Chapter 6-3: Open Air Irritation

“... and he’s probably halfway to Plottawa.” I finished mumbling an explanation to the officers taking notes as I lay on the not-terribly-soft hospital bed.

The officer paused in his writing, pen and notebook still held in his horn’s grip. “Why would he go there without the bounty? He won’t get the reward.”

I shrugged... carefully. Whatever they’d given me for the pain wasn’t strong enough. “He might get something. Latvi knows who Red Ice is. Peanut, the slaver boss, doesn’t know yet. Also, Latvi talked about how he wanted protection during his research. He might want that from the slavers now that he can’t pay for mercenaries.”

Making a few final notes, the officer began packing up. “I’ll report this to Chief Rockhaunch. He’ll want to know.” He gave me a quick smile and laid a hoof on my shoulder, “I just wanna say thank you for what you did tonight, Red Ice. You saved one of ours. We won’t forget that. If there’s anything we can do for you, just let us know.”

I momentarily basked in the warm feelings this brought up,

Why is the Overmare never around for these moments?

Before I remembered something, “Can somebody bring me my things? I think they’re still back at the research facility.”

The officer’s voice was not the one who answered. The voice that answered was soft, still that of a young colt, familiar and very, very welcome. “Taken care of,” Bosco stepped into my view as happy tears began to form around my eyes, “still gunfighting with no gun, Snow?”

I sniffled but cracked a smile, “You’ve seen me shoot,” I beckoned him forward with my hoof, then grabbed him in a tight embrace when he stepped close, burying my nose in his charcoal fur, “I’m so glad you’re here, Bosco. I’ve missed you a lot.”

He hugged back fiercely, grey hairs tickling my cheeks, “Me too. Why did you run off like that? Naiara and I were worried sick!”

You wouldn’t understand. “... sorry, Bosco.”

At my dejected tone, he relented. “Don’t be like that, Snow, I was just worried. I’ve got your stuff right here, but I couldn’t find the-”

“Sorry to interrupt,” a doctor and nurse entered the room under the watchful eye of the officer and guards outside, “but we think you may have sustained some damage to your skull in the fight. We’re going to try to heal some of it now. Unfortunately, it will be somewhat painful and we don’t have any anaesthetic available.”

Terrific. “Got any Memory Orbs I can lose myself in?” I still wasn’t thrilled about using them but it seemed to work wonders when Fedexi Lexi was healing my perforated hoof.

Bosco nudged my shoulder, holding three Memory Orbs in his hooves. “Here, use these.”

“But... they’re yours. You should see them first.”

The colt just smiled and yawned. “I can wait. I doubt I’ll get at that Recollector tonight. Plus I’m tired. You use them tonight and I’ll get some sleep. Tomorrow you’ll be fixed up and I’ll take a peek. Then we’ll swap stories of where we’ve been this past week. Deal?”

I’d forgotten what a nice guy he is. “If you’re sure, Bosco?”

His smile didn’t waver. “I’m sure. Get yourself better, Snowflake.”

As the colt found some room on the floor to sleep, I slipped into the first memory.

I found myself in total darkness. Somewhere close to me, water was dripping. I couldn’t pinpoint where through the lack of vision and the echoes each drop threw up.

A cave? Oh no, I’m not a Raider, am I?

An answer to that question was put on hold as a soft mewling reached my ears.

A baby? Here?

More voices, drawn to the infant’s cry, spoke up. “Another one survived. Be thankful for that. What of the parents?”

“Dead, like the others. Stop hoping for something different.” I couldn’t pinpoint the gender of the speakers but, even through their raspy whispers, the pessimistic overtones were obvious.

A dull green light emerged from around a corner, confirming that we were in a cave. From what I could see in the half-light, the speakers were pony-shaped. The infant’s cries, which had previously subsided, began anew. They echoed around the slick cave walls.

The first voice tried to calm the child. “Hush now, little one. Everything will be all right. We will keep you safe.” The baby and caretaker moved further into the tunnel, the sound of hoofsteps bouncing off the walls as their voices receded.

The other speaker came around the corner and seemed to notice me in the dark. “Come, give me some help here. We need to get the parents ready.”

Wordlessly, my mystery host followed.

As the Orb disconnected, I experienced a sudden pervasive pounding inside my skull. The pain instantly had me gritting my teeth as my eyes watered. The doctor and nurse reacted with surprise as I shifted.

“Next...Orb...please?” I ground out between the painful thuds behind my eyes.

The doctor broke off her part in the spell and the pain increased further, forcing me to clench one eye while watching like a hawk for the Memory Orb she was fetching. After a minute or so she held it up in front of me. “Here.”

I was much more eager to dive into this one.

Myself and another earth stallion sat on a small hill overlooking a field.

Ugh, I thought as my host shifted slightly, I really don’t want to have to deal with sweaty... boy parts for too long. I hope this memory is long enough to cover the healing but short enough that I don’t have to hang around afterwards.

Down in the field, foals of all colours ran and played and laughed. The lush greenery and lack of destruction made it hard to imagine that this was Equestria after the megaspells hit, but the Pegasus cloud barrier was in force so it had to be. Even so, it was a beautiful day.

My companion smiled as the gaggle of children let off some flashes of magic. “They seem to have forgotten their troubles... if only for this moment.”

The calm, but resigned, tone was quite different from the rasps of the previous Orb. The frank tone of my host added even more contrast. “If that is all we can give them, then I hope this moment lasts a long time.”

More flashes came from the foals. They were all involved in some form of game. A ring marked the boundary of the play and every few seconds a half-dozen little ones would charge into the centre. Pegasi, earth ponies and unicorns played together, switching positions after meeting in the centre in bursts of brilliant green light.

“These littles ones are very talented.” My companion mused.

My host nodded in agreement, but something struck me as slightly odd. I couldn’t decide what it was but it nagged at me all the same.

Then it hit me. Hey, they don’t have cutie marks. They must be younger than they look. Surprising that they can call them talented this soon. Things change fast for foals.

The appreciation of the talent of the fillies and colts didn’t last so long. My host’s eyes drooped, concerned. “Talented or not, they’ll be so vulnerable soon.”

The other stallion waved away the concern. “Just as we were. They will survive.”

Some of the children were waving at us. My host waved back before answering. “Every time it gets worse though.”

Tired of their play, the kids were bounding up the hill towards us. “This isn’t the time,” was the whispered response, “we’ll discuss it later.”

The conversation broke off as the two stallions focused on collecting all the young ponies and getting them moving, presumably towards home. The other adult led the way while my host brought up the rear, chatting with the stragglers and watching to make sure no foal wandered away from the group. Finally the procession found its rhythm and moved along.

It was lucky that none of the little ones looked back after that, or else they might have seen the tears running down my host’s cheeks.

“When’s the actual HEALING going to start?”

Coming out of the second Memory Orb was somehow more painful than the first.

“We’re working on it.” The nurse was trying to soothe me but the doctor was already getting the third Orb.

“WHAT HAVE YOU DONE???”

Oh good, the raspy whispers are back. Are we in a cave this time? Let’s have a look... yep. Cave.

My host stood in the centre of a circle of lit torches. The flames cast shadows along the walls and obscured all but the bright eyes of those glaring down at me.

“I have given them a chance.” My host’s calm response was almost lost amongst the background murmuring of the gathered watchers.

“You know that was not their fate.” There was definite anger in the rasping speech.

My host faced their accuser directly. “The only fate that has been decided is how we have survived thus far. Nothing more than survived. I believe my actions will lead us to a better path.”

The crowd noise increased. Others began to speak out from behind the flames. “You would divide our strength further?”

“What do you hope to accomplish?”

“Why did you involve the little ones?”

My host was glancing around furtively. It seemed as though they expected resistance, but not as voracious as this. Still, they pressed on. “I would use our strength while we still have any left! I hope for a future for us! Finally, I did not involve them. You act as if I am alone in this. Does this Council not know their people anymore? The new generation are strong, like so many others. And, like so many others, they would not survive, no matter how you might hope they would, if they followed the old way. Not once has this been the case.”

The words had momentarily quieted the unseen Council. After a minute of tense silence, a new voice spoke up. “Tell us, Councilor, what will happen if you, or should I say they, succeed?”

“I cannot know for certain, but I hope that we gain a new place in this new world.”

“And if you fail?” The new voice was not unkind. In fact it bore glimmers of hope.

“Then we will not be there to greet Her, should she ever return.”

Shocked gasps ran through the hall. The original accuser found his voice again. “You would take even that from Her, after all she has done? That last kindness... gone?”

I felt an incredible sympathy with this unknown creature when they spoke next, at how obviously they could shrug off the Council’s disdain for them.

Because it paled in comparison to how they felt for themselves. A feeling I knew well.

“Should we fail, she will not have long to care.”

~~~~~~

The next morning found a dozen guards watching over Dent and Lithu as they put put Bosco into the Recollector to view the Memory Orbs. I was looking forward to discussing them with him when he was finished. For now, I found myself with little to do and forbidden by Chief Rockhaunch to leave the hospital grounds in case McCoy returned, so I paid a visit to the remaining scientist unicorn.

Esto also had protectors stationed both in- and outside of her room. Knowing griffons in general and McCoy in particular I felt this was unnecessary. He had no reason to attack Esto again. Voicing the opinion would have been unforgivably tactless, however, so I held my tongue.

As I entered I saw that the Chief was in with her. Esto was smiling even though she was swathed in bandages. I felt a pang of guilt that she’d been caught up in everything. “Snowflake! So good to see you safe. I want to thank you for keeping Lithu safe.”

“Sorry that I couldn’t get to you before he did. I should have tried harder to stop them back at the research facility.”

Her smile turned to disappointment. “So Latvi really was the one who sent the griffon after us. Why?”

Rockhaunch supplied the answer as if he’d heard it before. “One-sided attraction in unbalanced individuals is a dangerous thing. According to Snowflake here, Latvi was running a crooked side business and regularly made use of mercs. A guy like that can get it into his head that his actions won’t catch up with him.”

“My taunting him probably didn’t help either.” Unfortunately, I thought this out loud.

Esto’s flowing voice didn’t sound so friendly now. “You... taunted Latvi? What did you say?”

Whoops. “I... may have thrown the fact that Lithu had a boyfriend in his face. He didn’t take it well. He sent McCoy after Dent when he calmed down a little.”

The chief’s expression clearly conveyed his opinion of my decision-making at that point, far better than words could.

Esto tried anyway. Her speech became very clipped as she let me know what she thought about that. “So you, a prisoner at the time, thought it a smart idea to taunt the stallion who had a deadly killer in the room with him? And that directly led to said killer attacking my friend? What were you thinking?”

I swallowed back a lump in my throat. “I’m so sorry. I was angry and McCoy was under orders not to harm me. I didn’t even think about him hurting others when I said it.”

“Because of your selfishness, our lives may not ever be the same again. I don’t know the extent of my injuries and this McCoy could attack Lithu again at any time. You won’t get any more help from me, you harpie!”

It was hard to argue with her words and I didn’t try. Instead, the chief tactfully escorted me out. “She’s not wrong about the taunting but I don’t think she’ll be permanently hurt. We’re also taking precautions with Dent and Lithu. They’ll be heading to Grindstone under heavy guard.”

Wait, what? “Won’t that make them easy targets for McCoy? Why not keep them here?”

He scoffed. “Here? In Lethbridle? With plenty of places for a griffon to hide? Let me ask you: Where could a griffon hide in a herd of only buffalo?”

He has a point, but still... “McCoy won’t stop though, not until he is released from the contract by Latvi, and he’s probably nearly to Plottawa right now!”

The oak-furred officer shrugged helplessly. “What else can we do? We can’t get into Plottawa for Latvi. At least Dent can get himself lost in a crowd of buffalo. He can handle himself in a fight too.”

My recent trip to Grindstone had given me a good idea of their stance on outsiders. “What about Lithu? She’ll be the only pony in Grindstone. There’s a bull there called Crush, he doesn’t much like ponies.”

Rockhaunch’s face darkened at the name. “I know him. I’ll send word to friends of mine in Grindstone about Lithu. They’ll look after her. So long as she doesn’t cause trouble, Crush... probably won’t do anything drastic.”

“Probably?”

He grimaced. “Probably. Crush has been pushing for harsher treatment for outsiders for years. He might not be friendly to Lithu or Dent but he won’t start anything without overwhelming support. He won’t get that any time soon. Not unless something big happens to sway others to his way of thinking.”

Oh, this just gets worse and worse. “Like a Plottawan slaver raid looking for Red Ice?”

The wheels turned and his mood soured further. “I’d forgotten about that. You really have a knack for pissing folks off, don’t you? I’ll stress to Dent that he shouldn’t make any waves while he’s there.”

“Thanks... and sorry, again.”

~~~~~~

Bosco was just pulling the apparatus off his head when I arrived. He didn’t say anything at first, seemingly lost in thought. I nodded a greeting to Dent and Lithu as I approached, noting how the buffalo followed her with his eyes while she went about her tasks, and how the unicorn made sure never to stray far from him. She also made an effort to stay clear of me.

I couldn’t blame either of them. Dent may have seen some unsavoury aspects of life in the Wasteland but it seemed he’d never before seen them endanger somebody he cared about. Lithu simply hadn’t ever gone through anything like that before and wasn’t eager to repeat the experience.

If nothing else, they certainly didn’t want to be separated any time soon. I wished the best for them, even if the unicorn girl already associated me with horrific violence.

Bosco had snapped out of his funk by this time and turned his gaze on me. His eyes were shining with barely contained excitement. “Snowflake! Did you see them all? All those ponies!”

I smiled back. “I saw them, though I still think you should have gone first,” I reached up and tousled his hair, “if nothing else, you could have fixed your Recollector mane.”

Unfazed, his whipped his head back and forth, the end result being an even bigger mess than before. It didn’t affect his demeanour though. “Better?”

I shared an amused look with the scientist and the guard. “Oh yes, absolutely. Totally fixed.”

Bosco didn’t really care. He was practically bouncing. “I’ve had those things in my bags for years! I can’t believe I finally got to see them. And for free... ish. Every other time I’ve asked about it, ponies have wanted thousands of bits. No way I could afford that! I really owe you, Snowflake.”

You really don’t. “Given what I put us through for this, I’d say I owe you.”

A charcoal-grey hoof shot out and clipped my horn painfully. I quickly covered it before it could happen again. “Bosco! That hurt!”

Even though he was still smiling at his good fortune and still gazing at the Orbs, his voice had a slight edge to it. “Tough! You spend way too much time in your own head. I don’t wanna hear it today. Everypony’s safe, I got to watch my Memory Orbs, and I finally caught up to you after a week. It’s a good day and it’s gonna stay a good day, understand?”

“But-”

I couldn’t finish before Bosco was back in my face with a frown. “Understand?!”

I looked to Dent and Lithu for support. The latter was failing to suppress her laughter and former was mirroring Bosco’s expression but with an upside-down frown. Outnumbered, I admitted defeat. “Fiiiine. Get your stuff. I’ll wait outside.”

Making a point to ignore the giggling couple, I turned and walked back out the door.

~~~~~~

“Oh come on, the Steel Rangers too?”

Bosco was clearly in awe of my ability to get involved with dangerous groups. Sitting in Nightcap’s bar allowed us to get away from the watchful eyes of the Lethbridle guards for a while. Sort of. There were some off-duty buffalo and ponies there, which is why Rockhaunch had insisted we go there, but they were giving us our space. They would only approach us if there was trouble.

“Now that one wasn’t my fault. I was just looking looking to make a few bits while I checked out Grindstone, to see if you were there. The Rangers didn’t really give me a choice. I was kinda stuck at the time. A Hissyflit bit me.”

He made a face. “Ooh, yeah. I’ve seen that. It’s not pretty if the poison runs its course.”

“Glad it didn’t get that far. The Rangers gave me something for it.”

My friend didn’t seem particularly glad for that. “And? There’s more, right? Steel Rangers don’t help out for no reason and certainly not for free.”

He was certainly right about that one. “No, no they don’t. They asked me, and I use the term very loosely, to watch some Memory Orbs for them. Apparently they had no other unicorns around at the time and no Recollector.”

“Of course they didn’t.” Was the flat reply.

“That’s not even the worst part though, Bosco. The Memory Orbs showed two ponies trying to get into Stable 61!”

“What?!” This one wasn’t so flat, “You didn’t tell them how to get there, did you?”

“Of course not, that’s my...” my breath caught in my throat, “...my home.” I’d been in a generally positive mood, since meeting Bosco again had been a wonderful distraction from what happened in Whinniepeg, but talking about the Stable was just too much.

Not now, not here, I thought as my eyes began to moisten, come on, keep it together!

“They... they don’t know how to find it. Without the Pipbuck they’ll never make it through the blizzard...” My lips began to quiver, “...and even if they did, they can’t get past the door...” I lowered my head, allowing my mane to conceal my face, “...Because the guys on External Monitor Duty inside will see who it is and the Overmare won’t open the door...” my drink spilled onto the table as my hooves began to shake, “...BECAUSE WASTELANDERS AREN’T ALLOWED IN THE STAB-UH-HUH-HUH-LE!!!!” I wailed as I couldn’t hold it anymore.

“Wha? Snowflake?” The colt was thoroughly confused but still trying to be supportive, “That’s a good thing, isn’t it? If a pony’s bad then they shouldn’t get in.”

I buried my head in my forelegs and bawled. The rest of the bar had definitely taken notice at this point. All conversations were stopping. I didn’t care.

Still lost, Bosco tried again, “Um...yeah! Your brothers! They’re on the other side of that door where nopony can get to them. That’s what you want, right?”

My eyes were screwed shut as I loudly vocalised my misery.

“What the hell’s going on here?” Nightcap and the off-duty guards had apparently had enough. I felt them crowding around the table. A massive, furry hoof was laid on my shoulder.

“You want us to take care of this guy, Stronghead? Least we can do after last night.” I ignored him.

Bosco didn’t have that luxury. “What? She’s my friend. I’m trying to cheer her up.”

“Good job.” I didn’t see their expressions but they sounded less than impressed, “Maybe you should leave her alone, fella.”

My young colt friend seemed to be getting worried, “Snow, I know you’re upset but can you talk to them, please?”

Something heavy slammed onto the table, “That wasn’t a suggestion. Beat it, punk.”

“HEY!” Nightcap’s growling voice sounded above the commotion, “I don’t want you beating up a kid in my bar. Take it outside and don’t block the door. It’s you guards’ problem after that.”

“Wait, what?” Bosco was seriously getting freaked, “Snowflake, help!”

Chairs scraped along the floor and the table shook as the colt struggled with the guards.

“SNOWFLA-oof!”

My head shot up. Tears were still running down my cheeks and I could only take long, shuddering breaths but I couldn’t let this go on. Bosco was on the floor in a ring of bodies, eyes wide in pain and shock. The stallion who’d just planted a hoof in his stomach was stepping back.

“...n-no.”

They didn’t hear me and hauled him upright again.

“...don’t hurt him.”

They were almost at the door.

“...’s my friend.”

I sucked in one big breath just as they pushed him through the door.

“DON’T HURT MY FRIEND!”

Silence. I took a few small steps towards the group. A worn hoof grabbed me by the shoulder and spun my roughly around. Nightcap was glaring at me with his one remaining eye.

“Get out. I don’t know what Raider poison you’re on, and I don’t care. Take your ‘friend’ and those thugs and get the fuck out of my bar. You’re not welcome here anymore. If I see you again, I’ll be looking at you through my scope. Now fuck off.” He shoved me, hard, towards the door.

Outside, the guards were reluctant to leave Bosco alone with me but I eventually persuaded them. Bosco hadn’t said anything, just glared at the officers as he slumped against a wall.

I sat down next to him. The extra altercation hadn’t improved my mood any and my cheeks were still soaked with tears. “I’m so sorry, Bosco.”

His patience was clearly tested. “What the hell’s going on, Snowflake? What was that back there? You weren’t making any sense. You were acting like you wanted the Rangers to get at your Stable!”

I sniffled, trying to hold back my runny nose. “Of course I don’t want that, Bosco. It’s just, well,” I held up my naked wrist, “what do you see?”

Wincing as he rubbed his sore belly, he glanced up distractedly. “Your leg?”

I turned the limb to show him every side. “What don’t you see?”

To his credit, it only took him a few seconds before his eyes went wide. “Oh, shit!”

I sniffled again. “Yeah.”

His bruised stomach was instantly forgotten. “Snow, what happened? Did the Rangers take it?”

If only it were that simple. “N-no. A pegasus called Cassiopeia Venatici took it. She attacked me in Whinniepeg two days ago. Her... and Wings.”

“Wings? Wings stole your Pipbuck?”

The tears increased again. “I thought she was my friend.”

My charcoal companion seemed at a loss. “Wow... that’s...um...” stumped, he scratched the back of his head helplessly, “I don’t know what to think about that. She really didn’t seem the type.”

I didn’t respond with words, just a small, glum noise of agreement.

Then he asked the question I’d been asking myself ever since it happened. “So what are you going to do?”

“I... don’t know,” a soft, sad, little chuckle escaped me, “all that stuff I said before? It’s true. I can’t go back. I can’t go home again.”

“Could you ever?” His eyes widened as soon as the words left his mouth. “Shit, I didn’t mean to...”

“You know, I think somewhere... my heart maybe, I might have thought I could. I don’t know why I thought that or how I would get back, just...”

I turned my shining eyes on him, “It’s been a few weeks, Bosco. I’ve been away from home for that long. And, at the same time, I’ve only been away from home for that long. What should I do now? What can I do now?”

He didn’t immediately respond, just laid his head back against the hard stone of the wall and looked up at the bright, though always-cloudy, sky. “If I knew, I’d tell you. Fact of the matter is, I’ve been away from home far longer than you have. I still have no clue what I’m supposed to do.”

“You have?” It occurred to me that I knew very little about Bosco, even after travelling with him for days. And sleeping in the same bed. I knew he could shoot and take care of himself, that he wasn’t from Cefar and that he still had a little bit of foalhood in him. I had no idea if he had family or where he came from or even what his Cutie Mark was. He always had clothes and armour over it.

“Uh huh. I’d been in Cefar maybe a year when you showed up. Fact is, I’ve been bouncing around from place to place for closer to 6 years.”

My eyes bugged. “That long? How? Wasn’t your family worried? Did you go home to see them?”

He hesitated, lips moving as half-formed words waited to escape. “Don’t laugh, but I don’t know. Any of it. I woke up in Vanchoofer and couldn’t remember a thing. Not where I’d come from, not what I was doing there, not even who I was. The docs put it down to me being another stupid little colt getting into the booze stores. But, after three days and still no luck, they stopped caring, called me damaged, and kicked me out of the clinic. Those Orbs of mine were about the only things I had on me.”

“But how did you... I mean, who took care of... six years?!”

The heavy sigh he heaved was at odds with, and yet strangely in tune to, his uncaring shrug. “I ran. I hid. I stole. I fought. I begged. I bargained. I killed. Anything to keep myself alive from one day to the next. I didn’t have three little brothers to look after or a big sister to watch over me. I was on my own, and I did whatever I had to to survive.”

I wanted to hug him so hard. “A-and the Orbs? Now that you’ve finally seen them, do they tell you anything?” All my troubles were completely forgotten when faced with this new information.

He smiled ruefully here. “Nope. Not a damn thing. I don’t know those caves, or those ponies, or that valley where the kids were playing. I could have been one of them, or one of them could have been my mother, or my father, or something. But I don’t know anything more than when I started. I just have more questions to ask.”

“Um...” I had nothing. Nothing at all to say to him. Should I apologise for whining about my problems when he had a past just as bad, no, worse than mine? Should I stay quiet? Change the subject? Not a clue.

He saved me from deciding. “Forget about it, Snow. I’ve had years for this. I’ll figure things out eventually.” Despite his words, the faintest, almost indiscernible trace of hope showed in the corner of his eye, “You can help if you like, but I wouldn’t expect much.”

“I’d like that.” I didn’t care about how long it took. Anything was better than wandering around without a plan.

Bosco gingery rose from where he sat. “In the meantime, I think I’ve got an idea about what we can do to solve your problem.”

“What do you mean?”

He tapped himself on the chest with a hoof. “Well I’ve done more in the last week or so than just look for you. I’ve been to a bunch of places, including back to Cefar, where I fought and captured a Molar Bear.”

He was for some reason proud of that suicidal activity. “Why?”

“I was helping somepony out.” His grin was getting wider now. I couldn’t figure out the reason.

“Who would be crazy enough to LOOK for a Molar Bear to fight? They’re... really scary.” I finished lamely.

Bosco’s amusement at my bemusement threatened to overwhelm him. He pronounced his next words very differently from normal.

“A little danger keeps the heart strong, dahling.”

~~~~~~