Chapter 5-2: Blink And You’ll Miss ‘Em

I decided against stopping in at Sprinkles Supplies again. They still had a business to run and I didn’t want to disturb them.

As I walked I considered the events of the past few days. I’d gotten halfway to Grindstone for Lexi before being poisoned and taken to Neighlway. I was about an hour away from there now.

Caramel and Sassaflash deserved better.

After that I’d spoken to Lexi again and headed to Vanchoofer to find Bosco.

Instead I found not-Wings. I really want to find out what her name is now. I was just now realised exactly how much I’d told her in comparison to what she’d told me. I’d trusted her then and would have to trust her now.

“RED ICE!” The familiar but not terribly welcome voice put a halt to my retrospection. I glanced up just as the Pegasus slammed down before me.

Her on the other hand... “Aqua Breeze. Been a while since I saw your face rather than your tail heading the other w-”

“WHERE IS SHE?!” Hoarse yelling was not something I was willing to take from her.

“Who is she?” I shot back.

“Cassie! Where is my sister?”

What? “How should I know? Last time I saw you two, I was frozen on the ground, and you both were flying away as fast as you could.”

Breeze’s armoured hoof stomped the ground. “You’re lying!”

I waved my hoof. “Look around us. Do you see her here?” I made a calming gesture. “Take it easy and tell me what hap-”

I spotted Breeze’s indicator on my Pipbuck.

It was red.

Ugh. Crap.

This thought was compounded by the fact that the Pegasus was already mid-pounce.

We went down in a heap. It was a far cry from the gadget user in her last fight. This was messy, desperate, furious brawling. In a way I was glad. I didn’t think I could take Breeze if she was collected but like this she was simply trying to bite and kick and pummel me into giving up her sister’s location. Even if I did know that this style was clearly not her forte.

Still...I don’t want to fight her.

Breeze did not share this compunction. Locked as we were I couldn’t get to my Power Hooves. Lucky for me Breeze hadn’t deployed her hidden blade yet but her mindless attacks wouldn’t last forever. As soon as she realised that she could use it I’d be royally screwed if I was still this close.

“Tell me where you took Cassie!” Breeze growled as I held my foreleg under her chin and pushed back. Her wings were flapping hard, forcing her down onto me. I was losing strength and wouldn’t last if this kept up.

“Stop it Breeze! I don’t want to fight you and I DON’T KNOW WHERE SHE IS!” With a massive effort I got a hoof into her stomach and bucked as hard as I can. Breeze went falling back. Hitting the ground with the wind escaping her lungs in one big exhalation. She remained prone for a moment, gagging and coughing. I took the opportunity to roll backwards onto my shaking hooves.

“Breeze I’m telling the truth. I really don’t know where Cassie is.”

The Pegasus was dragging herself upright. “You’re...you’re the only one who knew where we were...” she wheezed,
“If not you...who else is there? I already tried the guards at Sprinkles Supplies.”

“That’s...not unreasonable thinking but I really don’t know where she is. I can help you find her if you’d like.” This would delay my search for Bosco but I really didn’t need this psychotic flier chasing me all the time. Plus it could potentially mean another...well maybe not friend but another not-an-enemy-anymore. Her AND her sister.

Breeze let out a rough cough. Looking at her now it was clear that she wasn’t at her best. Her blue-&-white mane was unkempt and she had bags under her eyes. her aqua coat was looking pretty haggard too.

She must’ve run herself ragged trying to find her sister.

Try as I might I couldn’t help myself feeling sorry for her. It also forced me to think a terrifying thought. Are my brothers going through this? Did they turn the Stable upside down looking for me?

Close on the heels of that thought was a crushing shame that it had taken me this long to realise this might be the case. Breeze had been away from her sister for a few days. I was two weeks removed from the Stable. Two weeks and I hadn’t found the time to be worried about my brothers. Breeze didn’t even have the knowledge that her sibling was safe inside the Stable like I did.

All my indignation was draining away. I found I couldn’t see Aqua Breeze as an enemy anymore. All I could see was a girl my age who was lonely and afraid and sick with worry about her family. “I’m really sorry, Breeze. You’re a better sister than I am.”

This was not the right thing to say. Breeze still had plenty of hate for me. “Of course I am, you bitch! I don’t take a pony’s sister away from them!”

She flung out her forelegs and four familiar spears. They stuck in the ground on either side of me and began crackling. I wasn’t completely stuck like last time but I couldn’t move on either side. I could only go backwards or forwards.

Frantically I looked for a way out. “Breeze don’t do this!”

She just smirked. It held no trace of warmth. “You know what I want.”

She raised her bracer. I recognised the same crystal weapon I’d fueled when we fought the hissyflits. Apparently she’d gotten it recharged.

I’m fucked.

Her face morphed into a mask of hate and she loosed an incoherent scream as a torrent of magic poured out of greave. A mighty telekinetic wave roared forth. It tore up the ground and flung a wall of debris straight at me. I threw up my hooves as the vortex of magic and matter slammed into me. The pain was instant and immense. I couldn’t even cry out. Bloody gashes burst along my body and stars exploded before my eyes as my head and horn were struck again and again. I finally slammed down a hundred meters away. I lay quivering and fetal. The pain was too much to pick myself up.

A voice came from outside my eyelids. “Now give me what I need.”

I didn’t answer. Someone else did. Someone whose voice moved me to tears. “Oh I’ll give you something.”

It took more than a little willpower but I finally cracked an eye open. A vicious scene was playing out before me.

Naiara was taking Breeze apart. It wasn’t even a fight anymore. The Pegasus would try to get some distance and the Zebra would be on her before she could get airborne. Breeze couldn’t keep up with Naiara’s speed either. She’d try to get her with her blade and be effortlessly danced around. I’d never seen a more graceful fighting style. Peanut might’ve been the better fighter but Naiara outclassed him in style. Breeze simply didn’t stand a chance.

It was over quickly with Breeze in much the same shape I was. Naiara bound and immobilised her before rushing over to me. “Roga nimbala, svara?”

“I think so.” I croaked as she eased me into a sitting position. “How’s Breeze?”

“The Pegasus? Hurting. Like she should be. Want me to finish her?” Naiara’s voice was colder than I’d heard from her before.

“N-no. She’s not to blame. Not really. We’ll fix me up then fix her up.”

My Zebra friend looked at my incredulously. “You’re not serious? Snowflake she just tried to kill you!”

“I...know but she...had a...reason.” The pain was still intense and I felt faint.

Naiara excused herself momentarily before returning with the pack I’d left behind before infiltrating Plottawa. It was still chock-full of the medical supplies from Hoofshine. “Thought you might want this back.”

“You’re a lifesaver, Naiara,” I began sucking down a healing potion. Feeling it instantly go to work on my insides. I winced as I felt a twinge, “...perhaps literally. Well, heh, it wouldn’t be the first time.”

Naiara fussed over me as I drank. “Take it slow now. Little by little.”

I just nodded and looked over at Breeze. She hadn’t moved and just lay there softly moaning. I was still far from 100% but when I was strong enough to move we turned our attentions to her. Still-bound, we nearly had to force-feed her a healing potion. “Now can you promise not to kill me long enough to talk to me?”

The cyan Pegasus looked away. “What’s there to say? You’re not going to tell me where Cassie is.”

“Because. I. Don’t. Know. The best I can do is offer you my help to find her. Do you want my help?”

She still didn’t look at me. “Why would you help me? The stripe is right. I tried to kill you. Twice.”

“Twice?!” Echoed Naiara. She gave me another ‘are you crazy?’ look.

I attempted to give her a ‘probably’ look in return. “Yes and I’m willing to forgive both of those occurrences IF you agree not to kill me at any point in the future. You or your sister. Who I will help you find.”

Suspicion still ruled Breeze’s posture. “Why would you do this for us?”

I shrugged. “Probably because you just said ‘us’ rather than ‘me’. I know what it’s like to be away from your family. Plus if you agree with my terms I doubt your sister would let you go back on it. She doesn’t seem the type.”

Tears formed in the corners of Breeze’s eyes. “She’s not.”

I smiled at her. “Good enough for me.”

I turned to my friend. “You coming, svara?”

The Zebra considered her options for a moment. “That depends. Where are we going?”

“Well since he’s obviously not with you I’d still like to find Bosco. I was gonna head to Grindstone. Aside from Plottawa it’s the only place I know how to find that I haven’t been to yet. Since that was the delivery destination of the caraven we all guarded we might find Cassie there too.”

Naiara chuckled. “Yeah we’re not going back to Plottawa.”

Breeze was watching the two of us guardedly. “You were there too, stripe? Here I thought Red Ice went by herself.”

I rounded on the Pegasus. “If you want my help to find your sister then you will not call her that ever again!”

Breeze ‘tch’ed. “Why the hell not?”

“Because it’s offensive. She has a name. If she deigns to tell you what it is then you’ll address by that name as you would anybody else. If not then you either be respectful or I’ll gag you.”

Naiara was having trouble holding in her laughter at this. “Wow. You tell her, svara.”

She gave an aside glance at Breeze. “My name’s Naiara. Who might you be?”

“...Aqua Breeze.”

Naiara was all smiles. “Pleased to meet you.”

Hell, she’s already proved she can take her.

“And I’m Snowflake. If you both don’t mind I prefer that over Red Ice. Now if you’re both up to walking can we set off?”

“Oh I don’t know, Snow. I think her face may have bruised my hooves a little.”

“Naiara...”

“Oh fine.”

Breeze got up. “I can move. Let’s just go already.”

We set off. I had the location in my Pipbuck so I took the lead. Behind me I heard my two companions sniping at each other.

“I coulda taken you easy if you hadn’t suckerpunched me.”

“Try hurting my friend again and I’ll end you before you hit the ground. She may be giving you the benefit of the doubt but I’m still watching you.”

Oh yeah, we’re totally all friends here.

~~~~~~

We arrived at Grindstone well past midnight. The Buffalo guards weren’t particularly pleased to get visitors that late and refused to let us in. They changed their tune when I headbutted the both of them.

There was a small guesthouse made available to us by too many caps changing hooves. The space was crowded and full of junk. Obviously it doubled as storage. Grindstone was hardly a big city. The Buffalo didn’t exactly encourage visitors. Trade caravans were about the only ponies who came out this far. We were all pretty exhausted so we decided to crash for tonight and ask around tomorrow.

As we were readying for bed Naiara decided to have some ‘fun’. “So Breeze...exactly how did you get our dear Snowflake in such a bad state? As far as I can tell you’re not enough at her level in hoof-fighting and that’s saying something.”

I mock-growled. “Unten, svara. No, Breeze is no brawler but she’s got some amazing gizmos. Apparently they’re her own design. Trust me when I say you don’t want to be on the receiving end of her...”

I frowned and turned to the grumpy Pegasus. “Do you have a name for the magic gauntlet? You named the Shock Lock. How about that one?”

“...It’s my Spell Shooter.”

“Right. Her ‘Spell Shooter’ packs a real punch. I’ve even had the honour of providing the ammunition before too.”

Naiara was looking back and forth between the two of us. “Okay I’m confused. Are you two enemies or allies?”

To my surprise it was Breeze who answered first. “When we first met we weren’t friends. My sister and I were bored and looking for something interesting. We met Red Ice out in the canyon and...I guess things got out of hoof.”

“Her sister Cassie shot me clear through the hoof.”

“I wondered what that scar was.”

Breeze yawned before continuing. “Well after that we met again the next day. We were all hired as freelance guards for a caravan heading to here. We got into a rumble with some Hissyflits...”

“I’ll tell you later.” I assured Naiara upon seeing her clueless expression.

“...and then the Steel Rangers took Snowflake to Neighlway. Cassie and I took off but we got separated when a freak snowstorm kicked up. I’ve been looking for her since.”

The Zebra seemed to barely hear the last part. She was looking at me with open worry in her eyes. “The Rangers got a hold of you? Are you okay? Did they do anything to you?”

“Not much. Cured the Hissyflit poison then ‘asked’ me to watch some Memory Orbs. All their Unicorns were out tangling with Plottawa slavers, our fault by the way, so I was the only choice. After that they gave me some supplies and kicked me out.”

Naiara shook her head definitively. “Don’t...don’t go near them anymore. They’re bad news.”

Don’t I know it. I’ll tell you the rest as soon as I can.

Another yawn escaped Breeze’s lips and she slumped back against the wall. The Pegasus fought off sleep just long enough to raise her head and look me right in the eyes. “Listen Red-...I mean Snowflake. I’m...sorry about before. I don’t think you’d go to all this trouble if you had taken Cassie. I appreciate your help in finding her.”

My heart warmed at her words but she just couldn’t resist hedging her bets with a followup as her eyes were closing.
“But if you were the one who took my sister I’ll...” She didn’t quite manage to finish before sleep took her. I was pretty sure I got the gist of it though.

Naiara seemed halfway between amused and annoyed. “Charming girl.” Then she too rolled over and left the conversation.

I took a moment to double check that Breeze’s gadgets were safe with me. Naiara had insisted. A prudent move even if it detracted from the trust angle.

They’ll both come around. Watcher’s gonna be happy the next time we talk. I hope Bosco’s back by then. It’d be nice if we could all be getting along. Me, Naiara, Breeze, Bosco, Cassie, Schwarzwald...

...Wings.

Just who are you, Wings?

~~~~~~

The three of us awoke feeling rested and much healthier. Breeze and I still weren’t all the way back but we wouldn’t slow anybody down unless things got rough.

We strolled around the various clan compounds that comprised Grindstone’s community asking each in turn about our two missing ponies. As we went Naiara and I got caught up. “So what happened after I blacked out in Peanut’s office?”

She smirked. “You mean when you stuck him to his desk? I wanted to finish him but he tripped a silent alarm and we had to vacate fast. We got dressed in the slaver gear again and dragged you out of there. Anypony we passed just assumed you’d been attacked by the intruders. We were half-a-mile away before the non-silent alarms sounded. I had Bosco keep going with you while I doubled back and bought you some time. Took a few more out quiet-like.”

More dead ponies on my conscience. Yay. “...Thanks, Naiara. I know we got back to Lethbridle okay since I woke up there. After you dropped me at the jail where did the two of you go?”

Naiara had a hint of shiftiness about her for the next part. “Well I’m fine with travelling light but Bosco wanted our buried gear back. Said it was important. I’d left my package from Nightcap there too so I agreed to go back with him and get the stuff. We got TO it with no trouble but...well...Bosco tries but he is not a graceful colt. We got found out by a slaver patrol. Managed to fight ‘em off but by then the game was up. We were ducking and dodging them for 2 days before we were close enough for a mad dash back to Lethbridle. O’ course by then you were up and off on your adventures.”

She chuckled. “Bosco sure had you pegged. He said you’d be trying to get chummy with the entire Wasteland. You’re not quite there yet but you’re still travelling with a pony who’s tried to kill you twice. Anyway we each had a few notions of where to look for you so we split up. If all else failed the final option was to meet back in Lethbridle a week later. That was 5 days ago.”

Breeze chose this moment to speak up. The lack of success in Grindstone was rapidly eroding her mood. “So you’ve just to wait 2 days for your coltfriend. Great. Let’s focus on the bigger issue: Finding my sister!”

Naiara and I exchanged glances. I nodded. “She’s got a point. Bosco should be able to take care of himself. If we hear anything about him before that then great! But for now let’s find Cassie.”

Naiara just shrugged. “Awright. What does Cassie even look like? She a Pegasus too?”

“Yeah. She actually looks pretty similar to Breeze. Her hair’s different though. Instead of blue and white it’s red and black. Her Cutie Mark is stars and she’s more polite than Breeze.”

“Hey!”

“Suck it up. It’s true.”

Breeze pouted. “Still, cheap shot.”

We walked in silence until we reached the next camp. It turned out to be another bust. Breeze didn’t complain though. It seemed like knowing we were focusing just on Cassie had her motivated. We let her take the lead. I brought up a nagging issue with Naiara. “Hey, svara. Yesterday you asked where we were going before you agreed to come along. Why? And why did you want to go to Plottawa in the first place?”

Naiara sucked air through her teeth. “Well I can’t talk about Plottawa just yet but I’ll tell you the first part. I’m supposed to be meeting some other Zebra back east next week. The package is for them. I can’t be late.”

I put a hoof on her shoulder. “Roga nimbala? Do you want some help? You’ve done plenty for me. I’d be happy to come along and meet some more Zebra.”

She hesitated. “Mmmmmaybe. I haven’t decided yet what I’m gonna do. I’ll let you know when I do. That’s all I can tell you for now.”

I tried to reassure her with a smile. “That’s plenty. Unten.”

I got a weak grin in return. We both broke off as we heard Breeze’s raised voice. Apparently we wouldn’t have luck with this group either. “WHAT DID YOU SAY?!”

“I said you’d best leave now, Pegasus.” Retorted a heavy voice. Concerned, Naiara and I headed over. Breeze was surrounded by a half-dozen Buffalo. None of whom looked happy. All of them wore strange contraptions that were fixed around their waists. They looked like reinforced belts and were brimming with guns. This was serious.

“Breeze, what’s going on?” I didn’t like this. She was outnumbered and dwarfed by the bovines. Each one was full-grown too and would outmass even Buff.

The Pegasus huffed but didn’t turn away from the glare-down she was having with the speaker. The Buffalo had a mud-brown coat and was clearly the leader. The only creatures I’d seen bigger than him were Chief Rockhaunch and the Molar Bear. “I was asking about my sister when all of sudden these hornheads show up and started threatening me!”

The Buffalo’s front hoof dug at the ground irritably. “You shouldn’t even be here at all! Ponies bring nothing but trouble. We Buffalo aren’t interested in being dragged into YOUR problems!”

Naiara was evidently unimpressed by the posturing. She gave a terse laugh. “It took six of you to tell us that?”

A rumbling growl emerged from the Buffalo’s throat. “You’d best watch your tone, stripe. You’re no more welcome here than they are. We all know what your kind did 200 years ago. You gonna bomb us too?”

This brought chuckles from his cohorts. “You tell her Crush!”

“Damn stripes always causin’ trouble.”

“Yeah! Hurhurhur.”

Crush was seemingly bolstered by his friends’ heckling and took a menacing step forwards. “Leave Grindstone by tonight or there’ll be trouble. Take your stripe with you, Pegasus!”

The 5 goons began walking away between the tents. Crush stopped besides me. “Got something to say, one-horn?”

I couldn’t decide whether I felt angry at him or bad for him. “Only that I think Rockhaunch is a better Buffalo than you’ll ever be.”

His nostrils flared at the name. “You would.” He snarled before trotting after his friends.

He hadn’t gotten very far before a new Buffalo came running up. “Crush! Crush! More ponies at the border camp!”

“Ugh. Let one get in and they all show up. Worse than fucking Hissyflits!” He shot a disgusted look back at us before charging off.

Breeze was already moving. “Come on! We can ask these ponies if they’ve seen Cassie!”

“Alright just wait for us.” Naiara and I followed.

“Breeze!” I called out. “Don’t get your hopes up. It might just be another trade caravan.”

“Yeah yeah I know.” Her reply was distracted. She obviously hadn’t listened as she sped up. I tried to keep up but was slowed by my injuries. Breeze either healed faster than I did or was pushing herself too hard.

“Naiara go with her, I’ll catch up.”

The Zebra nodded and bounded after the gadgeteer. “Hey blue, wait up!”

I slowed to an easy walk. Exactly what are the chances these ponies will know anything about Cassiopeia Venatici? I know Pegasi are gonna be noticed more easily than other ponies but according to Breeze and her sister there are hardly any of them left down here. I bet some ‘dirt ponies’ could go their whole lives without seeing one. Hell I only saw one because I was the loudest thing in the valley and she has super-hearing. I only saw two because she has a sister. We really might have to go meet up with Bosco before we can find Cassie. I can’t wait to have that conversation with Breeze.

As I walked an increasing number of Buffalo were heading the other way. None of them looked happy and many looked downright scared.

What scares Buffalo in their own home? A Molar Bear attack?

As I neared the gate the sounds of commotion grew louder. There was an argument going on but I couldn’t make out the specifics.

“Snowflake! Get Back!” Naiara spoke in barely a hiss. I glanced around but couldn’t see her. Then a striped hoof popped out from behind a rain barrel and urgently waved.

“Naiara? Wha-”

Her head appeared next and her pupils were shrunken in fear. “Get out of sight! Hurry!”

Confused, I ducked inside an empty tent. I spotted a cobalt pupil looking out near Naiara’s jade eyes so I knew Breeze was with her.

What’s got you so spooked, Naiara? I checked my Pipbuck indicator. Two blues indicated the others but the rest of the screen was full of yellow indicators. They were split into two distinct groups. Both were pretty large. The closest group was probably the Buffalo while the farther one would be the ponies. Each time one person moved a dot from the other group would move to match. The Buffalo had a slight edge in numbers but if things got bad then a lot of damage would be done before it was over.

“WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT HERE PONIES?!” Crash was not subtle in expressing his displeasure.

Oh crap. If he’s there then the ponies will be in real danger! I have to try and help them. I lifted the tent flap and darted out towards the confrontation.

“Snow, don’t!” It almost sounded like Naiara was pleading.

I have to help them, Naiara. I weaved through a few tents before finally emerging in the clearing. Both groups whipped their heads...and guns around to point at me. The Buffalo were annoyed. The ponies...

...were wearing Plottawa uniforms.

OHSHITSHITSHIT!!!!

“IT’S HER! OPEN FIRE!”

I turned and ran as a hail of bullets shot under, over, and past me. Blood spurted from my flesh as half a dozen grazed me. There was a momentary lull as the Buffalo opened fire on the slavers to protect their home but I didn’t stop running. I had to get away.

“Red Ice is getting away! After her! Take her alive if you can!”

Nononononono! I can’t be caught! I can’t be a slave!

I couldn’t spare the time to give a proper look but from the corner of my eye I could see flashes as my Pipbuck jerked back and forth.

Every icon was red.

Breeze? Naiara?

They’d vanished. I didn’t know what that meant. I feared the worst. Even so I couldn’t stop. The slavers were closing in behind me. Every few seconds a new burst of gunfire would strike my surroundings. I had no choice but to keep ducking and weaving between the tents and storehouses. They were so fast!

Or maybe I was just getting slower. I still wasn’t fully healed from my fight with Breeze and I was running on pure adrenaline at this point. I couldn’t last. I needed a way out!

“FREEZE!” Two slavers jumped out and blocked my path.

“You’re coming with us, Red Ice. Peanut wants a word.”

No! I didn’t even have my Power Hooves! They’d pump me full of bullets if I even tried to use magic.

It was over.

Thud. A metal ball hit the ground behind the two slavers as they closed in with restraints. My eyes went wide. They noticed. One glanced behind them as the other kept their rifle trained on me.

“DOWN!” Naiara jumped on me and pushed me to the ground just as the grenade went off. The heat was intense. Luckily it passed after a moment. We both lay still as the world smoked around us.

“GET THE FUCK UP! MORE ARE COMING!”

Breeze’s yell snapped us both out of it and we scrambled to our hooves. Two charred heaps remained of the slaver pair. We jumped over the small crater left by the grenade and kept moving away from the red icons. Breeze swooped in low and stayed with us. “Keep going this way. There’s some uneven terrain not far from here and it’s starting to snow. We can lose them.”

I vehemently shook my head. “No! Get out of here both of you! They can’t see you with me! If they do they’ll come after you too!”

Naiara scoffed grimly. “I was there too, remember? They’re already after me.”

“You had makeup on! They thought you were a pony!”

“Yeah? Well now they don’t. I’m staying!”

I’d be touched by that if it wasn’t suicidal.

“Fine then. Breeze you can still get away!”

“Not fast enough to avoid being seen by somepony. Fliers are too rare in these parts. They’ll put two and two together.”

No! This can’t be happening again! I can’t ruin any more lives! “I’m sorry. I’m so so sorry.” I sobbed at the injustice of it all. More and more people were getting trapped in the Red Ice.

My right foreleg gave out under me and I crashed down into the hard ground. Sharp pebbles cut into my face as I slid to a halt. Immediately I felt hooves trying to pull me up. “Come on Snow, can’t sleep here!”

My tears stained the ground. “Just leave me here. Get away while you can. They want Red Ice more than anything. They can take me if you’ll get away.”

“Of for fuck’s sake!” A blue hoof shoved something past my lips. “Eat it!”

I swallowed without thinking. Seconds later I nearly bounced off the ground. I felt like I could run for days! “What was that?!”

“Buck. It’ll keep you going. Now hurry the hell up!”

“Okay!” At least I know how she found the strength to fly.

My body felt so light as we raced across the open ground. The slavers had found out where we were going but they were hampered by the counterattacking Buffalo. Only a half dozen were coming after and we had a good headstart. Didn’t stop them from taking some long-range potshots. At least one of them was a passable shot. Naiara had lost a wrist bangle. It had been shot clear off while she ran. She’d have some painful bruises if we managed to get away.

We made it out of Grindstone and into the wild land. Small mounds of raised land and increasingly numerous trees gave us some blessed cover. Breeze had been right. The snow had started to fall heavier. It was everywhere. I couldn’t see many clouds in the sky but they always seemed to be overhead. I didn’t care if it meant a better chance that we lived longer. The 6 slavers chasing us had caught up again.

Are they on Buck too?

A barrage of hot metal rained down around us. I felt something pierce my calf and squealed. Moments later Naiara and Breeze echoed my cry. Naiara’s was the loudest. She hadn’t taken any Buck. She’d be feeling it more than either Breeze or myself. At least for now. None of us dropped though. We somehow found the strength to stumble to an incline and throw ourselves down it.

Rolling with a bullet in you is...painful. I planned on being significantly more verbose about the matter if we lived.

Given where we were when we rolled to a stop that seemed an unlikely scenario.

Oh how I wish I didn’t know what a pack of thoroughly-confused-but-soon-to-be-angry Molar Bears looked like.

We lay in the center of the clearing they’d been using as a rest site. A full-grown male was looking stunned by this new development. It has paused mid-chew with a bloody carcass hanging from its oversized teeth. Behind us a mother and her two half-size cubs were beginning to growl. They were between us and the steep slope. We effectively cornered them. We were half their size and we were cornering a mother and her babies.

“W-what are these things?!” Breeze’s voice had been drained of its Buck-fueled strength.

“Notgoodnotgoodnotgood.” I couldn’t think of anything else to say but that. One of these things had nearly killed me. Now there were four of them and one was a pissed-off Mama bear!

We are so very very dead.

Naiara made it clear that she did not accept this as the case. “COVER YOUR EYES!”

If you split time into seconds then milliseconds then split it again and again and again until you reached the smallest possible fraction of time then Breeze and I still wouldn’t have thought to argue with her even for that long. We flung our hooves into our peepers as a brilliant glow burst around us. The Molar Bears roared as the light robbed them of their sight.

“SNOW WHICH WAS HAS NO MONSTERS?”

The hell should I know? I can’t see my Pipbuck through this! I was as blind as the Molar Bears and because of it I was going to get us all killed. I couldn’t see the screen to tell me where the beasts were in this world of white. It was as useless as trying to see something on External Monitor Duty back at the Stable.

“!” THE STABLE GOGGLES!

I frantically dug in my pack to find them. Comeoncomeoncomeo-YES! I rammed them onto my face and flipped the switch to synch them up with my Pipbuck. They blocked enough light to show me what I needed. There was a gap to the left. The Molar Bears were still blinded but the Plottawans were coming up fast.

“LEFTLEFTLEFT! GO LEFT!” I didn’t wait and sprang into action. Thankfully my goggles showed two blue icons following. 6 red dots charged up to where we’d been and suddenly stopped. I heard roaring and then the 6 began moving rapidly back the way they came. They were very swiftly pursued by 4 more red dots. It didn’t take long for the two groups of red to mix. I stopped caring at that point. Whoever won would be in no shape to come after us.

We just might make it after all.

~~~~~~

“Ugh!” I coughed and near-retched. “That’s awful. What is it?”

Breeze took the bottle from me and took a swig herself before grimacing and passing it over to Naiara. “Hydra. Heals you up fast. Just don’t take more than you need. Ponies get hooked on the stuff. For emergencies only.”

I could still taste it in the back of my throat. No fear of that at least. “Are you two doing okay?”

They both nodded. Even with Buck we’d gone on far too long. We were all in dire need of a rest. We’d covered more ground in a few hours than we had all of yesterday but it finally looked like we were in the clear. There’d been no other indicators on my screen for hours. We’d changed direction halfway through. Doubling back from Southwest to North. We’d reached a frozen lake that my Pipbuck dubbed Sombra’s Shadow. I think I was the only one who got the reference. We followed the far shore until reaching a small gulley that ended in a hollow that pinged up as Crystal Point. It was secluded and out of the still-falling snow. It would do as a place to lick our wounds and plan our next move.

We’d all been shot. Hence the Hydra. It had been hell to dig the bullets out. Surgeons we were not. It shamed me that even while my ice powers were returning I remained entirely unable to perform any level of telekinesis. It all had to be done by hoof. All of our wounds were therefore very raw and sensitive after being disinfected. They were also very tender. None moreso than Naiara who’d taken a bullet in the backside.

I really REALLY hope we get a chance to think that’s funny at some point.

My calf was still stiff until the Hydra did its work and Breeze, having taken the shot in her wing, was temporarily grounded.
All in all we considered ourselves damn lucky to be alive and didn’t intend to have any contact with the rest of civilisation until we were all healed up.

“GOOOOOOOOOOOD EVENING EQUESTRIA!” We all jumped at that. The DJ had impeccable timing.

“DJ Pon3 here with some primo news for you! It’s busy busy busy up north these days folks. Reports are coming in about major dustup between the Buffalo settlement of Grindstone and a contingent of Plottawa slavers. It seems that Plottawa’s undesirable no.1 - Red Ice was spotted in the area.”

Bringing you the truth...no matter how bad it hurts.

“We’ve received no figures on the number of dead yet but it seems like the surrounding factions are taking notice. Sprinkles Supplies has halted all caravans west of Lethbridle. Founder and president Fedexi Lexi states that this is ‘for safety reasons’. Girl’s got my support on that one. Nopony wants to be running afoul of trigger-happy slavers. Not only that but Steel Ranger hangout Neighlway has issues official recall orders for ALL its Knights and Paladins. You are hearing correctly Equestria. Every single member of the Neighlway Steel Rangers is heading home. Avoid the place at all costs. Rangers don’t play nice when they feel threatened. Given the proximity to Grindstone this DJ considers it all but inevitable that Neighlway and Plottawa will be going at it in the very near future. Unfortunately for the citizens of Lethbridle they happen to sit directly between the two. If any pony in Lethbridle is listening and has distant family it might be a good idea to visit them. Whatever happens you all need to stay safe while these two groups of lunatics are on the warpath.”

The three of us looked at each other. We were all at a loss for something to say. Meanwhile DJ Pon3 continued his broadcast: “We can’t forget about the Buffalo here folks. Grindstone was attacked by the slavers and the supply lines are being disrupted. It’ll be hard times for a while. Buffalo are people too, ponies. If you can give them any help then ol’ DJ Pon3 is askin’ you to do so. If it’s safe o’ course.”

The tears started again. I was officially past being able to handle everything. People die and it keeps being my fault.

“Now then Equestria. I think we need a little cheering up after this troubling news. So here’s an old classic from the Canterlot Choir...”

I shut the recording off. I couldn’t bear to look at my friends. I just rolled over and shut my eyes. I couldn’t bear to look at anything.

~~~~~~