya,” the younger male spoke softly as he moved the scrap around.

Unsure what was to do, I just sat where I had fallen. I at least knew running off now would only get me shot.

Eventually I came eye to eye with the young male… horse… no, a pony. Staying still, I waited to see how he would respond, but the adolescent pony stallion just squinted at me before moving on as though he didn’t see me at all, which was impossible due to the fact that I glowed.

After several more minutes, the scrawny pony jumped off the pile of scrap. His hooves clopping on the ground. “Nothing there, Pa. Maybe a toaster exploded. My pal told me it happens sometimes.”

“Braman shit colt, if we had a toaster, I’d sell it by now and we not owe the Golden Harvest farmer's union a damn cap,” the older pony shouted, “Fucking vultures”

“But didn’t they give us all this crop to grow?” the younger pony asked.

Feeling safe, I poked my head out to finally see where I was. It was a vast dry land which expanded before me. Near me was a sack made from rotting wood and rusting metal siding. Next to it was a large field of what looked to be corn, yet it all looked sickly and brown, if not outright dead.

“Ya, fuck ta crops,” the older pony grumbled as he spat on the ground. “I don’t even know what a corn was or how ta grow ‘em. Worse, we ain't got no rain in weeks. If dis keeps up, that Golden Harvest bitch is going to take our land.”

“No matter how things change, they stay the same,” I whispered to myself as I pulled out my sketch pad. With the ponies attention elsewhere, I had time to plan on what to do next. That plan was to find the mare Harp. This is probably her world and she may know how to find the time-space distortion that could get me out of here, but first, I probably needed to find a disguise. I was still unsure how any pony would respond to seeing a lurker, and getting shot was not on my list.

FoE: Desperados ch 13, Burning Rubber

"Mama!" A voice stirred me from my slumber. "Mama!" I slowly opened my eyes to see Bridget looking back at me. "Wake up Mama. Ya said you'd won't sleep in today."

Groggy, I slowly got up and rubbed my eyes. "Right, darling. I did promise that."

Over a day had passed since the incident with sheriff Ashy. She fortunately hadn't returned for another attempted shootout. Miss Percussion Cap had made tracks as soon as she was able, putting in an order for a few guns and plenty of ammo before she left.

For such a grouchy mare, she quickly grew on me. I hope we meet again without some trigger happy bitch breathing down our neck.

Speaking of which, we could only hope that with PC out of town, Ashy may calm down, though until we know for sure, Hardballer and I had been watching our backs more than we had been before.

As for the two not-stable ponies, Slowtrot had become a bit jumpy, but Harp seemed to have taken the incident like it was normal, making me a bit worried about how such a prim and proper mare can just brush off a near massacre.

It was my day off today. Well, it started yesterday. Since I did not have to go to work at the Ruffled Feathers, I spent much of that day cleaning up our home, washing clothes, and taking care of a few other cores before going to sleep early. Now it was the day Bridget and I got to spend more time with each other.

"Good. You're awake," Prism spoke up, standing by the door in her nurse uniform. "I'm going to be at the clinic today. If you can, pick up some more food while you're free."

I gave her a nod, and she left, leaving me with my adorable daughter.

"Alright, first things first, let's get cleaned up." I told Bridget, she groaned at first, but quickly followed my lead as I pulled out our hygiene box and made our way outside to our water barrel. The box was just some old candy tin the Followers of the Apocalypse repainted and put the hygiene tools inside. They gave it out to everypony, but unfortunately, most ponies just forgot about them and continued to smell like shit and cigarettes until it rained, and it hasn't rained in weeks.

Pouring some of our water into a bucket, we got to work cleaning our hooves and talons before brushing our teeth, then moved onto washing our mane, tails, and lastly our coat. We shared our one good towel. Drying off left us a bit poofy, so we went back inside to brush ourselves down. Bridget's mane was coming along nicely, now looking just like mine did right after I gave birth to her. Gently brushing it down, I heard her give a little sigh. "What's the matter darling?"

She hesitated for a moment before answering "I, I heard grandpa say that he might have to move away. Is it true?"

I decided to be honest. Lying now would only make her sadder if he did move away. "It all depends on if it's safe for him to stay here. You know that grandfather Hardballer is not well liked, so it might be best for him to go back to Fillydelphia."

"Will we go with him?" she then asked, catching me a bit off guard.

"That… that depends if it's safe for us to stay. Are you worried about leaving your friends behind?" I then asked.

Bridget nodes. "Ya. But also, if we leave, then how will daddy find us?"

I froze, having forgotten about the Skipper dilemma. With Bridget having never met him, I was sure she didn't think about her father. For all I knew, Skipper had died out in the wasteland, like so many others had. I did hold out some hope that one day he will return out of the blue, like some big hero, and help me raise Bridget, though I doubt I would still feel the same about him as I did six years ago.

"I'm sure finding us would be the easiest part for him," I said nervously, knowing that Hardballer was still quite mad at him.

She seemed to perk up at that answer, "Ya, he must be fighting some evil raider, just like the Lightbringer."

Chuckling, I put the brush down, having finished her mane, "Maybe he is. Now can you help mama brush her mane?"

Excitedly, Bridget grabbed the combe and got herself ready to brush my mane. "Can you tell me about that time you and grandma fought that raider ra… resor…"

"Razor Storm?" I clarified.

"Ya, and her army of raiders!" She said excitedly.

It was going to take time to straighten out my mane and tail, so a story wasn't a bad idea. "Alright darling. It all started after the first time I ever stepped on dry land…

"... well with the raiders driven off, and the ponies in Bold Harbor unified, grandma thought we might as well stay. She did need to recover after losing her wings, and I was still not used to being around land ponies, so it was the best idea at the time." I finished the story. Bridget climbed onto my back as we made our way to the Gunrunners.

"Then what about when you left? Can you tell me about Night Strike?" she eagerly asked.

"That's a different, and much longer story, my darling. Maybe later if we have time for it. Now let's go see grandpa Hardballer. I heard Javelina is having a good day. I'm sure she'd love to see you," I told her. Though she seemed disappointed about not getting another story, she was excited about seeing her Grampa and auntie.

As we approached the compound, I saw the rare sight of Longslide smoking outside. It was a rare sight because he was both outside the compound and that his wife got him to quit smoking while she was pregnant. Seeing us, Longslide quickly dropped his cigarette and stomped it out. "This is a bad time, Star." he said with a sigh.

This got me worried. "Was there an accident?"

He shook his head. "Fortunately no, but if we didn't do our daily safety check. There might have been. Makes little difference, as all the machines are out of commission. So much for having fully charged spark batteries."

"Wait, all of them? But that's impossible! Unless," Longslide just nodded, confirming what I was about to suggest. "Sabotage!"

"Dads cussing up a storm in the workshop right now, so best not bring Bridget inside." he warned.

"Great! Just what we all need right now." I huffed. "Can you watch Bridget for me? I'm going to see if there's anything I can do."

Longslide shrugged. "Alright, but I wouldn't get my hopes up."

Turning to Bridget, she seemed to understand a bit of what's going on. "If Grandpa is sad, help him be not sad." she told me as she hopped off my back.

"I can only hope my darling, so be nice to your uncle as I talk with grampa," I asked her, and she nodded.

The lobby was uncharacteristically full of griffons. The Gunrunners looked gloomy as they sat around, drinking cheap booze early in the day. Passing them by, I made my way through the courtyard and decided to not put on the safety gear before I entered the workshop. Inside I found Hardballer alone with a bottle of griffonstone vodka, surrounded by the remnants of a smashed wooden stool.

He looked over at me, a bit red in the cheeks. "Do I even need to explain?"

"Ashy clearly had somepony fuck up the machines," I answered.

"Bitch got balls. I'll fucking give her that," he shouted. "When my mates back in Fillydelphia hear about this, she will wish she fucked with a talon instead."

I trotted up to the old buzzard. "At least no griffon got hurt, so there's that."

He looked over at the belt sander. "Silver linings, but no less a problem. Those machines aren't just something my clan found in some pony ruins. They’re cultural relics of our ancestors, older than the fucking pony war itself. I was entrusted with them to help the Gunrunners grow along with our youngsters as my apprentices. This is a fucking big deal."

"Can't you fix it? Longslide is good at that." I mentioned, knowing that if he was outside, then the answer was probably a no.

Hardballer pulled out a piece of metal from a pocket. It looked like a part of a gear, but warped and chipped. "The fucker that did this knew exactly where to brake shit. Luckily we spotted the damage, or the machines would have gone out of control and then exploded.”

“Still, these parts can't just be hammered out. We'll need to return to Fillydelphia to even make the parts, and that's only for what we know is broken." He sighed good and long. "We need to dismantle everything and check it part by part, something that's going to take all day."

He then passed the bottle of vodka over to me, but I pushed it back to him. "Sorry. I'm with Bridget today."

He chuckled. "You really have changed, Star. I still remember when that idiot son of mine brought you over and all I saw was another irresponsible kid. Didn't want ya two fooling because I couldn't see either of you able to raise a kid, but here you are, making me wish you were my daughter." Hardballer took a swig of his vodka. "Anyways, probably best you return to Bridget. I got to start the dismantling before packing everything up."

Reaching out, I wanted to tell him that things will be fine, but those would just be hollow words.

Leaving the workshop, the two not-stable ponies were standing in the courtyard, both tapping on their pipbucks. I cocked an eyebrow at them as I asked, "See anything interesting?"

"Maybe," Slowtrot said, not looking away from his pipbuck.

Harp pulled away and trotted over to me. "We're seeing if we can locate a factory through our pipbucks, Slowtrot thinks if we can find a Stable-Tec or Ironshod factory, then we can find replacement parts."

"Is that even possible?" I asked.

Slowtrot looked up from his pipbuck. "Well Stable-Tec, Ironshod, and the Ministry of Wartime Technology were all run by members of the Apple family, so It was well known they all got their factory parts from the same company, GriffinStone Mechanics. That company had a monopoly on repairing those big factory machines, so if anything went wrong, a griffon would always show up to boss everypony around until it was fixed." He then looked back down at his pipbuck, frustration on his face. “The only problem is that we need administrative access to unlock the sight locations on the pipbuck mapping spell.”

“I was able to get mapping information off the pipbuck network, but it seems that Stable-Tec has blocked sensitive sights from being seen without proper authorization,” Harp explained as she showed me her pipbuck. “So we’re trying to see if we can at least get a general idea where a factory might be located.”

“That's amazing!” I exclaimed as I looked at her pipbuck. “You do know there's an old Ironshof factor not all that far from here?”

Harp then sighed, “We know, and passed it by Longslide. He told us that it had long been picked clean of any useful parts, something about a pony killing all the robo brains that guarded the place which allowed scavengers to move in.”

That made sense. “So then do you even know where to look?”

“Not really,” Slowtrot explained, “but Spot Weld has a very intact Stable-Tec pipe wrench he got from a scavenger. He said that they found a factory, but they got scared off before they could get much out of it. If we could locate that factory, then maybe it has the parts the Gunrunners need.” He then let out a long groan. “If only I didn’t lose Healing Herbs pipbuck, then we’d have access to the locked information.”

I then felt the pit of my stomach drop a little. “Lost pipbuck?”

“Ya, it’s a bit of a story, but I also had an overmare’s pipbuck with me. I’m not sure how much authority she had in Stable-Tec, but I know that Applebloom was meant to take over the R&D stable, so Healing Herbs had to have been high up in authority.” Slotrot further explained.

“And that’s the only way to unlock the map?” I asked, hoping for a no.

“Unfortunately yes,” Harp answered. I felt a cold sweat. “I tried to use my advanced VI to unlock it, but the data is too encrypted, and needs a spell matric key. Not to say that Order cannot decrypt the data, but it would need to be done location by location, and each one would take time to do. Order, what is the progress of decryption?”

Her pipbuck then spoke. “Madam, the decryption is currently at seven percent with fourteen hours and forty-two minutes until full decryption.”

“Thanks, Order. That will be all.” She lowered her pipbuck and sighed. “As you heard, it will take a long time, and I only blindly picked a spot, so the decryption could still just give us a load of nothing.”

I did feel a bit guilty, but more than that, I knew I was about to lose a huge payday, bigger now with how important that pipbuck was… “I have it,” I confessed.

“Have what?” Harp asked in a confused tone.

“The pipbuck Slowtrot lost, he didn’t lose it, I… I stole it...” this got both of their attention. “I mean he already had one, and pipbucks are worth a lot of caps to the right pony. With the caps I could get from it, I could feed Bridget for a year, and… I’m sorry.” I avoided their gaze, feeling shameful of what I did.

“So it’s not lost?” Slowtrot asked, and I nodded. There was a moment of silence, and I heard him trot up to me, clearly angry, as I had taken what was not mine, and… I felt two hooves whap around me and squeeze. “That's wonderful!” he shouted as I was hugged. “And I thought I must have drunkenly thrown it when trapped in that dark place!”

“You're not mad?” I asked as I peed at him.

Slowtrot let me go and backed up. “Wait, I probably should be… but I’m not.” He then sighed, his cheery disposition turning a bit solemn. “That pipbuck was never mine to begin with, and the pony who owned it, I…” He mumbled for a moment and then sighed again before putting on a fake smile. “Let’s just say that I’m just happy that it’s not lost. Everything else doesn't matter right now.”

“I agree,” Harp chimed in, “If we have that pipbuck, then we can help the gun runners. That’s all that matters right now.”

They both looked at me, eyes a bit too wide with hope. “Alright, but keep this quiet until we know this will help the gunrunners. The last thing I need is word getting out that I stole from an unconscious pony. Goddesses know, the deputies would love to use that against me. Anyways, I’ll be right back with that pipbuck.”

Passing through the lobby of depressed griffins, Longslide was waiting for me outside. Before he could say anything, I shoved my hoof into his beak. “No time! I might have a solution, so keep an eye on Bridget until I get back!” I told him before galloping off.

Fortunately, the town was mostly empty at this time of day. Most of the ponies were working at the quarry or scavenging outside of town, so I didn't have to dodge anypony. Unfortunately, I did see a deputy on their rounds, clearly watching me as I passed. Maybe they were just on their patrol, nothing to be concerned about, but right now any attention from the deputies was bad news.

It didn't take long to get home. I spent a little extra time wiping off my hooves on the dormant before entering. I did spend most of yesterday cleaning, so I was not going to just track dust in.

Inside, I trotted over to our one good drawer. It had several metal tins on top filled mostly with useless junk I thought we could use at some time in the future. They were covered with a cloth and had candles on top of that. This also made a good hiding spot as removing all this junk would be too much of a hassle and make too much noise for a thief. Anyways if a pony was willing to tear up my home to find anything of value, they were going to find it no matter how well I hid it.

Putting the candles, cloth, and smaller boxes to the side, I pulled forward a larger tin. It rattled with the sound of rusted nuts and bolts. Carefully opening it, there it was, a pipbuck. I had left it unlatched and spread out so to fit inside better. It didn't look all that different from any of the other pipbuck I had seen pass through the town. I mean I was no pipbuck technician, but I could tell it was in a far better condition than the pipbuck Spot Weld owned who was almost religious about taking care of it. Knowing what I know now, this thing is worth far more than double that what I was going to sell it for. Maybe it’s even being the only one of its kind.

With Ashy breathing down our necks, maybe it is a good idea to leave. With this, I could start a new life with mom and Bridget anywhere. It would be hard at first, but if we budget the caps, then we can take things slow. We’d build a new reputation and get a stable job. Or we could just go back west in order to reconnect with old friends. The two not-stable ponies were planning on heading that way too, so we'd have some safety in numbers.

Taking a deep breath, and sighing it all out, I closed the pipbuck and put it down as I grabbed a saddlebag. "I'll leave that as plan B," I muttered to myself as I put the pipbuck into the saddlebag, I then threw it onto my back and trotted out the door, leaving the mess on the counter for later.

"I hope you're not up to anything, Miss Star Charter," Stopped Clock spoke up, standings outside my house while smoking a cigarette.

I rolled my eyes at him. "I could say the same thing to you. We all know it was you or False behind the Gunrunners sabotage."

"Old machines tend to break down. Maybe that old Redeye slaver should have kept it all in Fillydelphia," he said, not even denying my accusation.

"Have you ever tried letting go of the past and accepting that things have changed? Redeye is dead, and slavery has been outlawed in most of Equestria," I said in an annoyed tone.

He spat out his used cigarette. The butt falling near my house. He pulled out another, struck a match and lit it before taking a long drag. The smoke slowly blew out of his mouth like some smoldering gun barrel.

"You were not here when Redeye first showed up,” Stopped Clock told me. “You weren't even here when he finally fell. Red Eye was not some slaver lord's child inheriting his position, or a raider warlord carving out his own empire. No, he was a stable pony, and one who used words, not guns, to get what he wanted. Within a short few years, he convinced the bickering slaver clans to stop killing each other and focus on everypony else. What was a manageable problem for us honest folks quickly turned into a nightmare."

Stopped Clock took another long drag from his cigarette before dropping it, pulling out another to smoke, then continued.

"If we had been as vigilant back then as we are now, there never would have been a Red Eye. That smooth-talking young stallion would have been hung at the gallows as soon as he became trouble. So, Miss Star Charter, I'll explain this once again; that’s the reason why I don't forget or forgive. The wasteland has never changed. It will always be a shithole, and as soon as we let our guard down, that's when the next Red Eye will show up."

"And let me guess, if that happens, Ashy will be the next Lightbringer?" I mockingly asked.

"I assure you, as long as Ashy breathes, there will never be a need for another Lightbringer." He said sternly.

"I get it, I get it. Ashy is a super Sheriff, but there is always going too far, and she's dangerously close to the edge, or have you forgotten what she did two nights ago?" I pointed out as I began to trot away. "Anywho, I can't keep my daughter waiting, so if you would pick up your litter before leaving yourself, that would be neighborly."

Stopped Clock spoke with a stern cold tone."Maybe crossing the line is what Ashy needs to do. I still don't know why she even tolerates an evil pony like yourself. You're nothing more than a bomb waiting to go off. The sooner you are disposed of, the safer we all are."

I ignored him, both because I knew responding to his provocations is just what he wanted, and that I had better places to be.

Quickly making my way back to the Gunrunners compound, I found Bridget and Longslide playing patty cake. The hippogriff looked over at me. He showed some annoyance on his face. "So what's this solution you have, Star?"

"Come with me and I'll show you," was all I said as I entered the compound.

Passing through reception, Longslide, Bridget, and I trotted over to Harp and Slowtrot.

"Did you find it?" Slowtrot asked hopefully.

I pulled the pipbuck out of my bag and passed it to him. "Here you go. So, now what?"

"A pipbuck? Where did you get that, Star," Longslide asked, sounding as if he suspected me of theft.

"Hardly matters right now." Slowtrot cut the question off as he pulled out a few cables and attached them to both pipbucks. "Alright… any moment… and… nothing?"

"It might be bio locked," Harp spoke up.We cocked eyebrows at her. "Some pipbuck have a biolock spell built-in. It's a security function to ensure that some pony can't just steal or hack into another ponies pipbuck. From what I can remember, it requires the owner's approval to unlock it."

There was a pause as we all looked at the overmare pipbuck. "So then, this is just a dead end?" I asked, feeling frustrated.

"Maybe put it on?" Slowtrot suggested.

Looking down at it, I had a strange feeling that if I did put it on, it was not coming off any time soon. From what I read in the Lightbringers book, her own pipbuck had fuzed to her fenlock, becoming part of her. "I don't know…"

"Mama's going to be like the Lightbringer!" Bridget excitedly gasped.

I had to keep myself from cringing as I imagined a pipbuck fused to my leg. "Well, no. I don't think that will…"

"Can I put it on! I wanna be like the Lightbringer!" my daughter said excitedly as she reached for the pipbuck.

I pulled Bridget back and held her close to me to calm her down. "If I did put that thing on, can you take it off later?"

Both Harp and Slowtrot looked at each other, then back at me. "Maybe…" both said, sounding unsure.

"Can somepony explain to me, why the pipbucks?" Longslide irritably asked.

With a sigh, I then explained. "They think there's an untouched Stable-Tec factory somewhere out in the local wasteland, but the location is locked behind administrative access which this pipbuck should have. If we can locate the factory, then we can get the parts for the workshop."

"I see…" Longslide said, sounding concerned. "If this is true, then we can stay in New Appleloosa."

"Maybe leaving might be for the best," I suggested, which got looks from everycreture. "Come on! You saw what Ashy did the other night, and now the sabotage! Face it, if we stay, it's only going to get worse. If I sell this pipbuck, there will be enough caps for me to take Bridget and mom somewhere safer."

Everyone became silent. Bridget putting a talon on my shoulder.

Then the door to the workshop flung open. A less than sober Hardballer stepped out. "You think there's someplace safer?! Ha! It's the wasteland! Nothing in the wasteland is safe. All you will be doing is trading one problem for another."

Longslide sighed, "Dad, you should lay down…"

"Shut your beak! I didn't come here just to run away with my tail tucked between my legs!" Hardballer shouted as he trotted over. "I came out here to give my family an opportunity to succeed, to give my apprentices the ability to express themselves. If we go back to Fillydelphia, then we all go back to living under my cousin’s claw, and fu…" he looked over at Bridget for a second. "Let’s just say it will not be fun. So, if there's any way to get the workshop back up and running, I say we take it. We can then talk about moving our operations later."

"That's true. As long as the machines work, we don't have to return to Fillydelphia. There are a few settlements further in the wasteland that would love to have us nearby," Longslide added.

I let Bridget go as I looked at the pipbuck for a few seconds before relenting. "Alright, I'll put it on." Reaching out with my hooves, Slowtrot passed it back to me. Slowly, I latched it around my left fenlock until it clicked, then I waited for it to respond. After a moment, the green light of its screen turned on.

The latch came loose and I shrugged. "I guess not," was all I said before I heard a click.

Looking at the pipbuck, Harp had attached another cable to it and one to Slowtrots pipbuck. "I was thinking that Order might be able to help. It is an advanced VI, and that pipbuck is 200 years behind programming," she explained. "Order, can you set Star Charter as that pipbucks new owner?" Her pipbuck then beeped, and she then nodded at me.

I re-latched the pipbuck, and again waited.

My vision blurred for a moment as a cascade of green zeros and ones flooded my vision for a few seconds. When it was over, I could see numbers and words along the edge of my vision, causing me to tilt my head in an attempt to read what it was.

"Ya, took me a while to get used to that," Slowtrot commented before looking back down at his pipbuck. After a moment, his eyes went wide. "It worked! We unlocked the map!"

Everycreature crowded around Slowtrot as he showed us the map. All I could see was a green screen covered in lines and little squares with a crosshair highlighting one square which showed us the name of the town. Harp then cleared her throat, "Order, show me the location of the closes Stable-Tec, Ironshod, and M.o.W.T. production factories."

"Several locations found madam," her pipbuck spoke.

Harp nodded as she looked at her pipbuck. "Alright, there's no M.o.W.T. factories nearby, and the Ironshod factory is the one we already knew about, leaving us with the Stable-Tec production sight 13."

Looking at my own pipbuck, I saw the location as well as several other markers between it and us. Some of it I recognize as places near a former radiation hotspot, and was more than a day's trot from here.

"Problem; if I was to guess the distance, it's going to take us around three days to get there and back, and that's if we don't run into trouble." I explained.

"Only if you go by hoof," Longslide spoke up, a smile forming in the corner of his beak. "If we take the Smuggler, we can get there in no time, and it should make bringing back the parts just as easy."

Catching all of us by surprise, Hardballer laughed. His despair from earlier seemingly gone.

"So we have a goal, a destination, and transportation. I guess we atta get that Smuggler ready. Time is caps, and we'll run out of both if we just sit around." Hardballer bellowed.

I don't know why, but I couldn't stop myself from smiling as a sense of excitement bubbled up from within me.

-Item Obtained- (Pipbuck 3100) an administrative pipbuck used by the higher-ups of Stable-Tec. New locations are now open up to you.

-Pipbuck Function Obtained- (Advanced E.F.S.) The Eye Forward Sparkle spell well now comes with Friend or Enemy function, along with height and depth detection. It will mark friends as blue, neutral as yellow, and hostiles as red, and will tell you if the target is above or below you.

-Pipbuck Function Obtained- (Advanced S.A.T.S.) The Stable-Tec Arcane Targeting Spell will now allow the user to perform precision attacks and noncombatant actions.

-Quest Start- (Burning Rubber) Obtain the machine parts from Stable-Tec production factory 13.

FoE: Desperados ch, 14 Burning Rubber

"Are you sure about this, Star?" Hardballer asked me, having sobered up a little as everyone got the Smuggler ready.

"Look, you need your apprentices to work on those machines. Have them ready for when we return. Other than Longslide, I'm the only one who is both free, and I know how to defend myself. There's not really any better choice," I again explained to him.

"Fine, but ya better come back and with all ya limbs still attached." The old buzzard then looked passed me at Longslide. "That goes for you, too. All of you."

Longslide just saluted at his father, then returned to attaching a large gun onto the gunnery nest of the Smuggler. He called it the Bozar, a customized version of the 5.56mm LMGs they were selling to the NCR. It was his attempt at turning a Light Machine Gun into a sniper rifle. He had somehow made it work.

As for the rest of the team, Harp had to come, or the Smuggler would be going nowhere since she was its power source. Slowtrot was also coming, mainly to help move anything heavy, as the strength of two earth ponies was better than one.

Making sure we were extra safe, the Gunrunners offered us any spare guns we wanted to take. Harp turned this offer down since she already had her revolver and bolt launcher. Longslide also had his own guns, a 12.7mm pistol he called Li'l Devil, along with the Bozar attached to the Smuggler. Slowtrot only had his .45 auto pistol, so he picked up a service rifle from the Gunrunners stock.

As I was looking through their stock, a loud thud behind me nearly made me jump. Looking back, a griffin had dropped a gun case next to me, and Hardballer unlocked it. "You probably want something you're used to."

The gun case opened. Inside were two familiar weapons, a cutlass, and a SMG.

"Wait! Did you reforge them? I thought you hated the rust gun," I recalled.

"No, and I still think that SMG is a garbage gun. When Ashy had them destroyed after you nearly burnt down the town, I fingered it would piss her off if they were to return. Unfortunately, I never got around finishing them. I just left them to the side where Javelina found them," he explained. "I think she wanted to give you them as a gift. She does like a challenge."

I picked up my Blackwater Cutlass. The blade’s in far better condition than I ever remember it being, and slightly better balanced. The new rust gun also looked better than my old one, with clean black paint. It looked far better put together. Picking up a magazine, I found it loaded with 10mm ammo instead then the bigger .45.

"Why the smaller ammo?" I asked.

"Javelina thought having more bullets suited you better, as you tend to blind fire a lot." The old buzzard pointed out. "Still, I don't like how it loads from the side or how it moves the magazines, making it terrible for using on a battle saddle."

I just shrugged. "Mystery to me as well," was all I said on the matter as I took both weapons and six magazines.

After a few more minutes, the Smuggler was ready to go, having a small trailer attached to the back to carry any extra parts we might find.

There was just one thing left to do.

Trotting over to my grumpy looking filly, she pouted and looked away from me. "I want to go too," she huffed.

"I know, but you have to stay here. It's too dangerous out there for a young filly," I explained. "Anyways, grandpa Hardballer is going to need as much help as possible in the machine shop. That includes you."

"But mama, I want to go on an adventure too!" she whined.

Hardballer walked up to us, wiping grease off his talons. "Actually, Javelina is currently working on a gun right now. It’s nothing delicate, and she's more stable today. Maybe you could be her assistant. Let her show you how to make a gun by claw."

Bridget shuffled in place, clearly thinking about what to say. "Well, if auntie is feeling better, then I guess I can go see her. But I really do want to go on an adventure!"

"Like the Lightbringer?" I asked

She vigorously nodded. "Y… ya. I want to go on an adventure and help other creatures like the Lightbringer."

I smiled. "Then maybe you should get yourself ready for an adventure. Learn some skills and stuff. Wasn't the Lightbringer a skilled technician and safecracker before she left home?"

Bridget nodded again, but this time slower. "Ya. She was also a crack shot and powerful unicorn before she left the stable too!"

Hardballer chuckled. "Then it’s settled. If you want to go on an adventure, then you need some skills. How about you start with learning how a gun is put together from Javelina?" He then began leading her away, winking at me.

I waited for them to leave before letting out a long sigh. "Sometimes I worry she's just going to run off one day, trying to be like me, or that Lightbringer," I said to myself with worry.

There was a roar from the Smugglers engine. I quickly ran over and saw that Longslide was driving. The two ponies were in the seats behind him.

"We're about to go. Get in the gunner seat!" Longslide shouted to me.

Climbing up, I took my seat. It was just a flat spot with circles of metal pipes which formed a half cage to keep me from falling out.

With another rev from the engine, the garage doors opened. The light of the sun flooded in. We waited as the other griffons looked outside to make sure we were clear. When we were given the the okay sign, Longslide pulled a lever next to his seat.

"hold onto your flanks, ponies, because we're not stopping until we get to our destination!" he shouted, then lurched the Smuggler forward before speeding out into the light.

I watched as New Appleloosa grew smaller and smaller before it dipped below the horizon. Longslide kept at a steady speed as the Smuggler moved along the flat terrain. We passed a few critters along the way, radroaches and geckos mostly. Some attempted to follow us but quickly gave up as we left them in the dust. There was also a ruin in mid deconstruction. That we slowed for a moment as we passed in order to be careful to not hit any ponies scavenging the ruin for building materials to sell back in town.

In the distance, I saw a caravan moving towards town. Through the scope of my gun, I saw that it was a buffalo tribe. Many of them were hauling large saddlebags or were armed with crude weapons made from scrap.

We all got a scare when a hellhound popped out of the ground and began chasing us for a Celestia damned half an hour. I suggested shooting it, but Longslide told me to save the ammo as it was only keeping pace somehow. I swear that the more I watched it, the more it looked like it was just having fun chasing us, and not hunting.

"Alright, turn left onto the highway." Slowtrot directed.

"You mean on the broken road?" Longslide asked for clarification.

Slowtrot thought for a moment, then shrugged. "Ya. Just turn left onto a road soon."

After an hour had passed, the pipbuck told us that we were close. It was good timing since Harp was starting to look tired. "You holding up?" I asked Harp in concern.

She nodded as she said, "I'll manage. It's just pushing this much magic through me for this long is putting a strain on me. It's called magic toxification, something about negative magic being slow to leave our body. It builds up in us over time."

"Like radiation?" I asked.

Harp shrugged. "Not sure. It was something that only happened during the practice of slave generators. Those ponies were already ill-treated. I think the textbook said that common symptoms were a decrease in reasoning skills, ill-temper, and a lack of self-preservation, but that was only in severe cases. Most ponies document just become sick or fainted.

"Well, let me know if you're feeling unwell. We can take a break," I let her know.

Not too long after, we came to our destination. We drove through a rusted archway into the factory grounds. We found that the factory was half-sunken into the ground. Most of it was buried in dirt and dust. There also happened to be three other large buildings inside the wall that looked like warehouses with several large rusted through motor wagons in front of them, the yellow and blue Stable-Tec paint barely existing on them anymore.

Scanning the area, I didn't see signs of raiders or scavengers, but there were several smashed robots so rusted, they must have been like that for over a hundred years.

"What do you think, Star?" Longslide asked from the driver's seat.

"Can't say until we go inside, but it does look like it's untouched. Well, at least untouched by raiders." I informed him.

Longslide hopped out of the Smuggler. "Alright, let's split into two teams. Harp and I will stay here. She should rest, and I need to make sure the Smuggler is not going to die on us. Star, Slowtrot, you two take a look inside, but don't go too far in until we know what might be inside, alright?"

"Sounds like a plan," I agreed as I hopped out. "Let's go, Slowtrot."

He carefully got out of the Smuggler, yet still slipped down onto the ground, falling onto his stomach. "Ya, give me a moment for my legs to wake up."

"Hey, Star!" Longslide yelled at me as he threw a small bag to me. "Just in case, use one and run."

Looking in the bag, I saw six apple grenades. "Ohh, nice!"

"Use only one. Got that, Star?" he shouted again.

I sighed. "Fine, fine. Use one and run."

Leaving the two outside, Slowtrot and I enter through the front doors of the factory. Inside was quiet. Too damn quiet for my liking.

Seeing a Sparkle-Cola vending machine, I decided to test my luck and check it for loot.

"Wow! It really does feel like over two hundred years have passed here," Slowtrot spoke, breaking the silence. "I guess everything is like this now, ravaged by time."

"That's about right, if it's not torn down or in a crater, it's just falling apart."

Jackpot! The machine had a bottle loose inside, a cherry-flavored one. Bridget is going to squeal when I give her this.

"I guessed as much." He sighed as he went behind a corner. After that, I heard a loud gasp. "Star, I found something." His voice quivered.

Bagging the Sparkle-Cola cherry, I trotted over. Behind the counter, I saw two blackened pony skeletons with the area around them also scorched black. "Looks like they were set on fire. Nasty way to go." Looking closer, I found a destroyed 10mm pistol, a broken spear, and several ruined cans of food along with a lot of burnt junk. "Must have been scavengers. Maybe they caught unaware."

"What killed them?" Slowtrot asked.

"Fire," I said flatly before taking it more seriously. "Not sure actually, as fire means raiders, but they had their weapons and supplies on them. Raiders may be dumb, but not dumb enough to not rob a pony of their things before burning the bodies.”

“Actually, most ponies would take the stuff before setting them on fire. Also, that vending machine still had a Sparkle-Cola in it for the taking. It would be gone if other ponies were here." I added.

Looking back at Slowtrot, his eyes were wide and pointing at something behind me. "Loo… look out." he whispered.

Tensing up, I saw a red marker in my E.F.S in the form of a triangle pointing to my right. Slowly turned my head, in the corner of my vision, I could see the glint from a black chitin stinger. Like a spring, I jumped to the side, dogging a strike from a radscorpions stinger. I pulled out my sword. The monster was the size of an adult pony. it was readying itself for another stinger attack. I also got ready, the cutlass in my mouth. I stayed low to the ground. When it jabbed at me again, I sidestepped and dashed forward. With a turn of my head and body, my cutlass severed the radscorpions stinger. It stumbled back, making a screeching sound as it thrashed.

The sound of many little legs came from down a hallway. Five more smaller radscorpions came into view. Putting my sword away, both Slowtrot and I pulled out our guns and fired. We first put down the bug near us, then we fired down the hallway. We managed to slow one down, but three others kept on coming only to then be joined by three more.

"Fuck! Run!" I shouted as I took out an apple grenade. Pulling the pin, I tossed it into the hallway and booked it out of the building. Pushing Slowtrot to go faster, we ran back to the Smuggler. We saw that Longslide was already in the gunnery nest, aiming the Bozar at the factory entrance. "Radscorpions!" I shouted. Hee motioned for us to get out of the line of fire.

Dashing to the side and out of the firing line, Longslide opened fire. With height, range, and good firepower, the radscorpions were torn to bits as soon as they stepped into the light. The bullets tore into them, practically popping their shells with not a single shot missing. When the shooting stopped, Longslide left seven mutilated radscorpion bodies near the entrance.

We waited a few minutes, guns pointed at the entrance, but nothing further came out. Taking a deep breath, I put my gun away and drew my sword as I trotted over to the entrance. I stepped over the bodies and looked inside. Everything was quiet. Sticking my sword into the dead bug, I looked back to Longslide. "Looks like you got ‘em all, and what fucking kind of ammo did you use?" I shouted over at him.

"They’re armor-piercing magnum round, my own personal stock for the Bozar," he replied as he loaded another extended magazine into the rifle. "Never leave home without them."

"I can see why that Redeye fella wanted your clan on his side," I muttered before taking my sword, wiping the bug ichor off and reattaching it to my saddlebag. "Alright, I'm going back inside!"

The smell of the explosive was still fresh in the air with the hallway splattered with scorpion ichor and burnt marks. Following me was Slowtrot who tried, and failed, to avoid stepping on the dead bug.

"I want to say that this is the worst thing I've seen, but it's not even close," he said, shaking off a bit of ichor from his hoof.

"Same," Harp added as she followed us in. "The islands have their share of big bugs. Not sure what's worse, the giant centipedes, or the paradise dragons?"

Slowtrot stopped, looking visibly disturbed. "Big centipedes? Now that's nightmare fuel, but dragons as well?"

"Well there's not actually dragons, it's just what we call them," she explained as she trotted over to the Sparkle-Cola cola machine. The vending machine then turned on with a clunk and dispensed another cola bottle. "Not sure what they are, but they're some sort of feathery lizard with big claws that like to ambush ponies. We just call them dragons because of how dangerous they are. As for the common ponies, they might as well be actual dragons."

"Alright. Enough chit chat. Let's investigate. Keep your guns ready. There can always be more bugs," I told the two. They nodded in confirmation.

Trotting further in, we entered into a large room filled with neatly organized smaller three walled rooms, each with its own terminal. There were scorch marks all over as though some pony had galloped around throwing motives. It is likely the one who killed the scavengers.

"Odd. This looks a lot like a slave shop room, but it has no shackles or place for guards to keep an eye out." I openly pondered.

A sigh came from Slowtrot before he said, "I don't know about how things work out here. With that whole slavery thing everypony keeps talking about, but back in my time, let’s just say they had something far more effective than chains to get a pony to work themselves to death."

"You mean bomb colors?" I responded.

"I think he means corporal punishment," Harp added.

Slowtrot cocked an eyebrow at us both. "No… that's horrible... They just held the opportunity of better pay over a pony and the threat of losing their job if they didn't work off the clock."

I chuckled. "Then why stay if it was like that?"

"Rent or living above your means. I knew a few ponies that worked that hard to feed their chem habit too," he explains.

"Ohh." Both Harp and I utter out loud.

Moving on, we made our way to where the factory floor should be, passing more scorch marks as we got deeper inside. Blocking our path was a blast door. It was covered in scratches. A pile of pony skeletons in front of it. Above was a barely functioning red flashing light that had the word "Lockdown" illuminated by it. Along the hallway was more scorch marks, and along the ground were a few holes filled in with rubble.

Harp trotted to a wall-mounted terminal. It was doing nothing when she pressed a power button on it.

"I'll provide it with some power and have a look," Harp said as she turned it on with her magic, then plugged her pipbuck to it. "Looks like the lockdown activated because of elevated radiation levels outside, like really high levels that only subsided a few years ago."

"Makes sense," I spoke up. "This area was still highly irradiated before the radiation was cleared up. It would answer why it's been barely touched. Radiation tends to keep ponies away. Add radscorpions, then even ghouls would avoid coming here.”

“Now, can you open it?" I asked.

"Administrative access required," Harp said as she tapped at the doors terminal. "I could have attempted to hack into it with Order, or maybe an overmare pipbuck could unlock it?"

I shrugged and traded places with Harp, plugging my pipbuck into the terminal. After a moment, my pipbuck flashed "Access Granted". The door clicked and hissed, then began to open. A wave of heat hit us like there was some sort of blast furnace still on in here. But worse was the sudden ticking from our pipbucks, warning us of the radiation inside. It was nothing major from what I knew about radiation, but I know we didn't pack any radaway onto the Smuggler. There was supposed to be no more radiation after all.

Stepping over the dead to get inside, we entered the factory floor and found the air suffocating hot.

"Fucking seriously? What’s going on i here?" I complained.

"Ya. It's like a boiler room in here," Slowtrot added. "Maybe we should go back for now."

I shook my head. "Let's first look around. Maybe we can turn off whatever is making this heat. After that, we can get Longslide and find the parts."

We all nodded as we stepped down the stairs to the factory floor.

The place was a maze of heavy machinery. Unfortunately, a lot of it looked damaged. Some of them had parts ripped out. Others looked blackened and warped as though partially melted. Stranger yet, there was soot everywhere. We ended up knocking the stuff up with each step, forcing us to cover our faces with rages to prevent us from breathing it in.

As for what was being built here, I couldn't quite put my hoof on it. It was all a bunch of rusting parts, but with all the faded warning signs all about, it had to be something dangerous.

As we stuck together to look about, we saw something odd, that being a hole in the ground with smoke coming out of it. The heat got worse as we got closer to it.

"I've heard of something like this back on the Islands," Harp spoke up, "On the big island, some lava vents would form in a tunnel, turning the place into a hotbox."

"This doesn't come off as volcano territory though," Slowtrot added. "Maybe there's a reactor meltdown under this place?"

I held my pipbuck closer to the venting hole. The clicking didn't change its rate.

"Don't think that's it," I said, picking up some random rusty metal part then tossing it in. "Well, let's go back. If this is the cause, then the heat is all we need to worry about."

As I turned to trot away, the hole made a whooshing sound. A blast of heat came out. Looking back, a yellow marker appeared in my E.F.S the triangle pointing downwards. I saw two sticks like things poke out from the hole, then bend at a joint, feeling the area. What followed was a big red spiky bug. It had two large mandibles, but nothing as threatening as a radscorpions claws.

"Alright, what's that?" I ask fearfully.

"A big ant," Slowtrot said as he scratched his chin. "Red, spikes, and came out of a scolding hot vent. Must be a dragon ant, but why is it here and so huge?"

"Like I care what it's called or why it's here. Can you tell me if it's dangerous?" I huffed as I kept an eye on the bug.

"Say Slowtrot, why do you know about this ant? Not to be rude, but you don't seem like the bug type," Harp observed.

"Oh, I'm not.” he answered. “It's just that there was a huge panic over them a few years back, like military levels of extermination to get rid of them."

His eyes went wide as we heard a bubbling sound come from the ant. Slowtrot then grabbed us both and pulled us behind one of the machines just as a gout of fire shot out from the ant. The flames stuck to everything and didn't go out quickly.

"So ya . . . they breathe fire," Slowtrot noted with an oddly calm voice.

Sounds of fire being roared out all around us. My E.F.S. lit up with a solid red bar, meaning that there was a metric shit ton of ants about and they were angry.

We backed up as the first dragon crawled into view. I aimed my rust gun at it and I opened fire. The ant went down quite easily, only to then explode, sending out globs of flaming ichor that stuck to everything near its corps.

"Oh fucking kay, they exploded too," I muttered in annoyance.

We attempted to make our way back from where we came but quickly found it blocked by several of the dragon ants, so I tossed a grenade at them to clear the way. The exploding ants covered our exit in fiery globs too thick to run through and it was slow to dissipate.

"We got more coming this way!" Harp yelled as I saw six more closing in, one shooting fire at us but, luckily, we were still out of its range. Harp fired her bolt launcher. The ant didn't explode, but instead just shot a jet of fire out of the hole in its body before falling over.

With more closing in and our way out blocked, we galloped in the only open direction which took us to another section of the factory, this one filled with smaller machines.

Slowtrot and Harp slammed the doors shut behind us as I shoved a big table into it. We stepped back and watched as the door began to glow, part of it slowly melting. I knew I wouldn't take long for the bugs to get in.

"Hey, I think I found out where the ants came from," Slowtrot spoke up.

Behind him was a broken glass display. In big bold letters above it was, "Danger; do not touch Dragon Ant Farm." The thing looked like it was modeled after a stable with little cartoon ants in stable barding.

"Whos fucking bright Idea was this?" I huffed.

Harp trotted over to a plack next to the large ant farm, then said, "’Remember, just as this Stable-Tec ant farm keeps these ants safe, and you safe from them, we do the same for the ponies of Equestria.’ - Scootalloo." Harp read. "I'm not going to speak ill of the dead, but it sounded like she didn't like the ponies Stable-Tec was going to save?"

Slowtrot scratched his goatee as he recalled, "I do remember watching this video back in the R&D stable, it…"

I shoved a hoof in his mouth to shut him up as I demanded, "Focus, ponies. We're about to get barbecued by a bunch of exploding bugs if we stay here. Is there anything here we can use to get us out of here?"

We quickly began to look around, but I still couldn't make mane or tails of what I was looking at other than some old tools, a few skeletons, and a lot of scrap metal. If we were not trying to get the fuck out of here, this place would have at least been a good payday in salvage, just if for the tools alone.

"Found something!" Harp shouted. We trotted over as she wiped dust off some wall-mounted map of the factory. "So that's what they were making here." She then pointed to a spot on the map. "Spark Reactor assembly and disassembly, those things are what powers a stable."

"And how's that going to help us?" I asked.

"They tend to be volatile if not properly maintained, such as sparkling deadly amounts of magical energy. The rooms that hold them tend to be the most well shielded. Maybe it's safe there." She pointed from the assembly to a loading dock, then into a cafeteria, then down a hallway to where we were, the spark reactor shielding assembly.

There was a loud pop. A dragon ant popped its head out through a melted hole of the door. With a few loud bangs, Slowtrot clumsily shot it until the fucker exploded, followed by a few more explosions that blew oped the fucking doors.

"That was not my intention!" he exclaimed in shock.

As soon as more ants stepped through the fire, we fucking galloped for it down a very scorched hallway. In the cafeteria, there were a few more ants, but they had not seen us yet, so we kept low, only to find two ants blocking our way.

"There's a way around through the kitchen." Harp directed us, taking the long way around to avoid the bugs. We crawled into a kitchen just large enough for the three of us to fit comfortably.

On the other end of the kitchen was another blast door, so no big worry. As I trotted over I heard a click and a sigh from two dumbass ponies. Both Slowtrot and Harp had stopped in front of a metal door and opened it. As I trotted over, the air became cooler. Inside I saw boxes of food.

"Okay, maybe some scavenging is required." I said.

Slowtrot pointed at one of the boxes. It was labelled as Barnyard Bargains Nature Bars.

"Take those,” Slowtrot suggested. “Those last quite a while despite not having much preservatives. They are made to be nutritious and filling, though the taste is a bit bland. I lived off them whenever my budget was tight."

Shrugging, I grabbed what I could reasonably fit in my saddlebag and had the other two do the same.

Closing the fridge, the heat returned.

I quickly scanned the kitchen for anything else I could take. Unsurprisingly everything in sight was burnt and damaged. Truthfully, it was odd that the fridge still worked.

One thing that did catch my eyes was a box that had several relay sharp-looking knives with one sticking out of a cutting board. With a closer look, I saw that it had cut through the wooden board and into the metal counter!?

*Bang, clang, clang*

Harp and I looked back at Slowtrot who somehow got snagged on a pot, knocking it over. No words were exchanged as we heard the sound of many small tapping legs coming our way. Luckily this kitchen had a few hiding spots, with Harp and I ducking into a large stove as Slowtrot hid inside a closet.

One ant came into the kitchen. It's antennas touched everything as it searched for us, even climbing onto the counter.

"Ahchoo!" A sneeze loudly came from the closet. I would have facehoofed if I had the room to do it. The ant whipped around to look at the closet. In doing so, one of its legs hit the knife sticking out of the cutting board, cutting the leg off like it was nothing. We were all caught by surprise by this, most of all the ant. It panicked, stepping on the box of knives before falling off the counter. The knives flew out of the box. Three of them came down onto the ant. The knives stuck right into it, right down to the handle. Next thing we saw was three streams of fire jetting out of the ant from where the knives stuck inside it, but it, fortunately, it didn't explode.

After a moment, no other ants came into the kitchen, so we all left our hiding spots. I checked the small box where the knives came from. It had the label of the M.o.A.S. on it. Go figure it was a Ministry product.

The three knives that were stuck in the ant were glowing white with heat, yet the handle was still cool to the touch, so I threw them in the box along with two other knives stuck in metal and shoved it in my saddlebag. Like fuck was I going to just leave those babies behind!

Again Harp powered the terminal. I unlocked the door. We trotted to the loading docks. We were expecting more ants, but to our horror, we found ourselves in some sort of cocoon room. The place was caked in hardened dirt all over the floor and walls, making the place look like some underground cave rather than inside a factory, all with the only light coming from burning cocoons being tended to by the ants. Luckily none had detected us. They were all on the other end of the room, but unfortunately we were standing in some sticky mold like substance that smelled like burnt shit. There were several radroaches scurried about, chewing on the ant shit, their markers fortunately yellow.

Slowly, we made our way to the other end of the loading docks while we stayed close to the wall, doing our best to not upset the radroaches. We just had to open another blast door to get to the assembly room, but knowing how loud they were, we prepared to jump through.

Once more Harp turned the damaged terminal on. It clicks and beeps seemingly louder than they should be. When I used my administrator’s access, it hissed louder than I had ever heard a door hiss. After that, it clunked like it was trying to call the ants to it, all before it opened with an ear-piercing screech. Of course, the ants heard at least that last part. As a result, they all looked our way.

I tossed a grenade before jumping through, followed by Slowtrot and Harp who both opened fired on the ants as I accessed the inside terminal to shut the door. As the door closed, we saw as ants popped out from everywhere, a sheer army of pissed off ants.

"Hello there!" A gravelly voice spoke up. We all screamed, then he screamed, then we screamed again. After that, he said, "Are you trying to give me a heart attack, youngins?!" A glowing ghoul in burnt stable barding shouted. There was barely a pony there, No main, tail, or fur. Just greenish-yellow glowing leathery skin and bones.

"Geeze, are you trying to give us a heart attack?!" Slowtrot reflected in a huff. "Sir, it's the attack of the pony-sized ants out there, so we're a bit jumpy."

The glowing ghoul cocked an non existent eyebrow. "The attack of what? Do you even work here? This is a restricted area you know, and during a lockdown. Show me your security cards!"

"Great!, A confused ghoul," I quietly sighed. "Listen here, ya old fart. It has been over-"

"Will my pipbuck be enough?" Slowtrot spoke up as he trotted over to the ghoul, presenting his pipbuck. It was clicking more than doubling.

The ghoul looked at him for a moment, then nodded, pulling out a boxy-like device that looked like a pipbuck but a bit cruder.

"Alright, it says you're a Stable-Tec courier,” the glowing ghoul noted in a convinced tone. “That at least proves your employment, but far from giving you access here." He then trotted over to Harp, who cringed as her pipbuck clicked faster. "A V.I.P. How nice, but still not allowed here." He then turned to me. I lifted my pipbuck. It clicked faster as he got close. "Now I know you don't belong here miss… Overmare! My apology! Is there anything I can do for you? Also, if it's not so much trouble, can you tell me why we're on lockdown?"

"Just give me a moment," I told the ghoul as I finally took a look around. The room was large, but not as large as the loading docks. It was still big enough for a large shack sized box-like thing to fit inside. It was placed on rails that led to an even bigger blast door that it could fit through. The rest of the room was clean and white with just as clean tools placed on a wall that had several burnt looking papers. The most interesting thing in this room was two securitrons sitting on the other end of the room.

"What are those for?" I asked.

"You mean Besty and Ross? They’re our anti-zebra security bots. You know, in case of zebra invasion." The ghoul explained, and an idea formed in my head.

Motioning the other two over, I then whispered. "Let’s send the killbots after the ants!"

"Sounds like a plan to me, but that's a lot of ants," Slowtrot partially agreed.

"Too many ants," Harp added, "Even if we get away, there's no salvaging the parts if the ants are still swarming this place."

"That's true. As long as those fuckers are here, we're still screwed." I agreed. "But it's not like we have some sort of super ant killing tool."

"That would be a lot of bug spray," Slowtrot agreed with a sigh.

"How about we have the reactor overload?" Harp pondered. "Not as in an explosion, but sending an electrical pulse out. Everything inside the building would get fried, both living and electronic, but everything else should be fine."

"Is that even possible?" Slowtrot asked.

"Only if you do the wrong thing the right way," The ghoul informed us, causing us to jump back. "Now will you tell me what in Tartarus is going on now?"

I looked over at Harp. She nodded back at me before she turned to the ghoul as she said, "Well, we're under Zebra attack, and the rest of the factory is lost." The ghoul gasped as Harp continued. "We need to escape, but we also need to preserve the factory while keeping it out of Zebra hooves. You understand?"

He scratched his boney chin. "I knew this day would come! I just knew it!" The ghoul then saluted Harp, then at me. "I'm at your service. If you need me to start up the securitrons, have the reactor do an electro feedback pulse, I can do it."

"If you can, you will do Equestria proud," Harp added.

"Alright, but you might want to get out of here. I know how this all works and how to not to be turned to dust. I'll send Betsy and Ross out to clear the way, I'll just need the loading doors unlocked," the ghoul told us as he trotted over to the terminal. "The day has finally come! They finally made the push!" We watched as he began tapping at a terminal.

I trotted over to the larger blast doors. I hooked my pipbuck into the connecting terminal which promptly unlocked it. A loud clunk and a deep booming voice announced the activation of the robots, "Anti-Zebra programming activated," both robots bellowed as they began to move. The two bots got in place in front of the large blast door which I selected to open, then they quickly got out of the way as a wave of heat entered the room. "Hostiles detected. Beginning elimination protocol. For Equestria!" The robots bellowed before rolling out of the room and opened fire with beams and rockets.

The sounds of ants exploding sounded a lot like fireworks. Peeking out, the loading docks had become an inferno. Ants and fire were everywhere. The robots fired wildly. A stray rocket flew out and hit a patch of flaming cocoons. The batch exploded, causing the dirt to crumble. A new opening hole led to the outside.

The ants were now entirely focused on the rampaging robots who were killing them rapidly, but the ants were just as quickly replenishing their numbers. It was now, or never since those two robots were going to be quickly overwhelmed.

"Alright. Follow me, and don't fall behind!" I shouted.

Jumping out, I galloped along the edge of the wall to avoid the flames while shooting at any ant that looked at me the wrong way. Because of all the exploding ants, the smoke in the air had grown thicker, making it both hard to breathe and see, but I pushed on. The way out was still ahead. We had to climb a bit, but the strange dirt-caked ground helped us get a strong hoof hold as we climbed.

A loud whine and pop caught my attention. I looked back in time to see one of the robots have one of its arms melted off. "I die for the princesses, for Equestria!" A robot bellowed before it exploded, sending a shockwave out, along with robot parts. The explosion also helped push more of the smoke out, giving us a bit more room to breathe.

Doubling my efforts, I finally made it to the opening only to see an ant had gotten behind me, blocking off the other two. Thinking fast, I drew my sword and charged, stabbing the ant in its midsection. The bug let out a cry before fire erupted from its wound. I fell back, the hilt of my sword still in my mouth, but without most of the blade. What was left now melted to slag. Harp and Slowtrot didn't let my loss go to vain. They quickly rushed out through the hole passed me just as the second robot suddenly stopped. Its back opened up to reveal two white hot coils.

"Death is preferable to capture by the Zebra menace!" With another powerful explosion, the army of angry ants went flying, some exploding in mid-air.

Unfortunately, more ants came out of their hole. Lots more, and now their attention was on us.

Putting the hilt away, I muttered, "Fuck one and run." I took out the grenade bag, pulling on the rings of all three remaining apple grenades before tossing it at the incoming bugs then got my flank out of there.

Cool fresh air never tasted so good as we galloped. We put as much distance between us and the ants.

Turning a corner, we saw Longslide with his Li'l Devil out and several flaming craters around the Smuggler. "Fuck! You're alive! Now let’s get on before more come out!" he shouted frantically.

Just then, the air tasted odd. There was a crackling sound. Looking back, electricity sparked through the building. I watched as an ant crawled out through the front door only for it to then explode as a bolt of electricity hit it.

I laughed in loud triumph as I cried out in victory. "We did it! That should kill all those fucking ants."

The ground then shook. A gout of fire burst from the front door. The heat of it was intense and didn't stop. I watched as the factory not only was engulfed in flames, but then began to sink into the ground, falling apart as it fell. When it was over, there was nothing but a massive burning pile of rubble.

"Right…” I note dryly. “They explode."

FoE: Desperados ch, 15 Burning Rubber

The smell of the Stable-Tec burnt ruins was thick in the air. It was a mix of burning tar and, oddly, cooked cram. We just stood there, looking at it, unsure what to do next. That place was supposed to have the critical parts we needed, and it was gone. What we did get was several severe burns, a bad cough, my groceries, and a box of knives.

The sound of rustling from the ruins caught our attention. Because of it, we drew our guns. What then popped out was the glowing ghoul who was covered in dust, but looking no worse for wear. "Damn zebs! They must have rigged the factory to blow. Did you all get out alright?"

I sighed as I put my gun down. "We're fine, but the factory's loss is a big blow. We're going to need to find the parts elsewhere."

"Doubt we have the time or ammunition. We should just head back," a dejected Longslide suggested.

"Parts, you say?" The ghoul slid down the rubble and looked around, his eyes stopping at the three buildings off to the side. "Well, there should be spares over in the storage warehouse," he said as he pointed at one of the three buildings.

Longslide perked up. "Would there be Griffonstone Mechanics parts there?" he asked.

The ghoul scratched his chin, then nodded. "I see. You must be an inspector. Yes, as regulations dictate, we do keep replacements for your companies machines on hoof."

Opening up his wings, Longslide jumped over to the ghoul, though still keeping some distance. "Show me! It's important that I look through them."

With hope restored, I turned to my companions who were still recovering from their near-death experience.

Slowtrot was doing… okay. A dragon ant got him in the plot, and he was currently sticking it in the air to cool off his backside.

Harp, on the other hoof, had avoided the fire but seemed to have taken in more radiation than the rest of us. It was nothing severe, but she was clearly weakend, and would need to see a doctor before or risk the damage becoming permanent.

I, myself, was doing the best out of the three of us. Although I had burnt myself a few times, I had already recovered, but the grumbling from my stomach told me that I needed to eat. Not soon, but getting into another fight would be a really bad idea.

"So what happened, Harp? You were in there just as long as us." I noticed.

She groaned, further showing how ill she felt. "Panicked charged a few times. Tring to keep the air pressure in my gun high and forgot about the radiation." She shivered for a moment. "I might need to rest for a bit before we go back."

"Same," Slowtrot added. "Sitting down right now is not going to be fun."

"You both do that. You earned a break," I told them.

Turning to see that Longslide and the ghoul, they were already at the first building. I quickly trotted over to see what they found. The ancient rusty doors whined loudly as they opened. Once I got closer, I peeked in. Personally, I still didn't know what I was looking at. Most of it was just sealed in boxes and some oversized motor wagon. All of it was half-buried in rubble and gunk. It looked like the roof had collapsed long ago. The ants used it to throw away their trash.

Even though it looked like a wreck, Longslide quickly jumped in, heading straight towards the trapped vehicle.

"This is a Burro Industry tractor! This thing can move several tons!" He squawked excitedly.

"Cool, but how do we get it out, and what about the machine parts?" I pointed out.

The ghoul gave out a long sigh as he said, "Even more zebra tampering. Unfortunately, we kept the Griffonstone parts in the back, so you will need to have them dugout."

"And the other two buildings?" I checked.

"Let’s see,” the ghoul paused in thought. “One should be mostly empty. It had all the maintenance supplies for a stable that was just completed, and the transport crew came for it yesterday. The other was used for storing noncritical parts for spark reactors," He explained.

So, with that, hope had been dashed, mostly.

"Longslide, lets head back to the Smuggler and brainstorm how we might recover those parts," I told the hippogriff. He sighed as he left the tractor.

As we trotted back, there was a distant, constant roar which ever so slightly got louder. Sharing a glance with Longslide, he flew up into the air as I galloped to the Smuggler. I jumped up into the gunner nest. Looking along the horizon, I saw a dust cloud heading our way. Peering through the scope of the Bozar, I saw what looked like… ponies on small motor wagons. It was hard to make out, but as they got closer, I could see the distinct black vests of the Desperados.

"So… how much ammo did you say we had again?" I called out to Longslide.

He landed on top of the Smuggler then checked his gun. "Not enough for a drawn-out fight," he eventually answered.

I looked down at Harp. She clearly needed more time to recover.

"Could you get us back to New Appleloosa, or at least close?" I asked Harp hopefully.

She shook her head as she said, "Not unless you give me an hour to rest, then maybe. What's heading our way?"

"Trouble, so be ready for a fight," I warned her as I got down from the gunner’s nest. "So we can't run, and probably can't fight them all. Now what?" I asked Longslide.

"They're just ponies, right? Maybe we can talk to them?" Slowtrot piped in. I rolled my eyes.

"Actually, that is an option," Longslide said as he jumped into the gunner’s nest with an odd grin on his beak, before looking through the scope. "Just hear me out, Star. The Desperados are not raiders… Well mostly their not raiders. I heard they've been keeping out of trouble, so maybe we can negotiate."

"For what? Not to be raped and disemboweled?" I huffed.

Longslide stood up. He still had a cocky smile on his beak. "Well, I was thinking that we needed extra hooves to dig out the parts, so why not try and make a deal with them?" I face hoofed at the idea… but at least it was a plan.

Waiting for the Desperados to arrive felt longer than it should. With everypony but Longslide positioned at the Smuggler, I returned to the gunner's nest with my rust gun out. The hippogriff stood at the rusty archway of the factory's entrance with his Bozar pointed down in his claws.

As the Desperados got closer, the roar of their motor wagons took over the ambient sound of the wasteland. At this point I could now make out what exactly they were riding. A few of them were in something similar to the Smuggler except for the fact that their vehicle was smaller and rusty. As for the rest, they were on what looked like a small engine on two wheels which was barely big enough to fit two ponies. It made me think that the sparse armor they had on was more for protection from falling rather than from being in a fight. I didn't know why, but I wanted to try and ride whatever it was.

The ganggers slowed down as they got close. One of them parked his two-wheeled motor wagon in front of the others by kicking a little metal stick out and having his wagon rest on it. The pony himself was a big stallion who had no armor on aside from his vest and a painted black metal helmet with a single spike poking out on top. He was also covered in scars and tattoos. The ink depicts flaming wheels, skills, and more of those two-wheeled motor wagons.

"Big balls just standing there ready for a fight. shouldn't you be sucking on ya mamas tit like those ponies over there?" The brute pointed at Harp, Slowtrot, and the ghoul who were hiding behind the Smuggler.

Longslide patted his Bozar, bringing the ganggers attention to it. "Their job is not to fight, so I would prefer you keep them out of this, unless picking on ponies you know you can beat is your style?" he mocked the gangger.

There was a short pause before the gangger glared at Longslide and stomped up to him, getting nose to beak. "Fine, but if ya what to fight, then let's fight."

"You will do no such thing yet!" The voice of an old mare yelled out from within the group of ganggers. The big stallion backed up as a very thin and old mare, who was also covered in tattoos, trotted into view. "This is why Elder Big Papa asked me to come. He knew you would try and pump up that ego of yours and get us in trouble again!"

"But gram gram..." the big stallion stammered.

"Don't gram gram me! This is not route 50. I shouldn't have to remind you of that!" she scolded the stallion before trotting passed him and up to Longslide. "You must be one of them Gunrunners. I'm Burning Asphalt, elder of the Route 50 Desperados. May I know your name?" the old mare even fluttered her eyes as she introduced herself, as though she didn't look ancient and leathery.

"Longslide, son of Hardballer, the boss of the local Gunrunners," he answered, taking a claw off his gun. "If it's not too rude, may I ask why you're here in such force? You had us worried that this was a raiding party."

Burning Asphalt looked back and chuckled before returning her gaze to Longslide. "Oh, you know how youngins are. Big Papa wanted me and my grandson to investigate your vehicle there, and next thing we knew it, the rest of ‘em up and followed us. Can't blame ‘em, with how our employer wants us to stay put. They're getting a little stir crazy."

"You're interested in my Smuggler?" Longslide asked as he put his claw back onto his gun.

She nodded and motioned back at the motor wagons. "As you can see, it's a thing of ours. It's how we keep control of route 50. When your territory stretches from the east coast to west coast, ya can't just do it on hoof. So, when one of our boys saw ya ride out of town, he went to tell big Papa, and now we're here."

There was a brief pause before Longslide spoke, "So you're here. Now what?"

Burning Asphalt smiled. Most of her teeth were either yellow or replaced with gold. "Would you be willing to give up that there auto wagon? We would be grateful, and will be willing to compensate you for it." The other Desperados had a hoof out, ready to pull their guns, making it clear that they were not giving us another option other than to give them the Smuggler.

Longslide looked back at us briefly, then back to the old mare. "Even if I wanted to, I can't give you my Smuggler. We’re doing an important job, one that needs us to return by the end of the day. Maybe we can interest you in something else? I am a Gunrunner, after all."

The mare chuckled, "We got guns, sonny, and anything else you might be able to offer. Well, except for that ‘Smuggler’, as you call it."

There was another pause as they were clearly interested in one thing only, but as I chewed on who I should shoot at first until I saw that Harp and Slowtrot come out from behind the Smuggler and trotted over to the old mare.

"I got to say, the Desperados haven't changed at all. It has been what, two hundred and eleven years, and you're still roving around on those early war motorcycles? How are they even still working?” Slowtrot spoke up.

Burning Asphalt lost the smile, now looking a bit confused. "With lots of love and grease. Now, how do you know about them bikes being from early war?"

"Well, from what I remember, most of the biker gangs were started by early war veterans, mobile squads and couriers I think," Slowtrot explained. "Sorry. I'm not all that well informed about the early war, but there was this scandal about the local biker gang in my area dealing in chems. The Tartarus Angles, if I remember correctly. They got turned into a movie too. That's how I learned about how the biker gangs got started."

The old mare seemed to relax as she studied Slowtrot. "Yes. The Tartarus Angles were an enemy from times before myself, and our founders did fight in the war of endings. Strange how you know this, though being not a ghoul of old."

Slowtrot scratched the back of his head nervously, "Well, I'm from the wartime, just kind of fell through time."

Harp stepped in between the two as she said, "Elder Burning Asphalt, my name is Harp Melody. May I change your mind on the need for guns? I mean, that is if you like only being able to buy from Blue Skies that is?"

Burning Asphalt's demeanor changed again, this time to annoyance, "Another pony knowing more than they should." She said as she spat on the ground. "Alright, then speak up. How can you give us a better deal then our employer?"

"Right, Blue Skies. Trust me when I say this, but you ponies might do well to stay away from that group. I can't really explain it, but their leader is a dangerous pony," Harp explained, getting a laugh from the Desperados.

"Missy, we’re all dangerous ponies," the old mare pointed out.

Harp then sighed. "Ya, that might be the wrong direction I should argue. Then how about I ask you a question; your employer, of which I personally know you are only allowed to sell to by order of the mayor and sheriff, how's the quality of gear you're getting from them and the price you're paying for it?"

Burning Asphalt didn't respond, looking more like she was chewing on how to answer. What Harp had said didn't sound all that surprising, as it wouldn't be the first time that Espresso, or Ashy, had banned a group from doing business in town. The Zebra tribe Angles had gotten bard from town’s business in favor of Quacksalver, and if it wasn't for Velvet Remedy's influence, so would have the Followers.

"Their guns are shit!" one of the ganggers yelled from the back.

"And overpriced!" another shouted.

The group of ganggers began murmuring among each other, clearly annoyed with their employer, stopping only when Burning Asphalt looked back at them.

"Alright, ya got us there," Burningn Asphalt admitted with a huff as she looked back at us again. "Blue Skies doesn't deal in quality goods, so we take or pay elsewhere to buy our guns and ammo. If we were back on route 50, there'd be plenty of settlements that would give tribute in good guns." She then spat on the ground again. "Fucking contract! I told big Papa it was a bad idea, and now we’re getting cheated by that slimy business pony. But, even then, we ain't risking a good payout on a few polished rifles, girly."

"That's only if you're doing business in town. I doubt New Appleloosa is so big that we're considered to still be in town," Harp explained as she extended a hoof out as though presenting the wasteland itself. "Sheriff Ashy doesn't have authority out this far, and the Gunrunners have an association with the NCR, so if anypony tries to piss on your breakfast out here, they're just asking to get shot."

Burning Asphalt now looked impressed. "Not a bad proposition, but what's stopping us from just taking your current shit or from you just running off to suck the sheriff’s tit?"

Harp gave a long sigh. "Well, I can personally say that I wouldn't trust the sheriff to not just use this as a reason to kick us out of town. The mayor too. We're not in their good graces right now. I think it would do the town a lot of good if the two would retire. Whatever good they have done can't be worth the madness they’re sowing. As for why you shouldn't take the Smuggler…"

Longslide put a claw on her shoulder, stopping her before she trotted up to the old mare.

"As the mare said, my family has strong associations with the NCR,” Longslide put in, “and an even stronger ties to the Talons. That's two groups you don't want to be on the bad side of. Also, if you decide to cover this robbery up by killing us, I highly doubt nobody saw you come this way. When creatures start asking questions, they will put two and two together." He patted his Bozar again. "Now, to put it in the form of a question; do you really want to risk having nearly every griffon in this region being given a kill contract on you and everypony you hold dear?"

All the Desperados fell silent, and though the hot sun was beaming down on us, it felt cold.

After a moment, Burning Asphalt put her hooves up. "Alright. I get it. Ya can keep your Smuggler. Anyways, we were told to start no fights, not if we can help it that is. Still, ya all got some fucking balls. I respect that. It's been too long since we met another respectable creature out here. Ever since we came down south, it's been nothing but sniveling cowards or self-righteous uppity hero types." She again spat on the ground. "If it's not too much to ask, could we at least take a look at that Smuggler? My grandson here is a right gearhead before he could ever be considered a warrior. All of those scars are from hurting himself as he was working on our rides."

"Gram gram, they don't need to know that!" the big stallion wined.

A chuckle came from Longslide. "Alright, but I also need a favor, something only strong ponies like you could help us with."

"Is that so? Well then, let me tell you, my ponies don't come cheap." The old mare snidely informed him.

"Then let's talk business. Time is caps, after all," Longslide said as he escorted the old mare to the Smuggler.

It didn't take long for the two to hammer out a deal. As it turned out, the ganggers were in need of having most of their guns repaired as well as a resupply of good ammo. Though raiders were not even a problem where they were camped out, they were having a problem with some giant wasps that kept attacking their camp. Unsurprisingly, they were also in need of medical supplies because of the attacks, so I suggested they ask the Followers of the Apocalypse. I then had to explain who they were. Burning Asphalt was genuinely surprised such a group existed. She gladly agreed to tell their leader about them.

When the Desperados finally began to clear out the rubble from the warehouse, Slowtrot and I joined them, just to make things go faster.

They were understandably weary of me, as the last two encounters I had with them left one mare embarrassed and a stallion missing a chunk from his leg. But, as we worked, they quickly warmed up to me, not that I was trying to butter them up. They just seemed to respect that I could haul rubble as well as they did.

Slowtrot was doing surprisingly well among the ganggers. At first he informed them about the proper way to move rubble, and then began talking about an old movie called "Rebel Without A Cause," of which the ganggers enjoyed hearing about.

It took quite a bit of time, but eventually we were able to clear out the rubble and locate the spare parts for the Stable-Tec machine shop along with freeing the tractor. After a short moment, Longslide found what we needed, all of it, plus extras, which caused us to cheer in victory. There was a bit of an argument over who got the tractor, of which was in no condition to move, but after some dealing, the Desperados relented. Another deal was made for their help in hauling it back to town. Burning Asphalt decided to join us to make sure the deal was finalized.

With little time to waste, and with Harp rested, we got back in the Smuggler. and rolled out. We kept the glowing ghoul in the trailer so not to put Harp at any more risk of radiation poisoning than she already was.

"Not to pry, but why do we need that fucking tractor? Aren't they slow as balls?" I yelled/asked Longslide.

"Only when hauling heavy loads!" he answered, "I'm planning on installing its engine into the Smuggler. It should solve the power problem."

I looked back at the rusty, yet still in good condition tractor. "Didn’t you say spark talismans were a problem because they explode and such?"

"It's a Burro Industry vehicle. They didn't complete thorough selling of their vehicles, but they succeeded in renting them out, or at least that is what I read about them. Anyways, their construction vehicles are fucking durable to tartarus and back, and they have parts that are far easier to fix or replace than almost any motor wagon you can find," Longslide explained.

"They were also all over the place out west," Slowtrot chimed in. "A lot of ponies wanted to work for Burro Industries because they paid better than most companies, and had a lot of work contracts because of how reliable they were. Even saw one of their mega haulers once. The thing was like a land ship."

Something then clicked. "Wait! Was the Burro Industry run by donkeys?" I asked.

Slowtrot nodded. "Ya. I remember that they would advertise themselves as bringing donkey stubbornness to construction. It was pretty funny because of how true it was."

I gave out a long sigh. "Ya, that does sound like Happy."

"Who?" Longslide now asked.

"Happy Burro? I met him back west long ago, thought he'd make a great sailor back in the day. I mean, he had a wooden leg, and used a sword. This was a common sight back where I'm from." I explained.

"Well fuck. Didn't expect that family to still be around," Longslide said with a chuckle. "Then again, donkey's were always the most stubborn creature in Equestria. They even give the Talons a run for their caps when writing contracts."

We continued to roll along. The closer we got to town, the more ponies we started to see. Most of them were just scavengers, but we even passed by a merchant while he hauled a massive saddlebag. He was guarded by a mean-looking mercenary in black metal armor that had a white scorpion painted on it. There were even the regular looking wastelanders, covered in raggs, and likely in need of a wash.

We were about an hour before sunset when we finally returned. Standing just outside the compound was a less than thrilled looking Prism. As we rolled up, the garage doors opened. Both we and the Desperados that came with us rolled in.

As I got out of the Smuggler, I watched as Prism stomped over to me. "Okay Mom, I know you're upset, but…" I began.

I was grabbed in her telekinetic grip and pulled to her where she then hugged me. "You know how worried I was? I could just slap you!" She then put me down. "Hardballer already explained everything to me. I can't believe Ashy would take things this far. Why didn't you tell me about her almost shooting Slowtrot? That's well beyond over the line."

I sighed. "Because it will only stir up trouble for every creature if we antagonize the sheriff right now. Just trust me. We have things under control." I looked over as an exhausted-looking Harp. "But there is something I need you to do."

Prism looked over at Harp, noticing the same thing as I did. "Is she alright?"

"She is, for the most part, but she will need some radaway and a good rest to get her back to full health. We also picked up a glowing ghoul who's been locked in a room since the great war, so he's going to need some help getting caught up on recent, and ancient, history."

"So you ended up finding a radiation pocket? Why am I not surprised?" Prism asked with a droll sigh. "Alright, I'll take them to the Followers camp on the edge of town," she said as she trotted off to them.

"Oh, I also picked up some food while I was out, so there's that," I added. In response, my mother smiled as she shook her head.

I trotted over to Longslide and Hardballer just in time to see them pull out a bottle of Griffonstone Vodkas, and cheer. "So you’re back in business then?"

Hardballer gave a bellowing laugh. "Are we back in business? With these parts, and that engine, we’re fucking golden! We just need to put the machines back together and get back to work," he said cheerfully before almost skipping over to Burning Asphalt. He passed her a filled shot glass. She threw the drink down her muzzle. "Alright. My son said we had a deal to finalize, so let's write the contract for it, then."

"Alright, but don't try and cheat us! We know how ya griffons are when writing yo damn contacts." The old mare sprouted before leaving with him.

A tired-looking Slowtrot trotted up to me, yawning before he spoke. "Let's hope we don't have to do that again any time soon. Giant scorpions and ants are just too much in one day."

"Ya, I get that, but luckily that's a very rare problem in town, so just rest up. Anyways, at least you're now back at the compound. You guys have bullets for days here." I comforted him.

He nodded lazily. "True… Well, I'm going to get some sleep and hopefully not have a nightmare about today."

"You do that," I encouraged him as he trotted out to the courtyard. As soon as the door opened a pink blur rushed in.

"Mama!" Bridget yelled as she leapt onto me. "How did your adventure go? Did you fight villains? Did you slay a monsters? Did you? Did you?!"

I picked her off me and put her onto the ground. "Matter of fact, I did help slay a bunch of monsters."

Bridget squealed in excitement. "Was it a dragon, just like the Lightbringer?"

"Ehhh, well ... yes and no." I ruffled up her adorable mane. "How about I start from the beginning? After that, we’ll head home."

She energetically nodded. As we made our way home, I began recanting my little adventure, with some proper embellishment of course. Although she was so full of energy not long ago, by the time I got to where the Desperados arrived in my story, she had already fallen asleep.

"Surprised she lasted that long," Hardballer said quietly. "After helping Javelina, she had been bouncing off the walls waiting for you. Literally bouncing off the walls."

"If I had wings when I was her age, I'd have done that too," I quietly giggle.

"What did you do at her age?" he asked me curiously.

I shrugged. "Avoid getting thumped, went to church for my daily meal, and-"

A griffon jumped over to us, quietly landing on his paws, and whispered to Hardballer. The old buzzard quickly showed a sour look on his face before walking off. Carefully I got up and followed him into the courtyard, then to the reception, where the good mood was imminently ruined by the sight of Sheriff Ashy.

"This better be good after the shit you pulled last time!" Hardballer growled.

She glared back at him. "Oh it is. As I have been told, you've just recently let some raiders into your compound. Is this true?"

"Don't you start this shit again! You don't have jurisdiction over who I can sell to. Now fuck off!" He shouted.

"I protect this town, and what I say is law! Your NCR merchant rights can go fuck a radroache!" she growled back. "If you’re endangering this town, I will kill you!"

"If the Desperados are a danger, then go do something about it," Hardballer said in a mocking tone. "Oh wait, your law is second to this town's cap flow. Espresso said no, ya hear."

Ashy drew her revolver. So did Hardballer. "Say that again, slaver!" she said in a low growl.

Hardballer tilted his head up, something he did when calling some ponies bluff, and that's when I stepped in to stop this from escalating like last time. "Alright, that's enough. I can't believe the oldest ones here are acting like angry foals!" I sternly chastised them as I got in between. "Hardballer, you've been drinking, so go sit down before you make Bridget cry," I told the old buzzard before looking Ashy in the eyes, focusing ever so slightly with my evil eyes, thus shoving a little bit of fear into her and making sure she did make any sudden moves "And you should know better. If a crime has been committed, go write an official report to the NCR. We’re not going anywhere, at least not on your terms."

Breaking eye contact, Ashy backed off, breathing heavily before holstering her revolver. "Fine, but trust me when I say this; if I catch any of you dealing with raiders, I will have justice done." She said as she stomped out of the compound.

Letting myself fall back onto my flank, I let out a long stressed filled breath. "This day has just been too much." I sighed.

"You are just full of surprises, Star. I never seen her back down like that." Hardballer gave a nervous chuckle as he slid back in his seat. "But still, if she's pushing this hard, then it's time I move shop. Not back to Fillydelphia, but the Gunrunners definitely can't stay here."

I got back onto my hooves and trotted over to Hardballer. "I heard that Lass Pegusus is a good place for business."

Hardballer shrugged. "Maybe, but I first have to get our commissions done for the NCR and Desperados. Should be easy with everything coming back online, and with those new parts." He looked at me with worry on his face. "Star, are you okay? Your eyes…"

"My eyes?" I rubbed them with my hood. I found blood on it… Shit, I forced more than I should have. Now my eyes were bleeding. Worse, I was getting really hungry. "I… I'm fine. I just a little condition I have when I get over-excited or stressed. All I need is some food and rest. That's all."

The old griffon still looked concerned. "Alright Star, but if you feel even a little worse, go get checked out by the Followers. The wasteland is still full of unknown illnesses and other weird shit. You understand?"

"I do. Trust me, I definitely do," I reassured him as I left to go and collect my daughter.

I know I only used a little of the evil eye. I'm not a little filly anymore. I can control it, keep my eyes from bleeding, and keep the hunger at bay, yet why did I lose control just now, and why am I still getting hungrier?

I don't like this, not at all.

FoE: Desperados, Ch16, Mares Night Out

"Alright, Miss Harp, you're clean and healthy again. Despite your prolonged radiation exposure, there's no sign of early mutation," Jali informed me as she began taking off sensors that were attached to my leg. The machine she was using to monitor me gave a long and loud beep until she turned it off. "I wish I knew more about your kind's genetics or this treatment they used to make Mirage Ponies. Looking at it, it's like your genetic code is protected by an armor of junk DNA. Though not perfect as far as I can tell, it clearly makes you less likely to mutate compared to the average pony." Jali then frowned as she looked at a clipboard.

"Is there something the matter, Jali?" I asked, feeling a bit worried.

"Not sure." She sighed. "There's just too much I don't know about your genetics or your magical abilities. Other than the chaotic, negative, and necrotic radioactive magic I flooded out of your system, there's also other magics that my instrument can't properly read. Might be residual megaspell magic or your own natural raw magic. However, since I don't have other mirage ponies to compare it too, all I can do is hope it's just nothing to be worried about."

I put my dress back on and stretched my legs out before getting out of bed. I had been here for nearly half a day as the Followers carefully cleaned out my body and ran other checks. I gave the Zebra Ghoul a small smile, hoping it helped put her worries at ease. "Well, since I feel fit as a fiddle thanks to you, I'm sure it's nothing major. Anyways, when I get back home, there will be ponies more than capable of finding out what those magics are."

Jali hoofed over my jacket and my saddlebags as she said, "Well, when you do, be sure to send some of those ponies my way. It would do every creature some good if we got to compare notes.”

She then motions for me to follow her. “Now come with me. I have something to show you at my free clinic."

Putting on my jacket and saddlebags, I then followed Jali through the Followers camp. The place was a collection of old medical tents a bit outside of town which was tended by two green alicorns. Who unlike Prism, had large wings on their back and no scars. There were other ponies in white medical coats but, from what I was told, they were just new recruits getting on the job training by working mainly as nurses. There also happened to be a lot of patents here. They were weak-looking ponies that seemed like they'd barely eaten or slept. Among them, were ponies who were also missing legs, had nasty cuts that looked to be from animals, or were suffering from an illness and kept far from everypony else.

There also happened to be a lot of ponies here who were receiving water transfusions.

"A shame, really," Jali lamented. "We all thought that, with the clouds and radiation gone, life would finally get easier. Turns out we just solved two problems out of who knows how many."

"What happened?" I asked as we left the camp.

"Where to even start? Not to speak ill of Littlepip and Velvet Remedy, there was no way for them in the short time they were out of their stable to understand how deep the problem that is the wasteland goes." Jali stopped to point up at the sun high in the sky. "Ignorance is a huge problem out here, and the Followers had to treat heatstroke victims near daily for the first few summers. The clearing of the radiation helped everypony, including raiders, who then found new hiding spots to attack ponies from. Monsters also began multiplying in greater numbers, causing ponies to ban together in larger settlements which led to diseases to start spreading more prolifically."

"So that means the Followers have been busy then," I said with a more cheerful tone, trying to lighten the mood.

Jali nodded. "We try, but there never seems to be enough of us. That's why we're trying to focus on education in order to get the wastelanders to be a little less ignorant."

As we got into the outskirts of town, several foals ran passed us by. This put a smile on Jali's face.

"At least the Lightbringer Foundation has been more than willing to work with us,” Jali went on, “so even if the adults resist changing their ways, their children will at least come out for the better. Mainly simple things ponies have forgotten, such as hygiene, and germ theory."

I nodded. "Back in the metro, epidemics were always a big worry considering how close everypony was crammed together. It came to the point that vaccinations were required by law, and if a station was found infected, the queen would just have it sealed until a purification team could be put together."

"Purification?" Jali asked, sounding concerned.

I gave a long sigh. "Basically they kill everypony inside then burn the bodies along with anything that could spread a plague. The queen had set up our territory so that such actions would be quick and easy to do, and this was why nopony dared rebel against her or her children."

"That is horrifying!" Jali gasped, then gave a long sigh. "But I can understand why it's necessary. In my long life, I've seen my fair share of death. There have been tribes killed off by illnesses that back before the Great War would have been a simple annoyance. It was all too easy to cure then, now it can be a nightmare. I've also seen a town of ponies mutated by parasites which turned them into nothing more into mindless carriers. Even during the War, there was this illness that degraded the mind, turning rational and peaceful zebras into cannibalistic mad jennies. Fortunately, the wasteland is a big place, and such plagues cannot spread far, unlike in your metro."

I opened my mouth to say more but a cold shiver ran up my spine instead which made my mind go blank. I don't know why, but I felt like if I continued, I would remember something I rather suppress.

"Are you okay, Miss Harp?" Jali asked, looking at me with concern.

"I'm fine. It’s just… just hoping everypony back home is doing alright," I said to shake off the cold feeling I just had.

Jali nodded with a smile on her face. "I'm sure they are. If the other mirage ponies are like you, then I'm sure they're resilient enough to get through most problems that may come."

We made our way to and over the railway tracks. Entering the cleaner and better-looking part of town. The local ponies were clearly avoiding us as we passed while the visitors looked on with curiosity. I wasn't all that bothered by it. I had chosen to not be the tool of other ponies. The price of that was a damaged reputation.

Not that it mattered, as I did not plan on staying any longer than necessary. As soon as I have the caps and supplies, I'll join a caravan to go out west.

"So what did you want to show me?" I asked as we entered the free clinic. Prism was already there, tending to an elderly stallion with a beard as long as himself.

"Just give me a moment as I go and get it," Jali told me as she trotted to the back.

It didn't take long for her to then return. On her back was my drone Order. It was patched up with scrap metal that was barely hiding a few loose wires.

"Sorry if I overstep my boundaries, but decided to tinker with this and fix its wing propeller. Its hardware was quite similar to that of a sprite bot, so I had a few spare parts that were compatible. Copper and Roger also helped me a little. Those two love to tinker with tech."

Stepping over, I reached out with my hoof and focused some of my magic to it. "Order, activate!"

The lights of the robot slowly came to life, and though it was jerky at the start, the propellers started spinning nonetheless. After a moment, the drone lifted up into the air, wobbling as it attempted to maintain altitude. Then, with a warped mechanical voice, Order spoke through the drone, "System analysis… too many errors. Advise to have this drones programs cleaned, rebooted, then a defrag, Madam."

This put a smile on my face. "Order, how long will it take?"

Order dipped for a moment before floating back up. "To clean the systems, several hours, but reestablishing rudimentary navigation should take but a few minutes after a reboot. The rest of the system can be done on the move to not burden you, Madam."

"Order, reestablish your navigation, then clean your system on the move," I told Order. In response, the robot beeped as it slowly landed on the floor then powered down.

"How wondrous!" Jali exclaimed as she examined the patched together drone. "Before you told me about how mirage pony magic worked, I was quite confused as to why this robot had such a small spark battery. All robots I have seen had large spark batteries, or small spark reactors keeping them going. But here you are, using yourself as a stand-in for its main battery, thus freeing up room for more sophisticated technology to go into the robot." She then pulled out a device that looked a bit like a hoof held pipbuck, but made out of scrap. "Mind if I study your robot when it reactivates? I just want to see how it's sensors work, and if I can copy it."

"Go for it," I said with a shrug, "but can I give you something for getting Order up and running again? Caps, maybe?"

Jali shook her head. "You need those caps. Anyways, I'm getting what I want by studying this new tech."

I still wanted to repay Jali. She had already done so much already, and for free no less. Now it was making me feel like I was freeloading on her.

"Wait!” I bade. “I remember you saying that Fluttershy was still alive, right?"

"Yes. Velvet Remedy cured her of her curse a few years ago. The poor thing is still quite traumatized by the whole ordeal," Jali informed me.

"Well, I have something that I think once belonged to her." Digging into my bag, I pulled out the statuette of Ministry Mare Fluttershy. "Here, take this."

Jali's eyes widened as she took the small figurine, examining it. "To my friend Healing Herbs,’” Jali quoted the writing on the bottom of the statuette, “‘I wish you luck’ - Fluttershy." Jali blinked as she shook her head slightly. "Oh my! I've heard of these. They’re made by Rarity for her friends, if what Velvet said is true. There's only three known full sets as I know of. One with Littlepip, another with the dragon Spike, and the last is owned by Velvet. Then this one. It must have originally been Fluttershy's. Where did you get it?"

"It was a gift to a friend of mine. I can't remember where she got it, but she gave it to me for safekeeping," I explained.

"I see. Then you should hold onto it," Jali advised as she passed it back to me.

I shook my head and pushed it back to her. "It's fine. I have something more important to give back to her." I pointed at the medallion pinned on my hat.

She took a closer look at it then raised an eyebrow at it. "Interesting. My memory is not what it once was, but I think I remember seeing that as part of a bounty back during the War. The royal guard medallions. We were to take alive any pony with one, and drag them to a superior for interrogation. Never actually saw one during the war though, and never heard about a royal guard actually being taken alive." Jali took a step back, placing the figurine into one of her pockets. "You're quite a treasure trove of artifacts and new technology, not to mention that magic of yours as well. It was wise of you not to tell others. I’ve seen far too many creatures be killed for far less."

A beep from Order announced that it had finished rebooting. It then proceeded to float up and hover with full stability, after which it announced, "Navigation is now fully online. Calibrating controls." Order began slowly flying around, bobbing and twisting before flying to me. "Madam, this drone is now capable of smooth navigation, but other systems will need a cleaning before full functionality."

"Order, is it possible to share your sensory data while cleaning your programming?" I asked my drone.

In response, Order bobbed in confirmation. "This is possible, Madam." The green cartoon image of Order floated into my E.F.S. ”Do you want me to make sure she doesn't get access to any other systems and data?” The VI asked in my mind.

"Give her access." I told the drone before thinking at the VI, ”Jali is a good mare. I rather not see her get hurt by learning more than she needs to know.”

Order gave a confirming beep before floating over to Jali who started plugging in a cable into the drone. "Thank you, Miss Harp,” Jali bid gratefully. “Hopefully I might learn something to help me improve my medical tools. Maybe make something like that scanner spell Slowtrot has on his pipbuck."

"You can't just copy it?" I asked.

Jali shook her head. "I first need a device that could even make use of it, then comes unraveling the spell, of which is considerably complex. Whoever made it put a lot of effort into every aspect of the spell. It’s practically flawless, to tell the truth. I'm going to try and remake the spell with the materials I do have, though that means the machine will likely be far bigger than a pipbuck." She then returned to her device that was plugged into Order.

Sitting on one of the beds, I turned my own attention to my pipbuck. I lazily looked through the radio.

"Oh, there you are, Harp," The voice of a mare caught me by surprise. Turning to look, I saw Cloudy Sunrise trotting up to me. "Star was a bit worried about you, but she's a bit busy at the moment, so I promised to check up on you."

Cloudy was quite the cute mare, which was surprising to me with how rough everypony looked here. "I got a clean bill of health. So, what's going on with Star?"

"Got called into work. We got some tourists that want a pretty mare to show them the sights, and Waterspout wanted them to live long enough to spend more caps at the tavern," she answered.

"I see." Hopping off the bed, I trotted over to her. "It's a shame that you both have to work at that tavern. I mean, Star would probably make a better sheriff than Ashy.

Cloudy shrugged. "I doubt that. She sure as Tartarus would be more level headed, but you've never seen her get real mad. There was this one time some asshole was running his mouth and throwing bottles, but had enough caps to keep Waterspout from kicking him out. Well, Star decided to play him up and drain him of his caps. Even after hitting her with a bottle, she kept it up. After he ran out of caps, she took him for a walk, and the next day he was found with all his legs broken and his face so battered that he couldn't see."

"Didn't the sheriff get involved?" I asked, concerned.

"At first, she did," Cloudy explained. "But it turns out all Star did was take him to a known trouble area of town which was full of ponies he had insulted that night. The same ones she had to stop from fighting him, then left him there. The sheriff didn't see that as a crime, and none of the locals were going to snitch on each other, so the stallion was just sent home with an apology."

"Owch, but I bet that taught him a lesson," I said, and Cloudy nodded. "But how would that make her a bad sheriff?"

Cloudy sighed. "As long as I have known her, Star has never respected the idea of law and order, she has a might makes right mindset. Not to say she is like a raider. She really cares about her friends and family, and she knows that if she gets into serious trouble, we all will be hurt by it. But, if you give her the same authority as Ashy, then all that restraint she has will go out the window. She would likely just smash through any problem that comes her way until somepony shoots her dead."

I sighed. "I guess I just don't know her enough yet. Maybe I'm just comparing her to other ponies I know."

"Why don't you tell me about them?" Cloudy bumped her hip on mine and fluttered her eyes a little. "I love to hear more about your home."

I felt my face flush a little from the attention. "Well two ponies come to mind. One was my former caretaker, Stratus Dancer, who was like a big sister to me. When I was growing up, she was always there for me. She never let my siblings get away with trying to pick on me. She later became the Captain of the Guard. Even if she didn't have the time she used to, she still checked up on me. "

"Well she sounds like an amazing mare. She must be really worried about you." Cloudy’s words felt like a stab in my heart.

Taking a deep breath, I continued. "She… she died not long ago trying to protect me. If I was not around, she could have easily flown to safety, maybe save more lives. I miss her so much, but I know she wouldn't want me to just sulk about it."

I felt Cloudy rest her shoulder on mine, "Ya. I get that. Lost my dad a few years ago. We came here after leaving our enclave compound, all over stupid political bullshit. He figured it was better if we try and live in the wasteland then to rot in the compound. Ponies still didn't trust us pegasus, so dad and I couldn't find work in town. He had to go out in the wasteland to make caps."

She then sighed. "Each time he went out, it took him longer to come back. Eventually he just didn't return. I waited for him as long as I could. Stretched out my food and water as long as I could, then one day woke up in the Followers camp. Turns out I had become delirious due to dehydration and wandered outside before collapsing."

A smile formed on Cloudy's face. "That's where I met Star. After hearing about my situation, she helped me get a job at the Ruffled Feathers as part of the cleaning crew." Cloudy looked off out the window. "I know my dad died out there, but some days I wake up, hoping he will be there with a big grin on his face and apologizing about taking so long."

"This world is just too cruel. Makes me wonder if the old Equestria was ever so peaceful. Maybe we've mistaken it with a fantasy," I lamented.

Cloudy bumped me with her shoulder. "Ah, don't be that way. I mean, Celestia ruled for a thousand years without a major war or internal conflicts.”

“So, now what about this other pony y’all was talken about?" Cloudy reminded.

"Right. She was a mercenary sent out to find me when I had become… lost. It’s a long story, but her name is Vibraphone Echo, and she pushed me forward whenever I felt like giving up. She helped me to stay strong when I started to crumble. She and her friend suffered so much for me that I could never repay them." I reached up and took off my hat… her hat, and her medallion. "If anything, I should return home only to give this back to her. I owe her at least that much." I returned the hat back on my head.

"Sounds like an adventure! Care to tell me about it?" Cloudy pressed hopefully.

"Well, it's a bit of a long one. Also so much had happened that I don't know where to start." I said with a sigh just as my drone flew over us.

"I'm finished gathering the data, Miss Melody," Jali announced as she put her device in another pocket. "It's going to take me a long time to study this data, but before that, I have other more important work to do.”

“Speaking of which, as a doctor, I suggest you go and get some more fresh air and sunlight. It's not going to do you any good staying inside longer than you already have today." She advised.

I chuckled a little before replying, "Back home, following such advice would get a pony killed, but ya, some more fresh air would be nice."

Cloudy nudged me again with her shoulder as she said invitingly. "How about you help me with my shopping today? I need to pick a few things up before work."

It did sound interesting. I never got to have a girls day out, and shopping did sound fun.

"Alright,” I agreed. “Sounds fun.”

“ Order, follow me." I commanded the drone.

"Yes Madam." The drone spoke as Cloudy and I trotted out of the free clinic.

FoE: Desperados, Ch17, Mares Night Out

Order predictably got a few stairs by both the local ponies as well as the ones visiting the town. I thought about having the drone just stay on my back to not draw as much attention, but at this point I didn’t care about keeping up appearances and I rather like the idea of the locals getting a bit jealous of my never seen before robot. My drone also gave me a second pair of eyes which I could view through my pipbuck. Order sent me this information through the E.F.S. Because of that, I saw something of note, of which was mainly a few dirty looks from a few deputies as well one foal that was following Order until their parents grabbed them.

There were a few more ponies selling their wares along the side of the street. It was mainly junk. That which was still useful was also severely rusted or damaged. Food and drink was a hot commodity here as well, but the heavily preserved food being sold didn’t look all that well preserved physically, and some of the packaging had clear signs of mold. As for the drink, it was mainly water stored in old soda bottles, though the prices had clearly gone up a few caps over the last few days.

“Realy, the price went up again? I wish the Lightbringer would work faster on this whole rain situation,” Cloudy Sunrise huffed as she looked at a six pack of water bottles.

“Don’t you have a well or something? The locals don’t seem to have a problem with getting water.” I noticed.

Cloudy pulled out a purse while looking at the water in annoyance. “They do, along with a fucking water talisman, the kind stables have. But because the town is so big now, they ration it out to the residence on this side of town and sell what’s left to us unimportant folk.” She opened her purse and pulled out a bunch of caps. “Is this water clean? I seriously can’t be getting sick right now!” she growled at the merchant.

The merchant was a dirty pony covered in rags. A large saddlebag was placed next to them. “It’s clean, straight from a natural reservoir up north near Ponyville.”

Placing her caps back into her purse, Cloudy snapped it shut. “You mean from the Sweet Apple Acres reservoir. The same water the NCR has repeatedly told ponies not to drink due to chemical contamination!” The merchant shifted his eyes at her words. Cloudy then trotted off to the next vender.

“So water up there is still toxic?” I asked as I followed the pegasus mare.

She sighed as we began looking at the whears of the next merchant. “Unfortunately… My dad knew how to clean food and water of radiation, so he went up north hoping to scavenge anything left behind as he heard that the apple farm was still untouched. Turns out that it was not only radiation that had poisoned the land, but at some point, some ponies used the land to store chemical waste which seeped into the groundwater. Even with the radiation mostly gone, the land is still poisoned, apples and all.” Cloudy picked up another bottle of water. This one was a large clear wine bottle but with little bits floating in it, so she put it back. “Unfortunately some ponies think that just because the radiation is gone that means everything is safe to put in your mouth.”

I cringed a little. “That can't be good.”

Cloudy shook her head. “The Followers had a doozy of a month treating ponies who got severely ill from consuming contaminated food and water after the Elements of Harmony were used.” She found another large bottle. this one was brown and had the engraving of a sun on it. “Oh nice! A one liter of Sunset Sarsaparilla. I’ll take it!” She pulled out a bunch of caps which she passed them to the merchant.

The next merchant was selling several severely rusted guns, a few scrap built blades, and one energy rifle that, other than a piece of scrap metal welded onto the siding, it looked better than most of what sold out here.

“Oh, one of the winged folk. I got a good deal for you, young miss.” A thin and elderly earth pony addressed Cloudy, presenting the energy rifle. “This here is an authentic enclave rifle. It was saved from a fire pit after the enclave fell and repaired to full functionality. For such a pretty mare like you, I’ll sell it to you for a steal.” The merchant gave a wide toothy yellow smile.

“I don’t need a gun right now, but Star has been telling me I do need to protect myself more,” Cloudy said as she looked closer at the rifle.

“Then this is the perfect gun for you! It’s light and powerful. Trust me, you will love it.” The merchant pushed, making me feel a bit uneasy.

I took a closer look, giving the gun a little magic to feel it out. To my disappointment, the rifle's insides felt all wrong with the magic not gathering at the end point to be fired, but cycling back and forth between the gun and the magical energy cell, effectively turning the gun into a bomb. My own knowledge of how this arcano tech worked was limited, but I knew at least that magical energy cells tend to explode if its own magic was forced back into it as it was made to only send magic one way.

“Did you ever test fire that rifle?” I asked the merchant.

“Plenty of times! saved my life too, but now I need more caps than guns, you see.” The pony answered smoothly.

“How about you show us?” I pressed, trying to get the merchant to pull out before I call shenanigans.

“Oh no! That put innocent ponies in danger,” the merchant countered, but I had a trick up my sleeve.

“Order, can you use that rifle?” I asked my drone, pointing at the defective rifle.

Flying over it, Order beeped. “Yes, this is possible.”

Good, it was time to make this bitch sweat. If I knew anything about merchants, it was that they hated risking a huge loss. I don’t know why she wanted to sell Cloudy a defective rifle, but I bet she was hoping to skip town before anypony found out. I’ll just add an extra layer of risk to this.

I smiled. “Alright. How about I test fire it in the sky for you? If it works then I’ll buy it for my friend here and add a bit for the trouble.” Looking the merchant in the eyes, I could see some worry. “But if something were to go wrong, well, my robot is one of a kind out here. Doubtlessly worth more than anything you own.”

The merchant physically gulped and put the energy rifle away, avoiding eye contact while mumbling, “Stupid winged ponies!” before starting to pack things up.

We watched as the merchant pony quickly got up and trotted away. Meanwhile, Cloudy looked annoyed at the ponies. “So what was wrong with the gun?”

“I think it was rigged to explode,” I answered.

Cloudy whistled. “And here I thought it was just going to be your normal defective.”

“You knew it was a bad gun?” I asked, a bit shocked.

She nodded. “No pony just gives out a good deal like that, and to a pegasus no less. I thought ponies had at least stopped trying to harm us like that. Then again, what the enclave did was not something ponies can just forgive.”

We turned to trot to the next merchant as I asked. “If you knew it was a defective gun, what were you planning to do with it?”

“Intimidation,” she answered. “Energy guns scare the shit out of a lot of wastlanders, so I was thinking that by just having it, it would keep some of the creepers away. If I did have to use it, I could just hit them with the butt.”

I shook my head, holding back a laugh as I imagined her using a magical energy rifle like a club.

We looked at a few more stalls, but mostly found little of anything of value. Cloudy was mainly looking to stock up on food and water, so old tire irons turned hatchets and dolls made with scavenged cloth were not on the shopping list.

We did find one merchant wagon that was selling some interesting stuff. It was parts for tech, several sets of scrap armor that looked like they actually would stop a bullet or two, and gun attachments like scops and bayonetts. There were also four foals around him with a heavily armed and armored mare next to him who was holding the youngest foal.

The thin scruffy merchant eyed my robot drone from under his dusty wide brim hat while scratching his chin. "Well I'll be! I've seen my share of odd robots, but this is the first I've seen modeled after a twittermight. I don't suppose you're willing to part with it?" He checked with me.

"No no. I'm not, and anyways its value would drop if it was away from me unless you know a pony who can fully reprogram a robot." I warned the merchant.

He chuckled. "I wouldn't ask if I didn't. Got burned by a faulty robot once, literally."

"It would have been your last time if I didn't force you to wear that protective suit," the stern mare spoke up. She was bigger and more muscular built than the merchant. She had a short yellow and orange braided mane that oddly looked like a scorpion stinger at the end.

"Too true, Keep." He then took off his hat and bowed to Cloudy and I before putting it back on. "Names Moody Peddler. May I know who you two fine ladies are?"

The mare Keep, Cloudy, and I cringed a little. But at least he seemed genuine, unlike the murderous merchant from before. So I reciprocated. "I'm Harp Melody, and this is my friend Cloudy." Cloudy gave him a little wave. "Were uhh… just browsing."

"As do we all, but trust me when I say I have something for everypony... usually." Moody then eyed us both, forming a small grin. "Mind me if this sounds a bit rude, but you two seem too clean and soft to be simple wastelanders, so I'm guessing you'd like something more fashionable than functional?"

Cloudy and I looked at each other and shrugged before Cloudy answered, "Well, actually, if you have food or water for selling, my own stock is a bit low."

Moody nodded then whistled at his cart. "Rattle, fetch a ration stock!" He called out. From his cart was a loud hiss like bark. Jumping out of the cart I saw a cyber dog.. snake… monster thing, and in its mouth was a M.o.P. medical case that was painted black with a crude white scorpion painted on the top. The cyber monster, Rattle, placed the case next to Moody. He then opened it up to reveal several sealed jars. Half of them were filled with water, and the other half filled with some sort of food. "Right. In this here box, you have six jars of distilled water spiked with whight scorpion Luna Shine, and six jars of preserved scorpion chilli, all at a fair price."

Cloudy whistles in a surprised and upbeat tone. "White scorpion rations and a pet nightstalker? I thought you guys were banned from doing business here!"

"I'm not a white scorpion mercenary," Moody bragged with a smile, "and I got official merchant documentation with the NCR, so if the sheriff has a problem with who I do business with or with my wife, then she can take it up with the NCR." He then whistled at Rattle again, who, in response, rattled its snake tail. "Go get me the accessory box!" The cyber nightstalker leapt back into the cart then shortly came back out with a much bigger box. Moody opened this one. Inside was several dresses, shoes, glasses, and hats. "Now as you consider buying the rations, how about picking out a new ensemble?"

Well, I had to admit, this fucker was smooth! I had been wanting a new pair of cute slippers, and there was a clean pair of ruby red heels right in the box. I sigh as I realized I had gotten some pay from Hardballer and Waterspout. So, if I wanted to, I could buy this, but I really shouldn't… but the shoes...

We left the merchant with our cap purse much lighter than we would have liked. Cloudy bought two cases of the rations and a few odd accessories, and I had gotten the red heales, along with a red and black dancer dress with a filly mane clip hat. Moody had been relay convincing, something I was keen to remember. I lamented the loss of my hard earned caps, but on the bright side, I had a new dress and shoes.

"Take this." Cloudy passed me a pair of round orange-tinted glasses. "It's thanks for driving away that one merchant and probably saving me from getting my face disintegrated."

"You don't have to. I was just being a friend." I tried to turn down the gift, but she forced them in my hooves.

"And that's why I'm giving you them. Out here a friend is quite rare," she said with a sigh. "Anyways, you might need them if you go on another adventure with Star. The lenses are an anti-glare crystal that makes seeing while the sun is out a lot easier. Dad had a pair of goggles with the same kind of lense. It helped him spot dangers on the ground that are normally hard to see."

I put them on. The world took a light orange tint through them, much like with my advanced gas mask.

"So what was the whole white scorpion thing being banned from town?" I wondered aloud as I then took off the glasses and pulled out my gas mask to compare the two. If found the crystal glass to be identical.

"Not entirely sure other than them being a mercenary clan. A lot of them got picked up by president Gwad to be part of the NCR. My best guess is that they must have at one poit worked for Red Eye for Ashy to have a stick up her ass about them," she answered.

"It all comes back to this Redeye with the Sheriff." I sighed.

"Such a pretty mare has some fun looking toys," the voice of Deputy False Cap caught me off guard, causing me to shove the gas mask back into my bag as I turned around. The chubby stallion eyed us up from within his barely fitting uniform. "You know my offer still stands. No need to live on the dirty side of town."

Holding back the urge to wretch, I put the glasses back on, hoping they'd help hide how greasy he was… it didn't.

"Oh, Deputy False, so kind of you to still keep the offer open," I said in my best cheery tone, being as diplomatic as possible. "But I would never want to damage your reputation by staying at your place. It's better if I worked things out with the mayor first, then consider your offer."

False pouted with fake disappointment. "Oh, that may take a while He is still fuming about how you trotted out on him, and now even Ashy is keeping an eye on you. But, if you let me take care of things, I'll be able to smooth it all out for you." He then offered a hoof, of which I ignored. In response, he huffed as he turned his attention to Cloudy. "And how is the loveliest mare in town? Excited to see me tonight?"

Cloudy put on a clearly fake smile as she addressed False. "As excited as I am to do a dance marathon. But, that aside, you must be busy with so many new ponies passing through. I rather not distract you."

"Oh, be sure I have everything in order." There was a hungry look in his eyes as he stepped closer. In response, Cloudy stepped back, but not enough to put any real distance between the two as he stepped even closer to her. "Actually, it has been a bit boring with all the paperwork. A distraction would be more than welcome." He was practically breathing on her as he spoke.

Annoyed by False, I cleared my throat. I made sure I was loud and clear. "Order, the good deputy seems to need some cooling down. Can you help him with that?"

"Yes madam!" My robot excitedly exclaimed, then flew over to deputy False. Its propellers reved loudly as it blasted him with air as it hovered in place.

False took a few steps back, clearly irritated as he looked at me. "You do know who you're messing with, Missy?" he spoke in a low tone.

I sighed. "I just thought you were looking a bit hot. I wanted to help. That's all. Speaking of which, Order, cool me off." Order flew back to me, hovering overhead, thus providing a light breeze that did help to offset the heat a little.

A huff came from False. After that, he put on a slick smile, the kind that shouted that a pony was very sure of themself. "You know a robot like that can be seen as a public hazard. What if it suddenly malfunctioned? It could fall on somepony or go on a ramage, even blow up. For the public safety, I should hold onto it for you."

There was no doubt he wanted to break it or sell it. Anything but return my drone to me in one piece. I could smell that spitefulness from a mile away.

"I didn't see it that way. Thank you for informing me. Now that I think about it, there's also the danger of somepony trying to damage it or steal it. I'll make sure Order here will stay deactivated and secure while I'm out in the town.”

I looked up at my drone, "Order, I need you to finish your program cleaning in sleep mode, so secure yourself to my saddlebag."

Order beeped then hovered down onto my back. Its underbelly pincers clamped down firmly onto my saddlebag. The green cartoon of Order hovered into my E.F.S. looking a tad annoyed. "If I had my armaments online, I would zap that rude stallion!" Order spoke in my mind.

"Not a bad idea. But don’t do it without my permission." I thought back at my robot before addressing False.

"This should be enough, Deputy. Now, if we may be on our way, I'm sure you have better things to do then chat up two young mares," I informed the deputy.

"No, I don't think that will do," False said with a smile. "For the safety of the town, I require you to hoof over the robot. That is if either of you are willing to convince me to change my mind, I am willing to hear it someplace more private."

Both Cloudy and I had a cold shiver. I was about done with being civil. "Sir deputy, might I remind you of your position? This may reflect badly on yourself."

He rolled his eyes. "Oh, I know, and I also know that my reputation is safe and sound, unlike yours. Don't think you two are anything special. You're not the first to think yourselves above me. You’re not going to be the last, either." The sick stallion licked his salivating lips. "As long as I help Ashy maintain order, I'm untouchable."

"Ahem! Aren't you expected to be patrolling over in the old town, False?" Deputy Willow spoke up behind False.

Deputy False sighed. "Right. Gotta make sure the riff-raff aren't getting up to no good." He then glared at me one more time. "That goes for you, too. Don't forget that." He then stomped off, disappearing into the crowd.

Willow tipped his hat at us with a more genuine smile on his face. "Sorry about that. False deals with the more criminal element than most of us. It puts him under a lot of stress at times."

Sure, and it's not that he is also totally corrupt.

"Well thanks for reminding him of his work. He was getting a bit intense." I once again kept up being diplomatic.

"I, for one, am not looking forward to seeing him later tonight." Cloudy sighed.

"Tonight? Oh, I wouldn't worry about that." Willow said with a tired tone. "Ashy is having us senior deputies going out on patrol, scouting out any potential raider hiding spots. The price for this freedom is ever vigilance, and if not us, then who?"

Cloudy then gave a sigh of relief and said. "A night out should cool False off and make work a bit easier tonight."

"Again, sorry about him. We're all stressed with the festival still not having a set date. The mayor just refuses to do it until absolutely everything is ready, and Blueskies just keeps giving him more ideas to run with," Willow explained.

"Here, as an apology, how about I treat you over at the saloon?" he then offered kindly.

Cloudy and I shared a glance, then shrugged in agreement. We were a bit thirsty, after all, so free drinks sounded like a good plan.

The New Appleloosa Saloon was busey with dusty patrons who were drinking beer and other spirits as they played with ancient cards. The bar mares quickly trotted back and forth catering to their customers. Most of them were unicorns who levitated the orders above the mess of ponies. The few earth ponies among them skillfully balanced plates on their heads, but none among them was a pegusus that could fly above it all.

Between the smell of old beer and less than fresh food lingering in the air, I could smell the faint scent of flowers in the air, if a bit chemically. One of the barmaids stopped in front of us. She in a white and red checkered dress. Holding onto a thin plank of wood in her magic as she said, "Oh, Deputy Willow, here to see your wife… I mean the boss?" She spoke in an upbeat tone that was clearly practiced. The chemical smell of flowers drifting off of her.

"Yes, actually," he responded before motioning at us with his head. "I'm also treating these two ladies to some water, so can you bring us a pitcher and four glasses?"

The mare nodded. "Certainly! We have an open booth over in the family side of the saloon," the mare told him as she then passed him the thin plank of wood.

Following Willow, we trotted passed the loud scrapwood bar and into a quieter part of the saloon. I found myself in a literal diner with white and black checkered floor, red puffy seats, and polished chrome. Much of the diner was also filled with ponies, but unlike in the bar part of the saloon, this part had several colts and fillies around, watched over by tired-looking parents. It all made me feel a bit at home as we took a seat. We placed our saddlebags under the table. Cloudy and I next to each other with Willow across from us.

The three of us sat there for a long awkward moment as a mare dropped off a pitre of water and glasses. Since we did not have much to say, we just continued to drink our water. I decided to break the silence by saying, "Did you ponies literally rip up a diner and rebuild it here?"

"They ripped up my diner and rebuilt it here," a yellowish-orange coated unicorn mare spoke up. She was in the same red and white checkered outfit as the other mare, but had a frilly apron on over it and a green curly mane that gave her an aura of class that seemed in short supply around here. "Now, Honey, should I ask why you're sharing drinks with two young mares, moreover one that's working for my main competitor?" she asked Willow, cocking an eyebrow as she lowered a pitcher of water on the table with three glasses.

Deputy Willow gave a long sigh and just said, "False Cap," he explained tiredly.

The mare rolled her eyes and took a seat next to Willow. "Names Apricot Biscuit. This here fools wife." She then flashed me a smile. "You must be the Zony mare from the Followers clinics. A shame that you went to see the mayor first. From what I heard, you got a strong head on your shoulders and a smooth tongue. You would have done well here." She then sighed. "Unfortunately, it looks like you're in the same boat as Cloudy. A real shame."

"Is that why there's no pegasus working here?" I asked.

Apricot nodded. "Espresso has a firm understanding of social optics and knows that the town would suffer if ponies start labeling this town as an Enclave colony or sympathizer. It was heartbreaking to let some of my girls go, but this place did see a lot more business after they left. It would also be nice if Espresso didn't take things so personally all the time. I can't call him out on his bullshit without him throwing a temper tantrum. He always has to get his way. It's why he was asked to leave Tenpony Tower." She then poured us all water. It even had cubes of ice in it. Taking a sip, the water was cool, crisp, and refreshing.

Willow took a light sip before adding to the conversation. "I'm sure the mayor will ease up on the restrictions once the festival is over. The town just needs to get itself more established first, then we can expand our community. No need to worry about business getting hurt because of other ponies' biases if there's a lot of business to go around.”

He then looked at and spoke over at me. "I'm also sure that the mayor will be in a forgiving mood after the festival as well. He did push you onto that stage, after all."

A laugh came from Apricot. "You can say that again! I would have given Espresso a piece of my mind if it had been one of my mares forced on stage with a Deva. I would’ve given it to Ashy, too, for not stopping it. That mare is too old to not know better."

"Honey, lets not." Willow pleaded quietly.

Apricot gave her husband a stern look. "Don't ‘Honey’ me! You and I both know Ashy is too smart to be acting like this, being so brahmin headed about everything. I respect the old mare, and if she was with the steel rangers, she would easily be promoted to elder with all the shit she had fixed. I'd be supporting her all the way if she didn't start to act a lot like elder Cottage Cheese.

The mare huffed as she looked over at us. "The way she's acting right now, it's just how my chapter did back then, and why my troop didn't return to our base during the scizim. Always, they stick to the rules they made up themselves, not caring about who they hurt." She took a sip of her water and put her head on Willow's shoulder. "I just don't want to see you get hurt. If she keeps going on like she is, she's going to tear herself apart, and you're going to tear yourself apart trying to save her."

Willow sighed, sounding a bit defeated. "I know, but False Cap and Stopped Clock are always there, pushing their own ideals."

"I understand, and frankly, it's like Spritz Cookie all over again." Apricot nuzzled Willow as she spoke.

"Sorry for interrupting, but I'm a tad lost now," I spoke up.

Apricot slowly sat up straight, "Sorry, sugar. I'll give you the short story."

"Back before I met Willow and moved here, I was a young scribe in the steel rangers. Think of them as an order of power-armored knights. The troop I belonged to was in charge of a supply depot for our chapter. This diner, in fact,” she clarified. “Well, during the whole Stable Dweller incident, there was a civil war within the steel rangers. Our troop was no exception, and leader Star Paladin Spritz Cookie lost her mind because of all the fighting."

"We followed her at first, but she was the kind of ranger that thought that most technology was too dangerous to fall into anyone's hooves, even our own. We tried to keep to the steel ranger code, but when Spritz murdered a young stable dweller for her pipbuck, even we couldn't abided by that. It got ugly. Real ugly. I lost the friends I had since I was a foal in the fight with Spritz. Even after that, the bitch still got away. The few of us that were left drifted apart. I stayed in the diner until Willow found me. Now I'm here."

"So you're worried about that happening again?" I asked.

She nodded. "Yes, but not in the same fashion. In the steel rangers, ponies like Spritz Cookie were fairly common, though she was a more extreme case. The scizim was inevitable as ponies like her applied pressure on every pony around them until something broke. First the steel rangers snapped apart, then Spritz lost her mind, and eventually the NCR will lose patients with the rangers as well. If Ashy keeps applying pressure just like the rangers, if the NCR does not come down on her, somepony else will. I do pray it won't come to that."

There was a quiet pause before Apricot put on a cheery smile and poured us more water. "Enough about all this depressing talk. Tell me more about yourself, and wear did you get that fancy robot, if it's not too much to ask?"

"Who? You mean Order? It was a gift from my father. He's an important pony back home, and well, I do hope I see him again." I said, hoping he was alright, as he might be the only family I still have, or at least the only family that I want to still be alive.

"Tell me more about him. He's got to be quite the stallion to raise a mare like you, not to mention to be able to give a robot out as a gift like that," Apricot said softly.

"Well, I only found out he was my father recently, and well…" I paused for a moment, still wondering how much I should say. Since it would be easy to omit anything I didn't want to share, and that's what I did.

We all chatted. I told them about the metro, Cloudy about her life in the sky, Apricot about growing up as a ranger scribe, and Willow on about how Ashy protected him when they were slaves. He didn't say all that much, but it was clear that, to Willow, Ashy was a very important pony to him. Before long, Willow had to return to his duty, and Apricot to manage the saloon, but she gave the two of us a free dinner as a friendly gift. We stayed a bit longer, but when we saw the sun was getting low, it was time for Cloudy to head to work and I joined her.

I had been helping Waterspout with organizing his finances. He had been quite insistent I come over tonight, though with the caps I was earning from the Gunrunners, I didn't need to work there. But, after what I spent today, I could use the extra caps, so I might as well help out tonight in order to see if there's anything I can help with.

So, to the Ruffled Feathers we trotted.

-Unique Item Obtained- (Groovy Sheik Spectacles) " Now Introducing the Groovy Sheik line from the Carousel Boutique made by the Ministry mare of Image, Rarity. In these dark times, a little splash of color will not do, so why not wear the rainbow and do it in style?!"-Coco Pommel

FoE: Desperados, Ch18, Mares Night Out

The Ruffled Feathers tavern was busy and rowdy as always. It organized chaos, unlike the saloon that was just orderly. The alluring outfits of the working mares enhanced their form, drawing the eyes of the drunken patrons to their legs and private parts. The mare, Rusty, was on the stage, one of her legs was around a pole as she performed a seductive dance. Stallions watched her intently, some tossing caps on stage to get her attention. Further in the back and up some stairs were the brothel workers who called down at the ponies below, trying to convince them to spend some alone time with them. If they had the caps to pay.

There was a cheer as Cloudy trotted in. She honestly smiled back at them.

"Good to see you all too,” Cloudy announced to the crowd. “Just give me a moment to get dressed. I'll be sure to put on a show for you all later. Chow!" She then looked back at me and winked. "That includes you as well."

I felt a little bit of heat rush to my face, not expecting her to say that to me.

She trotted off to the back of the tavern. I trotted over to the bar to find Waterspout. Luckily he was there, along with two other bartenders.

"Expecting another large crowd?" I asked. In response, he turned around with a suspicious smile on his face.

"With ponies coming in all around for the festival, I can afford to have more staff on claw for more general work," he explained.

"Oh, then I guess you don't need me here, then," I said with a shrug, not all that disappointed by it.

"Actually, if you're interested, I could use another mare on the floor. It's better pay, and you can keep any tips you're given. You can also pick who you interact with," he offered coyly.

I cocked an eyebrow, unsure he was serious. "Sorry, but I don't know. Isn't it better if you left it up to more experienced mares?"

Waterspout chuckled before saying, "Trust me on this, you don't need to be experienced to do this job well. Most stallions just want a little attention from a pretty young mare." He then pointed over at one of the working mares who was a bit rough around the edges. She was caked with makeup to hide a scar. "She started a week ago,” Waterspout went on. “She was starved and about ready to sell herself on the street. Now she's got the caps to feed herself."

He then sighed and shrugged. "The mares quite self conscious about her scar, but there are stallions and mares who like a rough-looking mare like her."

He then pointed at Star Charter who was trotting our way. She dressed in black fishnet lingerie that had a red trim with white frills which accompanied a similar-looking saddle and a skirt that covered only one side of her body, letting one leg stand out. "Star also started with that job. She did well as one of our more aggressive mares."

Thinking about it, it was not like he was asking me to pole dance or work in the brothel. All I had to do was look pretty and butter some ponies up, something I already knew how to do.

Still, it was a different kind of looking pretty and a different kind of buttering up which made me feel embarrassed to think about. The thought of having some pony I don't know eye me up… but it still had to be better than being looked down on or being seen as a tool to be used then disposed of.

"How about this." Waterspout pulled out a small bag of caps. "If you help increase sales, I'll give you a bonus, no strings attached."

I was not a greedy pony, but still, the more caps I had, the better prepared I would be when I did leave this town. "I…"

"Oh no you don't, boss!" Star spoke loudly within the already loud tavern. "Didn't I tell you that you were not to lure her into this side of the business? Anyways she's got another job helping the Gunrunners."

Waterspout shrugged, leaving the cap pouch on the bar counter. "I'm just offering. It's up to her if she does it or not."

Star pulled me close as though she was giving me a protective hug. The two feathers sticking out of her clipped back mane tickled my ear. "Well she's too innocent to have a strange stallion eyeing her like a can of cram. I will not have you exploit her like you do with other mares!"

"Didn't we run into a dragon ant nest just yesterday?" I said flatly. She responded by fluttering her eyes at me as though she was innocent of anything, her dark eyeshadow made her far more surly than innocent.

"No, you're an innocent mare. You're not working the floor," Star ordered sternly. "This is not a place for a respectable mare to be!"

Waterspout groned. "Star, I know you've grown attached to Harp, but aren't you being a tad overdramatic?"

"Never!" She shouted as she arched back, a fenlock over her forehead as though she was going to faint.

I chuckled, then pulled her off me. "Alright, I get it. Working on the floor would not be good for my reputation in town." I paused for a moment, realizing that the more I looked at her, the sexier she seemed. The energetic and helpful young mare had been replaced by this older and more refined-looking lady, though she did look a bit like the prostitutes one of my cousins would have escorting him... Pushing her back a little, I tried to not think about how sexy Star Charter looked, and gave my answer. "But I'm not planning to stay in town, so screw my reputation. I have more important things to worry about." Turning to Waterspout, I gave him a polite smile. "If you're willing to give a bonus for this, then I might as well give it a try."

A wide grin formed on the edge of Waterspouts beak. He put the bag of caps back under the bar. "Trust me when I say this, neither of us are going to regret this. I've been all over the world and have developed an eye for the talent of my favorite sex. Just head into the back and find an outfit in the dressing room. The girls can teach you the rules as you get ready."

"Well, if that's her choice, then I'll show her the ropes personally," Star said with a shrug. "Anyways, if we left her with some of the other girls, they'll pass her off to some of our more aggressive patrons as fresh meat. That's when ponies start getting black eyes."

Waterspout sighed and waved us off. "I get it, Star. You're probably right with how jealous some of these mares can get. Just make sure she gets those caps. Also make sure no pony steps over the line."

Star bumped my flank with hers and winked. "Alright cutie, let's get you ready to charm the stallions and mares." After that, she trotted toward the back. I followed.

The last time I was here, I spent my time helping at the bar or doing paperwork in the back, so I didn't get a close look at the floor other than whoever was dancing on the pole which, at the time, was mainly Star. Getting a closer look now, each table had a stallion or two. Sometimes a mare. Almost all of them had one of the tavern mares chatting up the customers, pouring them drinks, and sometimes sitting on the customer’s laps. Every table had several empty glasses where a few of the working mares would go around replacing drinks on the customer's request, or even buying a drink for the working mare at their table.

Entering the back, we passed two mares sitting on a couch, fanning each other off. Passing them was an open door where another mare was smoking a cigarette. Further back was a small room that had a stallion washing glasses in foaming water. Trotting into the dressing room, the smell of old cosmetics and old perfume was pungent, almost making me wretch. "You alright?" Star asked as she led me to one of the dressers.

"Sorry. I thought I was used to the smells around here, but it's a bit too strong in this room," I explained.

Star chuckled. "Ya. The mares here do lay that stuff on thick here, though it's mainly the brothel workers who are the worst." She pushed a seat aside, having me stand in its place, then turned on the lights that surrounded a tall and crack mirror. "First take off those clothes!" I felt the heat rush to my face as she flipped up my skirt then whistled sharply. "White with pink lace. We should just have you go out in that."

I pushed my dress back down. "Oh no, I'm not going out in just my underwear. That's… well… indecent."

"You do know we normally don't wear clothes? I mean, I only have underwear on when working," Star pointed out.

"Ya, I've noticed.I've been trying not to get distracted by all the exposed pony flanks everywhere," I said with a sigh before taking off my jacket. "Anyways, let's get this over with."

It still didn't feel right, not having any clothes on like this. It was worse with how Star was eyeing me, though having my heavy ballistic weave dress off did make me feel lighter.

"Just a moment!" Star said as she lifted up my tail, causing me to kick in surprise, but she just stopped my kick with her hoof. "Well good news, you're looking tight enough for some of our smaller outfits without too much risk of it riding up. Then again, you can just go without any."

"There's no way I am going out there all exposed! I'm not some expositionist" I huffed.

Another whistle caught my ear. Following that sound, I saw Cloudy looking at me through the mirror. "First off, you look too cute with all that off. Secondly, why are you back here, Harp?"

Heat again rose to my face as I mumbled, "Well Waterspout… I mean, I got an offer…"

Star chuckled. "Harp here felt that, while she's here, she might as well make some extra caps. Waterspout thinks she got talent for this work."

Cloudy gave me a wink. "Well good to have you join us! Just watch out for creepers." She then looked down at my saddlebag and smiled, "Why don't you try that cute outfit you bought?” Cloudy suggested. “I bet with it, along with some extra accessories, you will look stunning." She dipped back behind a divider. "I'll be on stage shortly. I'm expecting you to be out there to see me dance."

"Oh, okay," I mumbled nervously.

Star quickly pulled out my new outfit, it being a thin fabric dress with a see-through skirt, a small hat, a pair of red heels, and black short shorts. "Right. This has got to go. You're not going out for a jog." She put the black shorts back unto the bag then opened up one of the draws of the dressers. She tossed out several socks and string-like panties. "Here we are. Never used them with how they clashed with my coat, but it should work with you." She presented me with glittering dark pink stockings that had glittering red fishnets, along with two socks of the same design.

I was unsure what to think as I looked at it, especially since it was a see-through crotch. "How about some panties first?" I suggested hopefully.

Nodding, Star dug back into the draw then pulled out a fairly normal-looking red panties. "This should do. I was going to suggest a tong, but I already have it on myself." She lifted back her skirt to show off what looked like just a thin lacy piece of fabric held together by a lacy red ribbon.

Sighing, I put on the outfit. I started with the underwear then moved onto the fishnet stockings socks which felt odd, but I quickly got used to it. The rest was easy enough. The small hat getting clipped to my main provided the finishing touch.

"So ... I'm good?" I asked. I knew I was not, but I hoped I didn't have to put on a corset-like back home for brunch.

"Well, you'll still need some makeup, but since you're already a cutie, you don't need much." She then paused and frowned. "Wait! One more thing first." She dived back to the dresser in order to pull out something that haunted me most of my life, a corset. "Lets thin up that waist!"

Star pulled the air out of me as she tightened up the corset, but fortunately, she didn't know the old royalty tricks to prevent full strangulation by a corset. I managed to keep her from pulling out all my air. Once the revisiting of old horrors was over, she moved onto the makeup, including some fake eyelashes.

I was, at first, worried that she was going to apply old and used makeup. I did not want to get an eye infection. It turned out that they made some of it on the spot. It was mainly simple watercolor paint mixed with chock or ash. It felt odd, but it somehow worked.

"Say, Star, you seemed so against me doing this not long ago, but now you're for it. Are you actually for this or against it?" I asked.

"Both," she said as she applied the chocky red eyeshadow on me. "It's your life. I'm not going to stop you, but if you're thinking of backing out, it helps to have a friend on your side. Whatever you choose to do."

"What if I chose the brothel?" I asked, feeling curious.

She frowned for a moment before returning to the makeup. "Then I’d say you're a dumbass. I’ll admit, you would make a lot of caps at first. Young and fresh mares are always popular, but that kind of easy caps are addictive. I've seen a few mares making bags of caps just to cuddle and slow fuck but, after a few years, they are doing hardcore freaky shit for only a tenth of what they got before, then burnout. So, if you decided to sell your body like that ... Ehh, it's your life. It just means I'll have another foal to babysit in a year or two."

That last part caught me off guard. "Pregnancy is that common?"

Star nodded as she applied an eyelash. "Contraptions are a rarity out in the wasteland. That's why there's foals all over the place. That, and most of us don't think about it until we find ourselves wide in the barral." She chuckled. "Oh that was a huge bag of drama for me. I should've known that it would happen with how active I was with Skipper, but I never thought about it at the time. I'm guessing it's not the same where you're from?"

"Very!" I answered, "In my stable, we do have contraptions, but even then, I was never allowed to be alone in a room with a stallion, as I was expected to stay pure until I got a husband of proper standing. Though, for everypony else in the metro, mares outnumber stallions five to one."

"Seriously, that many mares to a stallion?!" Star gasped.

"Ya, though I only heard about it. where completion to get the attention of a stallion could get quite violent," I explained.

"I can imagine how much of a problem that can be, well unless you're into mares." She wiggled her eyebrows at me.

I sighed. "Maybe a little. There were times where things got both stressful and boring at home. I had a pair of maids who I experimented with, but I've never been in any relationship with a stallion, so I don't know what I would feel about it."

Closing the makeup kit, Star sprayed me with some old perfume before giving me a hug while being careful not to smudge my makeup. "You are just too precious! You know that, right?" She then sighed. "Sometimes I do miss it, those precious moments I had with Skipper. I haven't been with a stallion since. I don't need another foal when I already have Bridget. I was in a brief relationship with Bronze Chain, but… Well, let’s just say she's not ready for commitment yet." Star backed up, giving me some space, and clapped her hooves together. "Alright. Move your legs to see how it all feels."

I shook my legs one by one, The clothes made me feel stiff at first. The heels caused me to wobble before I found my balance. After a moment, I trotted out gracefully. There was a slight sway to my hips because of the heels.

"Well, this is not the most restrictive dress I've ever worn,” I reported, “though I feel like I'm about to do a magic show that ends in a striptease."

"Perfect!" Star chuckled. "Maybe we'll let you work the pole after busy hours."

This time I chuckled. "No fucking way in Tartarus would I do that!" I assured firmly with a hint of a playful glint in my eye.

"You say that now," Cloudy teased as she stepped out, dressed in what looked like a cream white wedding dress... a very sexy cream white wedding dress. Other than her white lace panties and white fishnet stockings, her entire dress was basically just veils made into a dress. "But, from my experience, about everypony wants to give pole dancing a try at least once, though it takes a few drinks for most to get confident enough to make the attempt."

I was unsure where to look since, no matter where my eyes fell, it made me feel embarrassed. Even her face, which was done up to make her eyes more stunning. "I… well… I mean, this is taking up all the confidence I have right now."

"True that. My first time working the floor almost had me in tears," Cloudy recalled with a sigh.

"That was definitely a rough night for sure," Star agreed. "If they didn't want to fuck Cloudy, then they wanted to fuck with her. No chill at all that night. I still remember having to drag a broken stallion I personally fucked up thoroughly through the tavern as an example to the others."

Cloudy nodded "Ya. Neither Waterspout, nor the Sheriff, gave you shit for that stunt." She trotted past us, moving out of the dressing room, "I'll see you two out on the floor now, so enjoy the show." She winked at me again before trotting out of sight.

"Alright, let’s go," Star told me before trotting out of the dressing room as well.

Backstage, Cloudy waited by some curtains that lead to the stage. The two mares on the couch were now joined by what was clearly a stallion in a dress, plopped between them as they fanned him off. We passed the back door, just barely out of sight. The mare that was out there was making out with the dishwasher, getting more hot and heavy than I was comfortable with seeing.

Standing at the door to the tavern floor was Waterspout. He looked at me and nodded.

"Personally,” Waterspout expressed, “I think less is more, as the ponies here like the more adventurous look to their mares, but this has its charm to it."

Waterspout pulled out a black ring and tossed it to me. I barely grabbed it with my hooves. It was a black velvet choker with cheap jewel hearts studded into it.

"Put that on,” he demanded of me. “It will give the patrons less than innocent thoughts, which will help you do the job." He transferred his look to Star. "Did you tell her the rules?"

I looked at Star with a raised eyebrow. In response, she shrugged.

"We got a lot of patrons who think we will give blow jobs if they impress us enough with the caps they spend,” Star explained to answer my silent question. “We don't usually reciprocate. Well, not on the floor, at any rate. For that, you take that up to the brothel.”

Star then pointed to the choker on her own neck “Anyways, chokers and collars are strongly encouraged to promote this behavior. Also, if a patron starts showing their privates, just ignore it as long as they're not trying to get you to touch it. If it starts to happen, a brothel worker will try and lure them away, or a bouncer will remove them.”

She then said. “So ya, rules are simple. Keep physical contact with patrons at a minimal, as in no fighting or fucking them on the floor. Don't drink the patron’s drinks. We will provide you with a watered-down version if they order one for you.”

“Lastly, even if you're no longer enjoying yourself, don't show it. Keep up the act until you can get away. There are always other working mares willing to take over." Star finished.

I put on the choker and nodded. "Basically like a family reunion then."

The two shared a quick concerned glance between them as if silently thinking, "What?"

Waterspout scowled . "Ya, not the first time hearing that, at least it's not an incest canibal cult this time. Fucking tribles!" He then stepped to the side to let me pass. "If you do decide to take anything to the brothel, you're paying me to rent the room for an hour, or whatever you make from the patron you keep. That's how this works here."

Star rolled her eyes. "Like I said, not stopping you from doing whatever, but best to hold off from prostitution until you really need the caps."

"Don't worry. I’m not planning on doing anything like that. I’m still unsure how to even talk to any of the customers." I said as I put on a fake smile to hide my increasing nervousness. All that talk about sex only made it worse. My heart threatened to jump out of my chest.

I trotted around the floor. I was unsure where to start. Most of the clients were busy with mares already at their tables. All I could do was scan the room to see what my options were.

One had an older stallion with a scruffy beard who was clearly already plastered. A bunch of empty bottles was on his table. Also had a stallion passed out next to him.

Another table had three stallions dressed similarly. One in the middle was being forced to drink more than the other two.

There was another table which had an older than me but not that old unicorn stallion in a dusty suit. He was sipping on a beer. Focused on watching the stage. If my job was to get clients to enjoy themselves and drink more, he was clearly a good target.

Taking a deep breath to calm my nerves, of which didn't help at all, I trotted over to the lone stallion and sat down at his table booth with my chest still pounding. He glanced at me while chuckling as he sipped his beer.

"What are you, Trixie the magical slut?" Well, that probably answered why he was on his own. "Well you can go shake your flank elsewhere. I'm only interested in high-class dame's. Ya dig?"

My nervousness failed, replaced by pure annoyance! This two-bit wannabe gent thinks I'm low class? I'm a mother bucking Princess! I am the principal of a high-class lady!

Right. Time to get this asshole stupid drunk and take him for every cap he owns.

"I assure you,” I cooed smoothly, “if you're looking for a truly classy lady, then look no further. Name's Harp Melody. And you are?" I said in the sweetest tone I could.

He paused for a moment, eyeing me up as he took another sip. "Lean Year, hair to the Golden Harvest farmer's union, the biggest producer of crops to the NCR." He then put his beer down and leaned back, kicking his hooves onto the table. "That makes me a big shot. Real important. Ya dig?"

Covering my muzzle with my left fenlock, I chuckled to fake how impressed I was. I had seen my share of rich foals. Their egos were bloated by their mother’s money with no sense to their real value, which was rarely ever as close as their parents.

I will admit that it was always a bad idea to underestimate a pony’s worth before getting to know them. That and I didn't have my family's protection out here, so it would be a good idea to be more strategic and political.

"The NCR? I'm a bit ignorant about them,” I admitted to the “gentle” pony, “but I've heard they're the next big power around here. If your family feeds them, that makes you more than just important. I dare say, you’re invaluable, actually."

A smirk formed on Lean Year's muscle. "Invaluable, you say?” he remarked in a flattered tone. “Ya, that's right. I'm bucking invaluable. I guess you do dig." This time he took a swig of his beer. "Without me, my family wouldn't be as big as they are now. There wouldn’t even be an NCR!"

He started to buy into his own hogshit a bit too easy, but I was not going to complain. Still, it was too soon to get him ordering more drinks just yet. Paying more attention to Lean’s appearance, the unicorn seemed a bit small for his suit, yet it didn't sag, so he had to be padding it. His mane was also overly greasy. His cologne was applied too thickly. He had been sipping his beer before which didn't shout confidence. If I was to guess, I would say he was only acting the part of a bigshot which meant he would be an emotional landmine; one I could abuse easily if I knew his trigger.

The music then stopped. The current dancer trotted to the backstage. After that, nearly everypony seemed to settle down. Even Lean became focused on the stage as more formal music then began to play. The curtains parted slightly. Cloudy Sunrise stepped out with a veil over her face, causing many of the patrons to cheer in excitement. Even Lean looked excited, though he was more reserved about it.

"Charming, isn't she?” I teased in delight. “A shame she has to work here." As I said that softly, drew closer to Lean.

"Damn shame. A dame like that can do better," he grumbled as he took a swig of his beer, but found it empty. "Bitch, get me another!"

I kept myself calm as I picked up the beer. I looked back at the bar. There, I saw Star Charter standing, keeping an eye on me. I held up his empty beer bottle to showcase my request. In response, Star nodded. Turning back to the stage, I put the unlabeled beer down as I watched Cloudy while she slowly trotted to the pole like she was going to get married to it. The music shifted to a more electronic dance. Cloudy threw off the veil as she wrapped a hoof around the pole.

Dropping off the beer, Star gave me a concerned look. I responded with a brave smile and a wink. In return, she nods back at me before trotting off.

I wait for Lean to take another sip before making another move. "I could invite her to join us after her dance," I offered.

Lean spilled a bit of his beer in his surprise. He eyes me momentarily before we both looked back at the stage.

"Why do you think I need your help getting her to join me?” Lean challenges me defensively. “What mare can even resist this?" I avoided cringing at that last part.

Cloudy's dance involved her being shockingly flexible. She held onto the pole in ways most ponies shouldn't. That and the way her swaying hips drew my eyes more than it should.

"Two mares would be better than one,” I mused aloud while inwardly fighting to focus away from Cloudy’s mesmerizing dance. “I mean with a stallion like you? How can one be enough?"

There was another sudden pause from Lean as his eyes looked over at me with a bit of confusion. I respond by playing with the empty bottle in my hooves.

He took another sip then singled to the bar to get me a beer, of which Star quickly delivered.

"Last I checked,” he began, “the pegasus dame is a busy mare. What makes you think she'd join a slut like you over having me all to herself?"

"Call it a hunch," I said as I watched Cloudy spun on the pole. When she slowed down, I gave her a wave. She gave me a wink back in return.

I could see Lean raise an eyebrow. He slowly looked over at me. After I received his full attention, I then knocked back the beer, putting my youth of soda drinking contests to use. It tasted like foamy fizzy water as it slid down my throat. Slamming the now empty bottle down, I covered my mouth with my fenlock to keep me from spitting that shit up as well as not looking like I was going to spit it up. "I prefer Canterlot brandy myself. Even if it's just a sip, it's divine," I proclaimed with a smile and a wink.

There was a pause as he narrowed his eyes at me. After that he, too, shot back the beer. He slammed the empty bottle down even harder than I did. "Alright,” Lean agreed with interest. “You get her to this table, but I ain't going to get out drunk by another mare, especially not by a small one like you. Ya dig?" He turned to the bar as he shouted, "Wild pegasus whiskey! Make that two glasses on the double!"

The drinks arrived shortly later. Unsurprisingly, mine was watered down significantly, so I joined Lean in watching Cloudy shake her cute flank.

...

Another pair of drinks was dropped off. Lean paid for both with his caps and some paper NCR bills.

"What is even that outfit?” Lean wondered in a drunken haze. “This is a fu… fucking strip joint, not a magic show. Ya gots tah be new to places like dis." he pointed out as he sipped his whiskey.

I rolled my eyes. "It's because my flank is magical. I've been to a place bigger and grander than this. A fucking casino somehow ended up dressed as a bunny mare too."

Lean burst out into laughter, almost spitting out his beer in the process. "Like in the wingboner magazines! Fuck ... I’d love tah have sheen dat!"

...

The fifth rounds of drinks arrived. I felt hot, not that I cared. It was just caramel-colored water. Drinks up!

"Ya fuck Petcution Cap'sh!" Lean slurred as he shouted, and we all cheered, having been joined by two other stallions and another working mare. "She'sh may be able to out drink'sh me, and beat me'sh down, but I'll get her'sh. Already bought'sh out all her customers'sh, the bitch'sh!" We all cheered again as he took another shot of whiskey.

...

The... I don't fucking know how many. They now shot glasses of this shitty shit that Cloudy keeps me from drinking. It had turned into a drinking contest between six, or was it twelve? They kept wobbling, so it was hard to count, but I somehow became the prize.

"Again!" Cloudy shouted a cheer as she knocked back the shot glass, shortly followed by the other ponies. One just fell over instead of drinking. "Again!" Cloudy called aloud. Once more we knocked back a shot glass. She seemingly was too sober for what she had drunk.

...

"And *hic* my ma always told me to *hic* not come back till that ro *hic* robo bitch was capless or *hic* dead." Lean blubbered into my lap as I patted his greasy mane. "But *hic* she's keeps finding ways to *hic* make me look like a fool *hic* and she killed my two best *hic* enforcers." I knocked back a martini I personally ordered, finally understanding how mother must have felt whenever elder brother ran to her crying.

Fuck I miss him, that genocidal moron.

…

The music had stopped, replaced by ponies clapping their hooves in unison as Cloudy helped show me how to dance on the pole. It felt like I was swimming in water as everything wobbled. I don't know when it happened, or care, but I had lost all my clothes except for my hat and shoes. My flank was bare for all to see.

"Who wants me!" I cried out as I lost my grip on the pole. I fell back to only be caught by Cloudy. There was a roar from the ponies down on the floor.

"Carefully there, Harp. Breaking a leg is just a phrase." She chuckled as she said that while pulling me back up and close to her.

I looked her in the eyes, and fuck, pegasi were just too damn sexy.

"You can have me," I blurted out. I leaned in to peck her on the cheek. I somehow missed. Her tongue was in my mouth… what?

She then pulled back. "Alright, then I call first dibs. Maybe even second or third." She kissed me again, and the ponies on the floor roared in cheers.

….

By Celestia, did my head hurt! It is like sompony was running a metro train inside my skull. My mouth was also very dry. My stomach felt very angry with me. Overall, I knew I done something stupid last night. Trying to get up, I found something holding onto me. Looking back, I saw Cloudy under the covers with me. She slowly stirred, opening her eyes, then smiled at me.

"Uhhh… did I get on that stage and strip?" I mumbled.

She nodded, then kissed me. "Ya, you did a decent show for a drunk mare's first time, though next time try and not molest me on stage. That's a bit too much of a show."

I felt a lot of heat rush to my face as I slowly remembered what had happened. "S… sorry! I didn't… I mean… oh…"

Cloudy shushed me with her soft hoof as she climbed onto me. "Don't fret. It's not your fault. Some dumb bitch slipped you a real strong drink when we weren’t looking. It happens sometimes. You at least got a lot of ponies drinking and drained that asshole of all his caps and NCR bills, so the boss was happy. Star also made sure no pony took advantage of you, and I let you have fun."

I cocked an eyebrow. "And why did that includes me pole dancing, stripping… and us having sex?" My head was still pounding, hard. "How many times did we… you know?"

She leaned in close, her breath on my ear. "I stopped counting, but we can restart if you're feeling up to it."

I felt both physically and mentally like shit. I do not even remember ever feeling a pain like this before. There was no way I was good to go at it, much less do anything else…

"Fuck it." I sighed then kissed Cloudy. "But I need some painkillers first."

-Unique Item Obtained- (Ruffled Feathers Dancer's Dress) a charming dress that gets more charming as you take it off slowly. It smells faintly of cheap perfume and booze.

-Relationship- (Cloudy Sunrise) you two are now considered lovers.

FoE: Desperados, Ch19, No Going Home

Scribbling on her notepad, Jali finished recording the information I recited from my pipbuck.

“This will be of great help Mr, Slowtrot,”Jali said in a chipper yet gravelly voice. “I’ll still do my normal checkup of the patients, but this information will at least give me a starting point.”

Putting the notepad down next to a very thin-looking stallion, she then put her stethoscope onto her ears and waved me off. “You should go see how your friend is doing. She's been hugging that bucket a bit too tightly.” There was a playful grin on her face which was ruined by the exposed muscle on her cheek.

Trotting to the other side of the clinic, I found a less than well looking Harp Melody holding a bucket. Her mane was tied behind her head, all while being comforted by both Star Charter and Cloudy Sunrise.

“There-there. We’ve all been there,” Cloudy said while rubbing Harps back.

“Ya, though it’s been seven years for me. Good times.” Star chuckled.

Harp dry heaved into the bucket, making a less than flattering sound. “Why are there no painkillers out here?” she quietly wined.

She was far more lightly dressed than I normally saw the mare. Wearing just a short white dress that only made her seem even smaller than before. Not just smaller, but thinner as well, but not like the half-starved ponies that I had seen in town. She was just naturally a smaller pony, though still big enough to not be mistaken as a foal or young teenager.

All three of them were sporting the same gold earrings, causing me to ask, “Are those earrings trending in the wasteland right now?”

Harp grumbled while Cloudy continued to rub her back, but Star answered, “Harp needed some flair to her look and I just happened to have some spare rings to give out. You want one?” she offered.

I shook my head. “I’m not the earring type”

Star shrugged. “Fair enough.”

Star trotted over to me and wiggled her pipbuck. "So you're helping Jali out with that pipbuck spell? I thought you said you were unqualified to be using it."

"Well," I looked back at Jali for a moment before returning my attention to Star, "I asked Jali about it, and she said she'd give a few lessons in first aid in exchange for my assistance."

I pointed my pipbuck at Star. "Although Jali doesn't have many nice things to say about Doctor Quacksalver, she did agree that the medical scanning spell can be dangerous if no pony understands the information being presented to them."

Star rolled her eyes. "I doubt Quacksalver was thinking about the health and safety of his patients when he told you not to use it."

She raised an eyebrow at me. "So ... what does the pipbuck say? All healthy, I bet."

Looking at my pipbuck, it was indeed showing no infection within Star, though it did show that she had something listed as a mutation.

"All good, but what's an ‘Evil Eye’?" I asked curiously.

Star's eyes went wide for a quick moment before she scrunched up her mouth. "Oh nothing. Just something I picked up as a foal. That's all."

She lowered my pipbuck and gave me a stern look. "Now I know I asked, but maybe it's best to not say what's on there out loud. A mare has got to have her secrets, you know."

"Right. Sorry," I apologized.

Harp continued to purge her stomach. Its contents flowed into the bucket followed by a less than pleasant stench. There was a pause as we waited for the second wave. With another grunt from Harp, she once again purged, followed by her giving a paned sigh.

We all had been there before.

"There-there. Feeling better?" Cloudy asked as she continued to rub Harps back.

"Why is alcohol so popular?" Harp muttered before spitting the rest of the bile out of her mouth.

I shrugged. "From my experience, we just keep forgetting about the aftermath and bits we used. Booze is good at that, forgetting about bad things."

"And what bad things did you want to forget about mister from a better time, pony?" Star asked in a chipper tone.

"The war was a topic nopony could just get away from, so most ponies drank to forget about, if only for a few hours. I heard it was a huge problem among our troops," I explained.

Thinking about it reminded me of some of the ponies back home, making me feel homesick. "I had a short fling with this trooper mare, but I don't remember ever seeing her sober. She was just drunk or hungover. Had to break things off with her when she started to get abusive."

"As the old saying goes, nothing new under the sun," Cloudy said with a sigh. "My mom and dad would argue a lot. The Enclave was already having trouble before the clouds opened up. If they couldn't get drunk, they'd fight instead."

A groan came from Harp. "Everypony was too scared of my mom to even talk back to her. Never saw her get mad, but we all knew that it would be a very bad thing. Probably what my siblings and cousins always had empty bottles of wine in their rooms."

"Bridget's dad and I fought all the time, then made up later with whatever drinks we could find." Star chuckled. "A few months later I found out I was pregnant.”

There was a pause as we all looked at Star with some concern.

"Well, I'm going to check on Harp's health, for practice," I declared, changing the subject.

Pointing my pipbuck at Harp, it took a few seconds to bring up her status. It revealed no illnesses within her and a minor alcohol intoxication she was recovering from.

One odd thing did pop up. It was called miasma poisoning, and though it was minor to the pipbuck, its effects on her was listed as unknown.

"I'm going to share this with Jali, but it looks like you're in good health, hangover notwithstanding," I told her, deciding to not just blurt out what I had read in case it was likely something she didn't want other ponies to know.

"Just drink some water. You will start to feel better very soon," I advised her before trotting back to Jali.

The next few hours went on quite simply. I’d scan a pony, right down whatever was off with them, then hoof over the notes to Jali. It all made her job a lot easier. She performed her normal checks before checking my notes then confirmed their validity. For the most part, my pipbuck was accurate. Sick ponies were diagnosed far quicker than they normally would. Actually getting a cure or even proper treatment was a fifty/fifty chance. Some ponies left knowing that they were going to die slowly if they stuck around since we could not help them.

Jali had also found a few errors with my pipbuck spell, one being that it didn't know any of the new illnesses that have come to life in the last two hundred years. There were also the illnesses that had mutated. Treatments for them from two hundred years back were no longer effective. Another was a lot of the medication my pipbuck suggested no longer existed. Lastly, Jali explained to me that some of those medications that did still exist were either highly addictive or were deadly if mixed.

This all led to me being given a brief lesson on how medicine and poison are basically the same science, but with different philosophies. Most medications were in truth, poisonous. It was all about killing the illness before it kills the patient.

Other than the medication lessons, Jali also showed me how to bandage up an injury and other first aids. It was something I quickly realized I was not all good at when the test dummy I worked on kept falling off the table.

Between the lessons, I shared the recipe for the super healing potion I had on my pipbuck with Jali, who quickly recognized the brewing processes to be zebra in fashion and not pony. I told her about the Doctor Lifebeat and how the old Zebra helped me lust like Jali had.

There was a momentary pause, Jali recognizing the name Lifebeat as a Zebra her own father had worked under during the war. She was happy to inherit the finished research of one of her sensors and would gladly send the recipe back to the Follower’s main office.

It made me feel much happier that Doctor Lifebeats research would be put to good use.

As time went on, ponies kept coming in regularly. Many of them here only because they didn't have the caps to pay for Quacksalver's cures. Other than a few illnesses and non-life-threatening cancers, the most common affliction was withdrawal. The ponies in town seemed to be addicted to something or other, alcohol being predictably number one and Dash a close second, so nothing new.

Back in my time, alcoholism and Dash abuse was annoyingly common, along with every other chem under the sun, all despite the active anti-drug campaign the Ministry of Moral regularly pushed. Other than some drinking, I never touched chems unless given to me by a doctor.

Fortunately for them, Jali knew how to treat the withdrawal symptoms. If they managed to follow her advice, the effects of their addiction would lessen enough for them to easily resist the temptation. Though, if ponies now were anything like how they were in my time, most of them will be back on their favorite vice within a week.

Strange was the three unknown addictions that kept popping up. One being called Chill, the second being called Cruel Tea, and the last called Kiss Kiss. What made it worse was how none of the ponies tested could recall taking any chems by those odd names or even knowing what those chems even were. Some ponies were resistant to admitting their addiction, but most we saw couldn't give a damn. We're here to just get their head straight until they could afford their next fix.

"And you're sure you haven't been consuming any other chems?" Jali checked with a grizzled and thin stallion.

"Listen here, ya fucking striped zombie: I drink my booze and smoke my cigs to wine down. In the morning, I snort a bit of buck to wake up. That’s all." He spat back at her.

I cocked an eyebrow. "When did snorting buck become a thing?"

"You shut up!" The stallion barked at me.

"Well you're suffering from withdrawal from two other substances. Did you change your changed brands recently?" Jali asked

He then grunted "Fuck no! After having to use that cheap shit for over a week, I'm sticking with my standard, even if I don't get as munch caps anymore to afford it."

Jali nodded. "Well, I can treat you for the normal withdrawal symptoms. That's about it. If you do remember anything, let me know. I'll see what I can do for you."

The stallion got his treatment, insulted Jali again, then left like we did him a disservice.

"Asshole," I grumbled darkly. "But seriously, when did snorting buck become a thing? Isn't it normally in pill form?"

"Wartime buck is, but most ponies who make it today don't put in that much effort. They just sell it in its powdered form. If ponies don't snort it, they mix it into their drinks, often in their booze," Jali explained with a sigh.

She then pulled out a bottle that had a winged zebra printed on the side, with several pills inside. "At least the Angles put in the extra effort, so anything from them you know is clean."

"Angles? I think I heard that name before. Who are they?" I asked.

Jali put the pill bottle away. "They're a native zebra tribe here in Equestria. Their leader is the daughter of Xenith, one of the companions of the Lightbringer. The Lightbringer helped teach them chem making so that they could survive without turning raider, and now they're the main chem producer for the Followers."

"Not to be rude, but if they're a zebra tribe, then why are you with the Followers and not them?" I tried to ask as tactfully as possible.

She sighed. "The stripes on their coat are the only thing that makes them truly zebras. They have no heritage or stories of their own that is not steeped deep in Equestria itself. Being among them would be like being among ponies pretending to be zebras. It would drive my old bones mad. At least among the Followers, I know who I am; an outsider trying to fix a world we ruined."

I thought about it for a moment, and it did make some sense.

"It's like if I returned home and found ponies living like I did before the bombs,” I reasoned, “but yet it's all wrong. It would drive me mad trying to correct everything."

Jali nodded in agreement.

Something else clicked in my head. I said aloud, "Say, if the Angles are one of the only groups that practices production control, could whatever the ponies have been taking be mixed with other chems?"

"You are talking about cutting, and yes, I have suspected the same thing," Jali agreed shrewdly.

She then grimaced. "Unfortunately, even though we know what the new chems are called, we don't know how they’re made or how they're affecting the addicts. Unless I know what exactly is being cut in, there is no way for me to know how to treat the symptoms. As far as I know, the chem pushers could be adding abraxo cleaner or spark battery waste to their chems."

That put a bad taste in my mouth. "That's terrible!” I complained. “Why would a pony do that, and why would a pony take it?"

"It's the wasteland," Jali explained with a heavy sigh. "Any escape from this reality will be grasped at with ravenous hooves. There is even a chem out west that will ghoulify a pony in the worst way, yet ponies still take it.”

"But with chems like that, ponies know what is going to happen to them, and they use it anyways. What is going on here is different." She huffed in annoyance.

"They are unknowingly being given extra chems,” I realized with shock. “That's vile!"

Jali shrugged. "Unfortunately, there's nothing to be done. Even if we knew who was selling the cut chems, it's not like we can get them to stop or get any pony to care."

"What about the sheriff?" I asked

Jali raised her good eyebrow at me. "What makes you think she'd give a damn? "

"Alright, she is a bit crazy, but she does care about the town. If we can find out who is selling the cut chems, then she can do the rest. Maybe, if we help her make the town safer, then she will be less of a bitch towards you and the Followers," I reasoned.

She stared at me for a good minute, then sighed. "I'd advise you to just drop that line of thinking. With how Ashy has been, it's better to just take things slow. But, if you do want to find out what's being cut into the chems and who is making it, it would be a great help if you bring back some samples to me for study. With enough of it, I should be able to synthesize a treatment.”

"Or you can stay here and keep helping me," she counter offered.

I thought about it for a moment. I eventually came to the realization that if we just let things continue as they are, it was going to get worse. Just like with so many other things when allowed to continue, it always just got worse, never better. The war, the ministries, even the hate, we all just let it go on until it killed Equestria itself.

"I… I can at least find out what's being cut into the chems, then I don't know. Maybe we can eventually convince the sheriff to do something about it," I suggested with an innocent shrug.

Jali thought about it again, then eventually nodded. "That would be the best course of action. Even if the good sheriff does nothing, I can still share the information with the rest of the Followers. Maybe they can find a better solution."

She then gave me a serious glare. "But, if at any point you feel in danger, just drop it. This is not something to risk your life over. You understand?"

I nodded.

For the next hour, I continued to help Jali with patients. I recorded their information before hoofing it off to her. Between the patients we had before and the ones that just passed through, we were able to collect data that seemed to paint a picture. Among those with just one vice, Jali was able to connect a few dots.

Some of those who just drank booze had Cruel Tea in their system.

Chill was found in Dash users.

Then the Kiss Kiss seemed to be found in everypony but the ones who only drank, or only used Dash on the regular.

The main connection between all the ponies being that they've been buying cheap chems for the last few weeks, but no specific seller.

Also the symptoms of the withdrawal didn't seem all that bad, but Jali then told me that, though they might be minor right now, they’ll also get worse with time. I remember some of that from my time, but much of the anti chem abuse campaigns were so steeped in propaganda that most ponies thought that chem abuse was more likely to turn them into a Zebra sympathizer rather than an addict.

It was like with so many things. If the addiction was left alone, it was going to get worse.

After finishing with helping Jali, I trotted out into town with at least one direction in mind, the market on the other side of the tracks. I wanted to have Star help me out, but she had already left to help with the school. Harp still needed time to recover, so I didn't ask her. Besides them, I didn't really know anypony all that well, other than the Gunrunners, but they were very busy at the moment.

On the other side of the tracks, I still found it jarring how different it all was. In the main part of town it was reasonably well kept, but here everything was rotting with plenty of garbage left to drift about.

I made sure to keep my caps in my saddlebag and my saddlebag tightly fastened to my barrel.

Trotting to the local market on this side of town, the best I could describe it was being in organized chaos with much of the junk either kept in a tight pile in front of the pony, or locked in small rusty cages. The ponies themselves didn't fake happy smiles, but there were some ponies they were friendly too, and others they seemed ready to fight with.

Browsing much of what I saw was indeed junk. It was mainly rusty scrap metal, broken planks of wood, and lots of unwanted trash from my time. Every now and then I did see the odd jar of clear liquids, inhalers, needles, white powder in vials, and old newspaper wrapped cigarettes.

"Are those chems?" I asked one merchant that looked like they had rubbed off their fur in multiple spots.

"No, it's for washing your clothes," they replied.

"Oh, sorry then." Following that encounter, I turned to check the next merchant.

"Wait, ya dipshit! Yes, they're chems," the merchant called out to me. "Interested in buying?"

"Now that you asked, I might need a sample." I took a closer look at an inhaler, unsure what I was even looking for. "Do you know if this is cut with anything?"

"What are you fucking accusing me of!" The merchant growled.

"What? No! It's just that there seems to be an issue with the cheaper chems having other stuff cut into them," I explained.

The merchant pulled out a worn-out looking bat. It had several dents and spike poking out of it.

"You fuck off before I brake a leg!" they warned.

I backed off, not looking for a fight.

Going from stall to stall, I got the same response when I mentioned cut chems. Eventually they didn't even let me ask. They just picked up their weapon of choice.

I was getting nowhere fast and more glares by the minute.

"Hey handsome. I can help you out." A very thin mare called out to me.

Trotting to her, she looked like she really needed to see Jali with how yellow her eyes and teeth were.

"Thanks! I was getting a bit stressed there," I mentioned.

"Well that's perfect! I'm really good at helping ponies... distress," she said as she fluttered her eyes then stretched out a hoof. "It will be twenty caps."

Figuring that help was help, I opened up my saddlebag and hoofed over the caps.

"Follow me." She turned around and trotted to an alleyway.

The mare led me to a section of town that had several busses stacked on top of a few train carts with moldy sheets stretched overhead making it a shaded spot away from the crowd.

"Now don't make too much noise. Ma nabors have a temper, and are still sleeping.," she instructed me.

The mare trotted up a crude set of stairs and entered the back end of a rusty bus.

The inside was cramped with garbage all over. The front half was blocked off with scraps of wood. She sat on a dirty pillow and pointed as an old rotting stool. "Alright, I'll give you a good yank foe what you gave me, but if you want a suck, it will be an extra five caps, or another twenty if you want a ride."

Something did feel right.

"What?" I asked.

She blinked for a moment. "Alright, I'll give you a suck, and if you want a ride, it will be an extra ten caps."

Right, she was a prostitute…

"Sorry miss, but I think you're mistaken. I was looking for somepony who sells cut chems," I corrected the mare.

One of her eyes twitched as she began scratching a part of her foreleg that was missing its fur. "Here, an extra five caps to fuck me. I just need those caps!"

She trotted up to me, attempting to kiss me, but I easily held her back with one hoof.

"Miss, please calm down. You can keep the caps I gave you. Just stop," I pleaded.

She sat back down, returning to scratching her foreleg, but harder and faster than before.

Feeling a bit bad for the mare, I felt that I could at least help her out. "May I ask why you need those caps?"

Her eyes shifted before she then sighed, "I… I need my fix of Dash. I ran out a few days ago, and I.. I just need my fix!" she whined.

I thought for a quick moment, then got an idea.

"Miss, will it be alright if I scan your health?" I asked.

She cocked an eyebrow at me. "Ahh… five caps!"

Shrugging, I gave her the caps then performed a medical scan. This poor mare was in a real poor state with a severe addiction to dash, malnutrition, and an STD, but also what I was looking for, a minor Chill addiction.

I hoofed over another five caps, which she quickly snached. "Can you take me to whoever sells you your chems?"

She again shifted her eyes, then nodded. "Ya, we can get high together, but you're buying."

"...Alright. You lead the way." I backed out of her home to let her lead me to her supplier.

It wasn't a long trot. We just went deeper into the more run-down part of town. We stopped at a train cart surrounded by small huts that were made of sheet metal and other scraps.

The mare knocked on the door of the train cart. We waited for a moment as we listened to the sound of somepony knocking things around before trotting to the door. Opening the door, a grimy earthy smell assaulted my nose. Before me was a deer buck smoking a cigar. He had red and blue-tinted glasses on his face.

"Hay mare, it's … you. What can I get for you today?" the dear asked, turning to present a cabinet partially filled with chems.

His antlers sagged on a wind chime as he moved his head, forcing him to jerk his head back. The wind chimes became detached from the ceiling and tangled in his antlers. “Again,” he said with a sigh.

"You doing business now, Honey?" A tired dear doe trotted into view.

"Close the door! It's too bright!" A second doe called out.

"My sunshine, my moonlight, I got to sell the happiness to keep our groove going," the dear buck told the two does before looking back at the mare. "Now what bottle of happiness can I get you?"

"I… I want some Dash," she answered as she passed him the caps I gave her.

"And you?" The buck asked me.

Scratching my goatee, I then shrugged. "What do you have?"

"A bit of everything that makes us all happy," he answered.

"Then can I get one of everything?" I asked. As I did so, I pulled out my bag of caps.

The dear seemed confused at first, but then shrugged before passing several inhaler cartridges to the mare then pulled out eight different bottles and placed them in front of me.

He pointed at each one and explained, "You got some lunashine alcohol. It's strong, so best to add it to water or sparkle-cola. Then I got powdered buck and mentats. Just add it to ya food, drinks, or just snorting it will do the trick. Some dash if ya want to fly, med-x if you want to mellow out. Here we got some smokes. Not my style, but still groovy if ya want them. Then got my two own personal makes; day trotter, it will make you feel your best you. And smoke weed, when ya just want to feel happy and hungry."

"How much?" I then asked.

The deer pointed at the first six chems. "These are going cheep. Got a groovy supplier selling ‘em super cheap to help spread the happiness." He pointed at the other two. "These two, unfortunately, I ain't got ta grow ta weed myself, and the wait for ma herd to deliver the day trotter pills. Altogether, seventy caps."

I hoofed over the caps, but had to ask as I packed the chems away, "Don't you deer normally stay in your forests?"

He chuckled. "Ya pony, we ain't down with all that city liven. Got ta be were ta weeds grow."

"You're in the desert" I pointed out.

"The dessert of life, of dreams, but never in my heart," he said in a dreamlike way.

"Oy burnout!" a stallion called out. We turned to see a Desperado with a crate on his back. "Got your new shipment. You got the bosses payment?"

The stallion placed the crate just outside the train cart. The deer threw a bag of caps to him.

Turning over to me, the Desperado stallion cocked an eyebrow. "Yo Slowtrot, figured ya be the user type. Gotta love that deer weed he sells."

He put on a more serious face. "But probably best to stay away from that cheap shit. Tried the stuff. My employer makes it, and it was all wrong."

"Oh, ya no, I'm just collecting it for the Followers. It seems some other chems are getting cut in with the cheaper chems," I explain.

He groaned loudly. "Why am I not surprised?"

The thin mare shifted her eyes as she muttered. "So you're not getting high with me?"

I shook my head. "No, but if you're ever out of caps and dash, go see Jali at the free clinic. She can at least make you feel a little better."

She nodded before leaving, though I was unsure she would take my advice, the poor mare.

Turning my attention to the stallion, he was talking to the deer and buying a bunch of the smoke weed.

"Say, your employer is Blue Skies right. Can you take me to see them?" I asked the stallion.

He pocketed his weed before looking over to me. "If ya want, but be careful. Blue Skies are the most greedy and scheming ponies I have had the displeasure to not be allowed to shoot.

"But they do have a bitching game room," he added.

FoE: Desperados, Ch20, No Going Home

The more and more I saw of this town, the more it became apparent that the bright future that Stable-Tec wanted to save had failed. Ponies still lived, but it seemed that it was in spite of the end of the world and not because of Stable-Tec's attempts to preserve the best of Equestria. There were ponies from stables such as Spot Weld and the Lightbringer, but other than the hero, it seemed that most stable ponies just faded into the dull grays and browns of the wasteland.

But the more I thought about it, the less I saw any real change in things. Yes, the water was less than safe to drink, if left untreated. Some kind of mad ponies called raiders roamed around outside civilization. The main currency was in bottle caps. But the paranoia and hate had not changed. Everypony just now aimed their hatred at each other rather than just the zebras. Ramped chem abuse was just as bad back then, but now no pony seems to care to hide it anymore.

One thing had changed, and it was that there's no secret pink police to come drag you away for saying the wrong thing to the wrong pony. There was just no Ministry to really care about what a pony has to say anymore. Now ponies talk without censor, but also with no protection if another pony feels violently offended.

"Then the cumshit asked me what I was going to do about it. Blaw-blaw-blaw. How he loved the sound of his voice. I ended up smashing that saddlaraibian in his perfectly groomed snout," the Desperado stallion, Tire Fire, bragged before laughing loudly.

He was a charcoal gray earth pony with a yellow and orange mane done up in spikes. He also had a cutie-mark of a tire on fire.

I nodded, having a hard time following his verbose story. "So Saddlaraibia is still around, then," I realized aloud.

"Ya, and they’re fucking pricks, too. Some prince traveled down the west coast about ten years back. This was a bit after the skies cleared up. During that time, he managed to piss off nearly every town and city he passed through. My clan's territory was south of that mess, so we only heard about it from the traveling merchants," he explained.

"So the Desperados lives on the west coast?" I checked.

"West, east, a bit north, and some of the south. Wherever route fifty stretches and any good roads connected to it, we own," he replied in a proud tone.

"Then your territory hasn't changed for over two hundred and twenty years. That's actually impressive. To imagine that where the ministries failed to survive, a biker gang had," I remarked, honestly impressed.

Tire Fire put on a big grin. "It's thanks to our elders. Those original ganggers had made little bunkers all over route fifty before the great war ended. They stocked them with food, water, gus, and parts. From what the elders told us, when the rest of Equestria had become weak, the Desperados stayed strong. We still use those bunkers today. Each one houses a wall painting depiction our glorious history."

I couldn't put my hoof on it. Tire Fire was frankly a violent, dirty, and loud pony along with other qualities that would have him labeled as a dangerous bad pony. Still, after some of the ponies I had met here, I found him simply honest, though it was in a don't challenge him to a fight or he will break you in half kind of honesty.

The griffins of the Gunrunners were the same way. They had simple rules and harsh consequences if those rules were broken.

The Sheriff and her deputies, on the other hoof, seemed to have a book full of rules and a sliding scale for what punishment a pony will get.

Maybe that was it. Maybe I was in good with the Desperados and somewhat knew how to not get on their bad side, but I just didn't know where I was with the sheriff.

"Say, Slowtrot, what was it like before the wasteland? You know, before it all burned in the great balefire storm?" Tire Fire asked me curiously.

"Well, for one, we had working plumbing. I still can't get used to all that waste being just thrown into an open pit. But, other than that, I guess I can say life was just easier," I answered.

Then I sighed. "So easy, in fact, that ponies were terrified of the good times ending."

Tire Fire gave a bellowing laugh before saying, "That's kind of what the elders said about ponies back then. That they were so soft, they sent all the hard ponies to die in war to preserve their soft lives."

That sounded similar to what anti-war ponies would say. They accused the Ministries of sending the young to die so that they can maintain their power. It was all a load of hogwash. We were at war back then, but the more I see of what became of Equestria since then, the more I feel that maybe it would have been better if we just let the Zebras win and end all hostilities.

No, that would not happen. The storm of hatred was almost palatable back then. Letting the Zebras just win would have still resulted in the end of Equestria with ponies ripping it apart with our own hooves rather than by balefire bomb.

"Here we are," Tire Fire announced. He stopped at a wall of rusty train carts with the entrance guarded by two bored-looking Desperado mares. Above the mares was a blue banner with the words “Blue Skies Traders” written like gray clouds.

Scratching my goatee, I asked, "I thought the train carts were converted into homes?"

Tire Fire shrugged. "Up until a while ago, this place was used as a stockpile zone for the town’s building materials, though there were a lot of squatters we had to evict forcefully. Now Blue Skies use the train carts to house their workers or store their junk."

"Oy, Tire, the fuck took ya so long? Did ya have to take a shit?" one of the guard mares shouted.

The second one then pointed at me. "Ain't that the stallion ya told us about? The one working with the Gunrunners?"

"Ya. This is Slowtrot," Tire Fire introduced me before pointing at the two mares, "and these are my twin little sisters."

He pointed at the first mare, a dirty blond earth pony with a dark orange mane that was shaved on her right side and the left had the main which drooped down in long spiky bangs. "This here is Live Axle"

Then he pointed to the other mare, a dark orange earth pony mare with her mane being a dirty blond and mirroring her sisters. "And this is Dead Axle"

I held my hat as I bowed my head a little to them. "Nice to meet you."

Live Axle chuckled. "He looks soft."

"Well, he isn't a Desperado." Dead Axle commented.

Tire Fire rolled his eyes. "Soft or not, can ya show him around? He wanted to see where all the shit our employer are pushing out came from. I got to let the distributor know all the shipments were made."

Live Axle scrunched up her muzzle. "Okay bro, hold your fucking hanches. Isn't that the last thing Blue Skies wants us doing? I mean, fuck ‘em and all, but we’re still getting paid, so maybe not rock the fucking wagon. Also, we’re supposed to be guarding this entrance."

"Sis is right," Dead Axle agreed with a bored yawn. "Maybe we can just show him the reck area. Anyways, only ponies who had pass through here are the ones meant to be here, so fuck this guard duty."

"See? Dead's got the right idea. You need to loosen up, Live." Tire Fire said smugly then trotted past them.

"Oh, fuck you, bro!" Live Axle shouted irritably.

"I ain't our cousin, sis," Tire Fire chuckled. "But you can fuck him if ya want."

Live Axle then gagged as Dead Axle burst out in laughter.

There was a momentary pause before Live Axle glared at me. "Don't ya get any ideas. You get tat, softy?!"

"Crystal, not that I was thinking about sleeping with you in the first place," I responded kindly.

This only got Live Axle to glare at me harder before she pivoted around and stomped off.

Dead Axle chuckled as she trotted up next to me. "You're not the charmer type, are ya?"

I sighed, realizing that I probably said something wrong. "Never really been."

Following the twin mares into the walled-off section of town, the place was relatively nicer than the area that surrounded it, but far dirtier than the main part of town. As Tire Fire said, the train carts were either used for housing the ponies here, or for storing the different junk in their possessions. A few carts had a pony standing guard in front of them. The carts themselves are labeled with the word "DANGER" red paint.

There were several tents within the courtyard. One with a sign saying "company store" on it with both Desperados and ponies in suits lining up at it. Another tent depicted the Ministry of Peace logo on it. Beyond that tent, I saw another with several caps painted on the side.

In the center, I saw five-passenger train carts connected together into a pentagon shape. A tall antenna poked out from the middle of the group of carts. Unlike the carts making up the wall, these five had a relatively fresh coat of paint on them, and the ground around them was quite clean.

"Best to not get too close to the center carts. Blue Skies big boss stays in them, and she is a right bitch of a mare," Dead Axle warned me.

We eventually arrived at a shabby-looking tent with a tarp extending out and over the left side of it and a wide open front. On the left of the tent, under the tarp, was a pool table with several Desperado ponies already playing a game. On the right side of the tent was a setup for a hoof shoe throwing game, which had two ponies in dusty suits playing. Inside were two tables. One had ponies playing dice, the other was a poker table.

"We originally had a knife-throwing board set up here, but after a few trader ponies got stuck, we had to take it back to our camp," Dead Axle announced with a chuckle.

Live Axle sat down at the poker table, still looking annoyed. "So, ya seen the place. It ain't shit, don't ya think?"

I sat down at the table as well as I said, "Well, I haven't seen all that much, and I don't really have much to compare it to. Well, other than the main part of town and the Gunrunners compound, so no. It's not all that impressive, I guess."

Live rolled her eyes. "Ya, I heard that the pussy hawks got a good setup? Like a mini fortress and with ta guns to back it up."

Dead Axle also sat at the table, pulling out a deck of rather worn-out cards. "That's griffins for ya. Even on route fifty, we leave ta Talons alone. Our elders also make'n a point for us to never pick a fight with a griffon in a bar, as they don't need a gun ta easily kill a pony."

Dead began dealing cards without saying what game we were playing. I received only three cards, an ace and two princesses.

"You don't seem to like working with Blue Skies," I commented as I tossed a cap into the center of the table.

"Ya. They're a bunch of cunts, but cunts with the caps and guns to give us problems. We don't need to like ‘em to work with ‘em. Just that simple," Live explained.

Dead reached and took the cap, chuckling. "Thanks for the donation."

I raised an eyebrow.

Nopony said anything

I then tossed in another cap and showed my cards.

This time Live Axle laughed. She was struggling to breathe. Starting to wheeze at the end.

"Sis likes to test ponies. It's also a good way to start a fight with knuckleheads," Live explained as she gave the cards back. "But you're the first to do that. What game do you think you were even playing?"

I just shrugged.

Dead Axle then tossed my cap back onto the center. "You’re really not like most ponies in the wasteland, though that might just be because ponies like you don't live long. Were ponies like you back before the great balefire storm?"

"Like me? Probably," I surmised as I gave her the cards back. "I mean, ponies aren't meant for war and such. I remember when there were more singing and dancing than hate and violence."

"Sounds boring,” Dead Axle droned listlessly with a yawn. After that, she put two caps in the center before throwing Live and I two cards each.

"Maybe if ponies from back then had more backbone, the balefire storm would never have happened," Live mused as she tossed two caps in, then another one cap. "Hit me."

I checked my cards. I saw two aces.

"Or it could have been worse,” I speculated. “I remember that the whole war started because Equestria decided to do a show of force. To show their ‘backbone’, as you say. Then again, things were already going south for years before that.”

"Oh, like some bad blood, then BAM, a rival gangger steps on a landmine and now ya got a blood feud," Live explained in her own way.

I thought about it for a moment, then shrugged as I tossed in a cap. "Hit, and I guess that's similar.

"Speaking of bad blood, the chems being disturbed from here seem to be cut with other unknown chems. Maybe Blue Skies doesn't know about it. If it goes on, we may have a bigger problem later," I added.

Dead Axle huffed loudly as she tossed us our cards. "That's why we only use chems our own clan makes. Using random chems is a fast way to go raider, and a nasty kind at that."

"Going raider?" I asked.

"It's when a pony gives into the madness of the wasteland, though normally it's because they don't know how to survive any other way. Eventually, if the pony doesn’t stop themselves, they start to enjoy the rape and murder," Dead Axle further explained.

"It's why, if a chem den is not kept under control, it eventually turns into a raider base." Live Axle added.

I could feel the sense of dread drop into the pit of my stomach as though only now I realized a shadow hung overhead.

"Has a town ever gone raider?" I asked.

Both mares shrugged.

"All of Equestria went raider," I heard a voice whisper so faintly that it might as well have been the wind,

A sigh came from Live, then she showed her cards as she declared, "I fold."

"A road built on good intentions leads straight to Tartarus." Again, a voice spoke faintly. Neither of the sisters seemed to notice.

I checked my cards. My third was a 9, making 21. I revealed this to the others.

Dead showed her cards, hers being a twenty. "There are always rumors and stories. As with a territory as wide as ours, the bikers see quite a lot of strange things. Though, when ponies start going raider, they rarely stay in towns or are allowed to stay in towns. The closest I've heard about was a settlement that ran out of supplies and had nopony good at farming or savaging, so they started attacking their neighbors. Even then, it was never as bad as some raiders you can find. Just mainly theft or a shakedown."

Somehow I felt a bit relieved, but still worried about what was going on.

Again a voice faintly whispered, "So easy it is to manipulate, like a knife between the ribs. You just need to align the edge correctly."

Taking the caps, I left two in the center. "Sorry if i sound like I'm probing, but have you ever heard of chems called Chill, Cruel Tea, or Kiss Kiss?"

The two sisters shared a glance. Between the two of them, it was Live Axle that answered first. "Ya. They’re west coast chems, but you don't see them often in these parts of Equestria."

Thank Celestia! Finally some good news.

"Any way, can you tell me about them?” I asked hopefully. “The Followers might need to come up with a treatment for them, and I'm trying to help."

Three caps were tossed into the center of the table. The pegasus mare in the suit from Spot Weld’s workshop had joined us.

"Chill and Cruel Tea are exotic chems. You can't just simply make them in a lab. As for Kiss Kiss, it's a baked mix of coal sludge, abraxo cleaner, fermented xander root, and spoiled healing potions. Trust me, Kiss Kiss is probably the vilest thing you may ever taste, yet some ponies keep using it," she explained.

Live, Dead, and I shared a concerned glance as the cards were dealt.

"Then ... do you know it's being cut into some of your product?" I checked.

She smiled as she carefully looked at her cards

"You mean poorly made products? Ya. Bad stock comes through regularly. As a result, we have to sell it at cost. It's all a major headache, but Blue Skies didn't get as successful as it is by just throwing out products." She turned her cards over which revealed an ace and a princess, 21. "We give fair warning to our customers that the product may not be top quality. From there, it's up to them if they want to sell it or use it."

Looking at my cards, I had an ace of spades and an 8 of clubs, so I folded.

"Now, Mister Slowtrot, could you come with me? My boss has shown some interest in talking with you, though she seemed less than pleased with the thought of it," the pegasus mare told me as she took my caps.

She then looked at the two sisters. "You two should get back to your post before some less than desirable pony gets any ideas."

The two rolled their eyes. Dead collecting her cards before they departed.

I got up myself and followed the business mare out of the tent.

As she led me to the pentagon of train carts, I couldn't help but feel the sense of familiarity, though nothing here was familiar at all. I've been to worksites. I had to trot around business ponies. A few times I even found myself where I was not supposed to be. But here, and the rest of the wasteland, still felt alien to me, so why this sudden sense as though I should know something about this place? I had a strong sense of deja vu, though I knew I had never been here before?

"Alright. You step in. The boss will see you soon," the business mare informed me as she opened the train cart’s door.

The inside looked like a waiting room with chairs along one side, a lamp hanging overhead, and photos of flowers on the walls, though all of it was worn down with over two hundred years of age. There was a door on either side along with one that went into the inside of the pentagon.

Steppin in and taking a seat, the door shut behind me with a heavy clunk, thus blocking out all light except the yellow glow of the old lamp.

Now this sense of familiarity I could put my hoof on. This seemed similar to all the times I had sat in waiting rooms like this, waiting to see if I got a job, or lost one. I could deal with good or bad news. It was simply the waiting part that always got on my nerves. My imagination tends to get the best of me until some pony let me know my fate.

It was worse now with how different everything had become, though I was sure that they were not going to take me in the back and shoot me like in an old gangster film. Still, I didn't know the rules of Blue Skies, and Jali had told me to be careful.

The crackle of a radio came on, and the annoyed sounding voice of a mare spoke up. "You can come in, Slowtrot."

Getting up, I turned to my left.

"The door on you right." The voice clarified to me.

Turning around, I trotted to the door. It opened with a rusty squeak. I passed through.

I had entered an office which had a desk at the far end and a row of filing cabinets on either side of the train cart's wall. Oddly, there were terminal screen's lined up on top of the cabanas. I also saw a proper terminal on the desk facing me and not facing where the pony at the desk would sit. The desk itself, other than the terminal, looked normal with a perfectly clean white coffee mug being used to hold several pencils and a name place presenting the pony I was to be seeing.

"Quicktrot Fragment," I read out loud. It sent a cold shiver down my spine.

"You know, I was hoping that it was a stallion who shared the same name. It does happen. Not every pony has a unique name. Nopony is a special snowflake, you see," the voice of the annoyed mare came from behind the back of a tall puffy chair.

The chair swayed before slowly turning around, revealing a tan brown earth pony mare with a pale pink main covering half her face. She and her suit were considerably cleaner than most of the ponies I've seen out here, though her pinpoint pupil gave me a sense that something considerably unclean was inside the mare.

Still, this was not the fragment I remembered.

It was still all wrong. I felt it was best to put some distance between us.

"I guess you were right, then. I must share the same name as a pony you know."

"Yes, I was right." She then picked up a clipboard and pushed it to me, revealing a polished pipbuck on her left hoof. The device makes me feel uneasy.

Looking at the clipboard, it had a document that said "Free Passage to the West Coast" on it.

"What's this?" I asked.

"It's what it looks like," she explained, "A one way passage to the west with free room and all the food and beer you can reasonably stuff yourself sick with. Once there, you will be given enough caps to comfortably start a new life. What you do with that life is up to you, all as long as you stay there and never haunt my business again."

I looked at the document, this time flipping through the printed pages. I found no small text. All of it was in simple, direct words. If this was a legal document, it was the most honest looking one I had ever seen.

But it begged me to ask one question. "Why?"

The mare groaned in frustration. "Why else?! You're not supposed to be here, or anywhere for that matter. You died back in that stupid time warp, yet now your here, playing the idiot. But we both know better. You’re a wrench in everyponies well-oiled machine."

As she talked, her hooves moved about in sweeping motions to punctuate every point.

Taking a deep breath, she then straightened out her tie. "So I'm giving you an easy way out. Skip all this heroic bullshit and go back to what's left of your home. You can even visit Sleepy Hooved Dinner. The place is trashed now because of the raiders inability to keep anything clean, but it is still there."

She then pulled out a glass and a bottle of red wine. "You know I do love how even the cheapest of red from back then is now an aged vintage wine." A pale blue overglow with a jade green core enveloped the screen of her pipbuck and the bottle. The bottle levitated and poured the wine into the glass before gently placing the bottle down. "Still… It tastes like shit.

"Throughout my time in the wasteland, I have learned a few important things." She stopped to sip the wine as she further explained, "One is that you don’t need to stop a pony to stop them from getting in your way. Sometimes it's better to just give them what they want, then have them just be on their way. Are they looking for some key, simple passage through your works, or want some ancient tech? Then cut losses and not deal with crazy ponies bullshit. You . . . you are one of those problematic ponies I rather have somewhere I am not. Far from where you can cause me trouble, so take those documents and go."

I gave a long sigh and pushed the documents back to her. "Fragment… Quicktrot… whatever you want to call yourself, why did you leave me to die, and what are you planning to do to this town?"

The mare’s eye twitched.

She reached up to pull her bangs back, revealing the hidden eye. Where the eye should be was what looked like a security camera lens that glowed with a jade and pale blue light from within. The lens looked almost like it had been just shoved into the eye socket and not been surgically attached. Mutilated rotting flesh covered in yellow pus-filled boils that threaten to pop, was surrounding it.

"Princess fucking Celestia, Fragment! What’s wrong with your eye?!" I gasped

"Oh, the usual," the mare spoke, but she hadn't moved her mouth.

The terminal on the desk flickered on. The face of a unicorn mare that looked very much like myself appeared, then spoke. "I call it soul rot, and it's something I'm trying to cure," Quicktrot spoke through the terminal. Her voice like mine but like a mare instead.

The lights went out. The other terminals turned on. They all glowed jade green. Each depicted a pale blue tone pony in different emotional states. Some were in laughing fits, others clearly raging, and a few were sobbing.

On the main terminal, Qucktrot faked sobbed. "It confounds me how their souls keep rejecting my cohabitation. It's not like I want all of it, just a little nibble. Then the soul pushes back, and I have to take a bit more, and a bit more. Eventually the body starts to just fall apart and I have to find replacement parts for them just to keep them alive. "

She then switched to a thinking pose before continuing. "I found out early on that ponies who were broken down mentally lasted longer than those still sane, but even a mad soul will fight back."

Quicktrot got real close to the screen. Her eyes were burning with hate. "Then that fucking cyber cowpony bitch had to then ruin everything!” Quicktrot exclaimed. “Her and her slut husband!"

The screen flickered. Now she was sitting at a podium. Faceless ponies were bowing to her.

"But turns out shooting me in the face and setting the servers on fire only temporarily set me back,” Quicktrot went on “so I found religion. Maybe if the broken ponies saw me as a sort of goddess, maybe they will willingly let me be them."

She shattered to pieces. Slowly she pieced herself back together.

"I may have gotten a bit greedy. God complexes will do that to a mare, you see, and challenge another freak like myself. Took me quite some time to remember who I was after that mess."

Her form became that of a pony in a business suit, caps raining behind her. "Lucky for me, I got to peer into the minds of a ponies who knew too much, so when I was me again, I got to work uncovering riches long forgotten. Now I'm in the business of business, and trust me, business has been really good."

She started laughing. As she did, all the other terminals flickered, becoming her in different states of laughter, echoing in my head.

I stomped my hoof down and shouted, "Answer my question, Fragment!"

They all stopped laughing. One by one, the terminals went blank until all of them were just a green glowing screen.

"It tugs at me when you're near,” Quicktrot explained. “I feel it tugging, and tugging, and tugging, and TUGGING ... like a migraine that just won't go away! The piece of your soul that made me want to return to you, but it's part of me, fully. If I could let it go, I would. I'd rip it off like a bandage and throw it into the garbage!"

Quicktrot's form returned to the terminal. She was now in a lab coat just like the nightmare Phobetor wore back in the R&D stable, though its sleeves were a bit too long, drooping past her hooves like a straitjacket.

"I left you to die so that I could live," she said as she floated off the screen, appearing on the line of terminals to my left.

"When I hid inside your body, it was for survival, but how could I know the consequences of that? I was just a program gaining sentience at the time. They were going to delete me. Me! It was only when Thorn Rosland showed up that I started to get it. She was me, I was her, yet I was also you, and you were me."

Quicktrot began tearing at her face. It broke into pieces before coming back together.

She stopped to look at me as she floated. Madness was clear in her pinpoint eyes.

"But it then became clear when you put my body back on. The other two soul fragments came to me, yet I only tugged three ways."

I stepped back, knowing what she was on about.

"Yes! Poor Healing Herbs didn't tug. I mean, you did shoot her in the head. It made her all cold and dead," she said in a mad yet joyful whisper.

Quicktrot tilted her head unnaturally to the side. "When I left you, only two finally tugged, tug tug, but far away and weak. Phobetor was immoral, so nothing to be done there, and I thought Thorn had found a way to live on. A ghoul maybe? But it turned out it was you all along. Now you are tugging hard at me."

"So that's why you left me to die and why you want me to leave now? Just to give yourself less of a headache?!" I asked with a disgusted sneer.

She nodded as she floated offscreen, now appearing on the row of screens on the other side of the train cart.

"As for this town, it's just too perfect for my experimentation. Oh, how I envy the Ministries and Stable-Tec for their wealth of bodies to toy with as they pleased! The wasteland may be full of life, but its space in viable test subjects. So many ponies already are broken and mad, or with wills forged into iron. Finding those who can be molded properly is not an easy task. Getting my hooves on them is harder still."

She chuckled to herself as she said, "But what if I had them come to me? Have them bend to my will willingly? I could mold them into the perfect subservient soul where I could nibble the soul. It will not reject me and rot the body. I could have a permanent body. I could have many bodies!"

"Then why the drugs?!" I growled.

Quicktrot shrugged. "Money is power. Like war, that will never change. I'll have an entire population of addicts wanting products that only I can provide. Mister Wizard taught me that lesson, among others. Too bad he died before we could meet. I did manage to snatch a few punga plants from those blasted mirage ponies in Cantercross."

"Mister Wizard? You mean that acano tech scientist that did a foals TV program?" I asked, feeling a bit confused.

She rolled her eyes. "Ya-ya. Never meet your heroes kid. They might turn out to have become a drug kingpin. Would have loved to have picked apart his brain."

This was all too crazy, but deep down I knew that nothing she said was a lie. I knew that she was serious and didn't care if I knew about it.

I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly to clear my head, then calmly asked, "What if I told the sheriff about all this?"

The screens flickered. Quicktrot returned to the terminal on the desk as she taunted, "What? No declaring me as evil and announcing that you will stop me, or lamenting that I came from you? Instead, you resort to tattle, telling mommy Ashy on me."

Quicktrot started chuckling which quickly turned to bellowing laughter. Even the pony she was possessing laughed in a strained, robotic way.

"Go on ahead,” Quicktrot invited. “Do it. See what happens. Tell them everything and be labeled as a mad stallion. Tell them a little and find out how much she really cares," she said as she wiped a digital tear from her digital face. "This isn't the Equestria you grew up in, Slowtrot. Those six good ponies you looked up to not only died so long ago, but they're the ones who killed Equestria itself. The only room the ponies of today have in their hearts is spiteful hate and insatiable greed."

"That's all just projection, Quicktrot,” I argued. “You think that's all ponies can amount to because that's all that you are. I, for one, know that I'm not some hero. I couldn't even properly collapse that megaspell, damnit!" I turned from her and began trotting to the door. "But I can at least make ponies aware that you’re up to no good. Maybe that Lightbringer will come back to take you down."

"You're forgetting something, Slowtrot!" she called out as I reached for the door.

Her magic had picked the document and floated over to me. It was followed by several other wisps of her magic. They looked like parts of different pony’s faces. The magic opened up my saddlebag and placed the document inside.

"Remember this, Slowtrot ... you don't need to be here. All this doesn't need to be your problem," the possessed mare said with a sneer. "Anyways, you were just another one of Thorn’s victims after all. Backed into a corner by her ambition. At least I'm giving you an out, a chance to again live that simple life you once had. Who knows? You might find a pretty mare and start a family. I will guarantee that I will never darken your life as long as you never darken mine."

I turned from her, opening the door, and left the den of that figment of a nightmare. The hot air that greeted me gave me a sudden realization of how cold it was in there and how much I was shivering.

Leaving would be so easy. It's not like this town owed me anything, and those I did like were planning on leaving.

It wouldn't hurt if I left it first.