A/N: Chapter five! Sorry for the delay on this chapter, but we (as a group) have been very busy expanding the story and not editing it. Which brings me to this:

If you would be interested in helping write this story, edit it, or help at all, message me. I will email you a template to test your writing skills and your understanding of our characters. More of this at the bottom. Anyway, enjoy reading, the rest of you.

Chapter 5:

Crying was heard from the rooftops. Bromley, still awake, immediately bolted to his feet, and Nate who had been half dozing, also got up. The two glanced at each other before Nate swung over the edge of the ladder with one hand and dropped to the floor, while the Captain just leaped down, landing silently. Evan was passed out and nothing really woke him up when he was injured. If he had a paper cut it was like he was in a coma. However, he did wake up when his head hit the hard roof and made a solid yet hollow thunk when it hit. Yelping, he noticed Nate disappearing over the edge. He caught up to the two by skipping going down the ladder and jumped down instead of climbing, rolling as he landed, and injuring his back even more. Bromley nodded at both of them and they split up.

Apple Jack, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy woke up almost simultaneously. Fluttershy was bawling, and Applejack was wide eyed and shaking, unable to scream despite wanting to. Rainbow Dash was silent however, the pain still so real to her. Her face was wet with tears of agony, and her wings were aching on her back. Applejack immediately got up and ran outside, her dinner from the previous night soon splattering onto the ground. With one last heave, she walked back inside, groaning. Evan stopped outside her door, planning on checking on her. His injuries got the best of him though, but was too tired to go any further than the doorway. He leaned heavily on it, not all the way conscious. Applejack turned to face him, his head already hanging down.

“Zzz... donuts... gghhhz- Hm?” Evan was still waking up, a warm shoulder pressed against his leg. Looking dazedly at the pony’s pretty green eyes, which were currently worried and scared, he reached out to pet her neck gently.

“Yer’... mostly not-crazy, right?” Applejack asked flatly. Evan grinned tiredly.

“Yeah... I like to think I’m closer to eccentric or zealous... or high... “ His head lifted up from the pony’s gaze and he stared into the distance through the wall- rather than insane.” He mumbled, going back to sleep on her floor with a thud. Applejack calmed down a little and went to lay in her bed, forgetting the unconscious body in her doorway for a second or two, before realizing she should probably take him to his room.

Fluttershy ran outside, wanting to find Nate as fast as she could. As she rounded the corner though, she almost screamed as her neck was seized by a strong grasp. Dark eyes stared at her for a moment before the grip relaxed. She gulped a bit for air. Bromley was holding her, and he let her go slowly, setting her back down on the ground. She sucked in oxygen for a few seconds and looked up at the Captain. He was smiling a bit, apologetic.

“I’m sorry. I heard screaming and I thought it was an attack. I guess there wasn’t one though...” She nodded and smiled to him for a second.

“It’s alright. Good to know we have protectors.” She spotted Nate and hurriedly left Bromley though. Fluttershy then fluttered over to Nate, and nuzzled him, glad he wasn’t trying to kill her. She ignored the tingle around her neck when she touched his skin. It was akin to that feeling you get when you walk through a spiderweb.

“No sleep for me?” Nate questioned. “I guess I have to protect you again.”

“I had a nightmare...” She began. Nate immediately picked her up and hugged her.

“Awwww... What about?” Nate questioned, putting his hand on her cheek and stroking it slowly. It was surprising how you could so easily ignore the Captain when he wasn’t trying to gain attention, so she decided to speak about her horrors.

“Y-y-y-you killing m-m-m-m-...” She began to cry and buried her snout into his neck. He put his arms around her and whispered if she would like to sleep with him. She took the invitation, still shivering from the dream. Nate, despite the fact that he medically couldn’t fall asleep, laid there with her until he knew she was asleep. He kept whispering “It’ll be ok.” Into her ear. He listened in with a silent ear as Applejack came into the neighboring room which was Evan’s. She talked to Evan for a few seconds. All Nate had caught was that she had remembered that he was asleep in her room and she thought it should be the other way. Also something about Evan’s pets... What had happened?

Bromley left the two alone. It was obvious he wasn’t needed. He silently climbed back onto the roof and took a seat exactly where he was before. He ignored the quiet chattering, and gazed out at the horizon. This wasn’t unusual for him. Being the silent guardian, that everyone knew was there, but never really mentioned. Why? Because it wasn’t needed, as nobody really liked depending on someone. Weakness pissed off the majority of people, and he tried his hardest to cover up his own, he knew. So, why make others uncover what he himself hid? His thoughts were brought to a halt though, as he heard hoofsteps from below. Though they were quiet. He looked forward, right as a blue pony flew up in front of his vision.

Rainbow Dash flew up to the roof, still teary eyed. Her wings welcomed the air, and soon she was looking at the slightly hunched over form of the Captain. She had suspected he would be up there, seeing as he liked the quiet and the... Darkness. She outstretched a hoof to Bromley, though she couldn’t really see him, as her eyes hadn’t adjusted. He immediately shook it as though greeting her. She looked into his eyes, the only thing she could really make out, and hope surged through her as she saw the mirth in his eyes.

“How’s it going?” He said, smirking. She looked away and frowned, the memory of the dream still very vivid.

“Nightmare...” She said, looking back to him. Her eyes made it obvious that he had done something in the dream. They looked fearful, yet disbelieving. He shook his head slowly, tugging gently on her hoof. She flew closer and he spoke sincerely to her.

“I’m never gonna hurt you. No matter how angry, or monstrous I ever become, I will not raise my hand against you.” She felt as though her insides fluttered. She laid down next  to him and curled up, both because he was warm and because she was developing even more feelings for him, despite the dream she had just experienced. She still flinched though, ever so slightly as his finger tips traced over her wings. He stilled at that and he looked down at her.

“... I may be a monster sometimes, but you tend to scare off that side of me. You’re much too pretty for him.” She looked back up to him. Her cheeks were flushed, which she imagined was obvious due to his slight grin. She pushed herself up onto her front feet and kissed his cheek. She laid down quickly, attempting to hide an excited squeal. He chuckled to himself silently, looking up to the sky. The stars seemed to be more vibrant and amazing this night than any other. He then corrected his thought process to avoid being so... cutesy. Twilight had a very serious apology in the morning but most of everyone enjoyed what had happened after the horror so they forgave her quickly and set back to work. Around mid day Rainbow Dash flew onto the roof again.

There was no more denying it. She couldn’t hold it in any longer. She had waited weeks,  to tell Bromley how she felt, despite how taboo it may be. Sure, there were downfalls. What would the fillies look like? Would they have cutie marks? How long would it last? She flew down to his room yet again, though this time making sure to knock. Then she noticed that he was sitting with his friends in the room next to his. She beckoned to him secretly, hoping that his friends wouldn’t see. His awareness levels were ridiculous, because he turned to her as soon as she appeared at the door way. Silently he stood, leaving Evan and Nate to look over a massive sheet of paper. Evan was almost completely covered in wrappings. His shirt was off but it looked like he still had one, the white cloth stretched all the way up his torso and along his arms. It turned out they had run out of bullets that morning, fighting off six of the disgusting fiends.

“Awwweh” Nate said, watching Bromley walk out. Bromley immediately turned and shot a death glare at him, making him quiet down instantly and whistle to himself, looking at the clouds. Evan laughed raucously despite the repeated glares that were directed at him. The captain continued walking toward the little rainbow Pegasus, eyes lazily roaming over her, unknowingly checking out the teenage pony. At least she seemed like a teen. He found her flank attractive. She found herself blushing despite herself,and twirling her tail flirtatiously.

“Br-Bromley?” Rainbow Dash began.

“Yes?” He responded, eyebrow raising.

“I-I-I...” She could hardly even say those few words.

“You, you, you, what?” he said, trying to alleviate some pressure from the conversation.

“I-I... I like you.” She managed, still not quite conveying fully what she meant to say.

“I like you too Rainbow. So far you’ve proved to be a great friend.” Bromley resisted the urge to smirk, as he already knew what she was trying to say, and was enjoying teasing her.

“No no no... I mean... I l-l-...LIKE you... So h-hard...” She said, standing straight up again and saying “I want to love, and tolerate the shit outta you.” Bromley chuckled softly and ruffled her amazingly soft mane, determined to press harder for her true feelings.

“Holy balls that’s soft. Anyways, so best friends? That would be awesome.” He grinned at her in an almost overly sincere fashion, though it was a total facade.

“Agh, no... I-... What do you call being more than best friends?” She said.

“Hm... Best friends forever?” He carefully hid his smirk.

“No... I mean like...” She slowly ascended to his face and pressed forward, their breaths mingling for a second, before turning bright red, and flying away. Unfortunately for her, Bromley reached out, grabbed her tail gently and tugged her back into his chest, smirking. She tried to ignore the firm arms wrapped around her belly, and the elegantly raised eyebrow above his eye as she squealed in an awesome way. Meanwhile, Bromley avoided commenting to himself about how warm the small form was pressed against him, and how velvety her coat felt.

“I’m still not sure what you were trying to say... Clarify please, before you leave.”

“I-I-I-” She was frozen. She had no idea why she couldn’t just say it.

“What she’s trying to say,” Twilight said, interjecting, having heard the commotion, “is that she wants to be more than even best friends.” “Even if it is the worst choice of her life,” she thought to herself.

“She already said that. I’m really not quite sure what you mean by that.” He released the small rainbow pony and allowed her to fly a small distance away.

“Oh why don’t we be blunt with the fellow?” Rarity interrupted, storming in due to the lack of perfection everywhere, “Perhaps it’s love.” Rainbow Dash had returned right as she said this and went bright red, her wings suddenly freezing mid flight, stuck out wide. Bromley calmly walked under her, eyes not moving from Rarity’s and caught the pegasus. Then turned and raised a brow at the little winged pony.

“What is love?” he asked with a confused expression on his face. Nate had to keep himself from singing ‘Baby don’t hurt me, don’t hurt me, no more’. Bromley’s head seemed to bob side to side for a few seconds, but he shook his head to clear it. He knew what love was. The question was stupid. What he really meant was... “Who would love me?” In his book it was unnatural for any affection to be put onto him. But, he had read about odd love in books and such.

“Uuugh... You humans are stupid sometimes you know that? Love is the strongest emotion any being has. It brings two PONIES together to form an unbreakable bond. They usually use marriage to define it,” Rarity explained. She was going to say more but Bromley stopped her with a look.

“So Dashie... What is she trying to say.. In your own words...?”

“I-I Lo-lo-v-v-” She started nervously, “You.” The mumbled words were too quiet for Bromley and he sighed, taking her to his room to see if she wasn’t as nervous. He opened the door, and set down her quivering form, then knelt to eye level with her, the door shutting behind him.

“Dash... You were saying?” Rainbow Dash could not get her wings to fold in, and her cheeks flared hotly, as pink as Pinkie Pie’s coat.

“I-I love you.” She said more clearly, still bright red. Bromley hid his turmoil of emotions well, and calmed himself to make sure this poor little pony wasn’t about to get in way in over her head.

“Dashie.. I’m not the heroic, amazing... courageous guy you may think I am.”

“It’s true! He’s even more so!” Evan butted in, supporting his friend whole heartedly. Bromley shooed him away politely with a hard slam of the door to his face. You could hear screaming and laughter that involved many curses. “OWWW... Hahaha! Oh! Ow! MY FUCKING FACE. Ow that fucking hurts ha ha ha! Ow! Ha ha ha!” When the sound ceased Bromley continued.

“I’ve done things I’m not proud of, and I will do more things I’m not proud of. I’ve lied, stolen, seen the darkest side of the world. I’ve even killed.”

“Liar!” came a voice from outside the door. Bromley gave it a cataclysmic kick and the door flew open wide, then closed again as it bounced off a body. Another thud was heard as said body hit the floor.

“I’m not saying that it’s not mutual, but I really would hate to see you hurt, especially by me. If you’re willing to take a risk, then I’ll do the best I can to keep you happy, safe, and... Loved.” She couldn’t contain herself. She hugged him tightly, nearly tackling him. Nate stepped over the unconscious Evan, poked his head in, then simply walked away, assuming they were “busy”. Bromley hugged her back, a flurry of emotions rushing over him. He was just barely thinking over future details, but what did that matter? Only this moment, right now mattered. He smiled and closed his eyes, enjoying the warmth spread across his chest. How long had it been since he had been in this close proximity with someone... without trying to rip out their jugular? He could not remember, or even remember anything negative in his life. He could hardly remember his name. The only thing that pulled him away was the now awake Evan calling out for another pickaxe.

“Dashie.. I probably need to go. Do you want to come gather supplies with me?”

“Why not?” She said, following him closely as he stood up and left through the door. She paused for a moment. Bromley turned around and raised an inquisitive eyebrow. She reached up and grabbed his collar, blushing of course, and lightly pressed her lips onto his. He was taken aback for a few moments, but was just fine with it after aforementioned few moments. Evan walked by and stopped, dropping the pickaxe he was holding and stared, slightly bewildered and very mildly startled. Nate looked at what Evan was looking at.

“Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwweh!!!” Nate said as loudly as he could. Rainbow Dash was bright red, and Bromley was blushing a very light shade of pink, a veiled threat in his eyes apparent. They walked briskly down the hall, out of sight.

“Well if that’s what trips your trigger,” Evan said nonchalantly acting as if he hadn’t just been knocked out and continued walking. He stopped and fell down laughing. “Ha ha that’s a funny innuendo right there!” He stopped laughing but still lay on the ground on his back. The odd couple undid their hiding and stared at the strange young man. “That reminds me of a sad story. I wont tell it to you now. Only when the evidence becomes more.... permanent” He flipped himself up and skipped off. They could hear him singing down the hall.

“Three dead men, in the woman’s chest

“None been saved, and none been blessed

“Eyes on watch, for the next prey to be

“The folly of a king, kills you and me”

Nate stumbled into Fluttershy in the hallway, almost falling onto his back. He blinked at the pony, slightly confused that he hadn’t noticed her.

“Oh.. uh... Nate. Can I talk to you for a minute? uh.. i-i-if you don’t mind.” Fluttershy had caught his attention.

“Hm? Oh, of course.” Nate responded, sitting down so that he would be at eye level with her.

“I just thought that maybe since Rainbow Dash and Bromley are... together... that maybe you.. and I-I could - could maybe...”

“Oh I-I...” Nate responded nervously at first. He thought it ironic that he sounded so much like her at that moment. “I’d love to.” Fluttershy was about to squeal for joy when Evan flew threw a window, and landed next to them, scaring the bejeebus out of the pair. Really, his constant sneaking and odd, almost teleportation like habits, were becoming awkward. It was hard to tell how he had gotten outside, seeing as he had walked away FURTHER into the building a few seconds ago.

“After all this is done I wonder who gets Rarity and Pinkie Pie and Twilight”

“Oh, you never know. They might pair up amongst themselves. Wait, why didn’t you mention Appleja-” Nate said almost sarcastically, but getting interrupted.

“Oh won’t that be fun to watch! Oh better go!” Evan sprinted off in a direction that held no value whatsoever to anyone at the camp. There was literally nothing in that direction. Not even mines.

Nate laughed and put his arm over Fluttershy’s neck. She shied away at first but warmed up to the idea as Nate pulled closer. She nuzzled his cheek. He blushed a little and looked into her big, soft, blue eyes. She looked back into his. Their foreheads touched, and they both closed their eyes. They both smiled a giddy grin, stood up, and sauntered down together into Nate’s lab.

Evan was completely lost. He had gone out into the middle of the wasteland just to avoid talking about his relationship with Applejack. Nate was going to make fun of him. He was sure. His paranoia got the better of him and he dropped his supplies and spun around quickly, looking in every direction. “Come out come out wherever you are... I know your there...” Evan spoke to no one. “I know your watching me... Come on. I’m not going to hurt you. I’m not crazy. I know your there! You’ve been watching me for my whole life. Why don’t you just come out?” Evan straightened up and put his hands into fists. “If you wont come out... I guess I'll just have to find you!” Evan began swinging at nothing. He axe kicked the air and three finger punched nothing. “My god, you’re pretty ninja. But avoid a Hadouken!” Evan thrust his hands, connected at the wrist, in front of him, allowing a small “pshew” to escape his lips. “I’m not crazy... I’m not crazy” Evan sat down and muttered to himself. He began sobbing silently. No tears flowed but he still shuddered as if he were actually shedding tears. A few minutes passed of him sitting with his legs stretched out in front of him and his torso bent over before a voice came to him. “You need people Evan. Don’t break down. Just go back,” a voice in his head told him. “Okay...” Evan stood up and grabbed the scattered supplies. He held them close to his chest as if it were his favorite blanket and he was three again, or like a small school girl, or gay school boy, with supplies papers and binders. He headed back to school.

Nate and Fluttershy were chilling in his lab, not doing any real work. They were talking and sending mental attacks. The war over information on the other person had started. Both were desperately trying to find out more about the other. Verbal covers were cascading down as well. “So what do you do in your free time? What kind of music do you listen to? What’s your favorite color?” The covers were deliberate and helped. By the way the other genius answered the false question the asker could determine what exactly they meant. A tentative answer to the color question meant that the person or pony had something to hide. The free time question answered what the person’s real interests were. Fluttershy was easy to read but she bombarded Nate’s mental barriers with everything she had. Nate eventually cracked when a question was repeated, his smirk giving away everything. Battle to the death ensued and lasted hours. Evan tried to watch but it was so boring. He didn’t comprehend what they were doing, to him it seemed like idle conversation. It was more fun to watch Bromley and Rainbow Dash. It was really challenging to try and figure out if the awkward touches between them were planned or actually accidental. “They have no idea...” He thought to himself. Bromley would accidentally put his hand on top of her hoof, reaching for the same wrench. Or she would turn to face him at the same time as he turned to face her, only to realize that their partner was much closer than they had predicted, accidentally letting their lips touch. None of the “kisses” were real one though and it cracked Evan up to watch how much pony slobber Bromley could get on his face. The best time, however, had to be the twister game they played. Rainbow Dash reached over his back to grab a wrench, and Bromley tried to go in between her legs to grab a nail or two that had fallen in a crevice beneath her. Bromley’s slipped and his head ended up going where it shouldn't. As he reacted she was flung over his back, forcing her lady parts to graze his face. Bromley stood up and walked away faster than his normal pace and refused to allow the stunned pony to see his red face. He yanked on Evan’s leg as he passed and forced him to fall off the roof onto his face. Previously Evan had been laughing his hardest, for more reasons than his own entertainment. Bromley’s face cleared up, letting him talk to the fleshy mat he had created. He told him off, letting the embarrassment clear his face the rest of the way. He shoved Evan off in the direction of the center of the complex and walked back to Rainbow Dash. They continued working, without the small screw ups

Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie were sitting in the dining room. Pinkie was entertaining all the ponies on break, trying to keep a happy mood in the air, despite the dismal setting. Evan stepped in and saw the group. He counted them quickly and realizing there were more than one he turned to flee. “Don’t go! We can always use more of an audience!” Pinkie Pie called out. Evan took another step out the door.

“Oh yes you simply must stay. Pinkie Pie here is very funny.” Rarity strengthened Pinkie Pie’s plea. Evan stopped moving, his back still turned to the group. His head hung down as if he was defeated.

“Come on in sugar cube! I got a seat open next to me,” Applejack motioned to the rock next to her. Applejack pushed Evan over the edge. He turned around and sat next to his favorite horse. Pinkie’s antics continued and Evan controlled his laughter as much as he could. If he laughed too hard it would get awkward, and he already felt bad sitting around so many girls. Evan was missing work but that was okay. He was sitting next to the pony he “liked so hard” and was being entertained by another pony. A pink one at that. Maybe he was crazy.

Greetings! Okay, SO, we have ~200 pages (11pt font) of pure content, and we’ve published not even a quarter of it, and we are maybe halfway to the ending. We need help with editing, and maybe writing because that gets tiring as well. I’ve been told that you guys are offering to help, which I love hearing. Or reading. In any case, we’ll have 2 templates up to examine your knowledge of the characters thus far and your writing style, if you’re interested. Email your submission to me and Improviser. We’ll go over them and take in whoever fits what we’re looking for. We like humor, just to note. Also, please write at the end of your submission whther you’d prefer adding onto the story, or editing. Either way, you will have to do some of both, but even between the other authors and I, we take on different roles. Anyways, I’m hoping we receive more than 3 submissions, at least. I can almost guarantee that we will be taking up at least two. Another announcement: We aren’t going by the name Black Banshee studios anymore. What name we will be going under is undecided. So for now, this is The Herd by Improviser, EpicFailFTW1528, and IntelligentScribblez, edited by a lot of people I’ll list at a later date.

Until then!

-EpicFail