Chapter 17-2: Nice Things

“Sad tidings today, my little ponies. DJ Pon3 here, bringing you the truth, no matter how bad it hurts, and wow does this one hurt. I’m afraid that the wedding bells won’t be ringing for the happy couple I mentioned a few days ago. While I hope we all got some warm fuzzies in our hearts for Deputy Dent and his fiancee Lithu, it is my unfortunate duty to report that, so soon after fostering stronger ties between buffalo and ponies, Deputy Dent was attacked and killed in the buffalo settlement of Grindstone.”

Unblinkingly, my head swivelled towards Latvi, whose smile was growing at the same rate. “Is it…?”

Cheeks threatening to tear, he gleefully nodded. “Oh yes. I’m sure of it.”

With a crackle, the radio we were crowded around continued. “Reports from Grindstone place a griffon mercenary named McCoy at the scene, and according to the buffalo, Dent and Lithu had fled to Grindstone to get away from McCoy, who had previously attacked them in their hometown of Lethbridle.”

I ground my teeth together. Damn you, McCoy. You do this for caps?

“This is a downer and no mistake, ponies, but there is one bright spot in all this, and it’s burning strong. Red Ice may be dominating the headlines for all the wrong reasons, but Blue Fire is showing us that there’s still hope in the north. Blue Fire sightings have increased a lot in the past week. First she took down an entire Raider village, and now she’s been protecting the returning trade caravans on the way to Grindstone, which have been targeted by Plottawan slavers, Raiders, and Hissyflits. Anyone looking for a meal, I guess. She couldn’t stop a scumbag like McCoy, but she can help the remaining buffalo to get back on their hooves.”

Way to go, Wings. Steer clear of McCoy though, he’s bad news. He also really doesn’t need to know who you are. That wouldn’t end well.

“That’s all for now, children. This is DJ Pon3, leaving you with some of that smooth Sapphire Shores sound.” The radio’s crackle faded away into nothingness.

“How about that, fillies and colts? That stupid lump finally got what was coming to him, courtesy of me and McCoy!” Scorn and manic excitement laced Latvi’s words, and it was drawing smiles from the gathered Raiders.

Let it never be said that Raiders can’t enjoy themselves. I just wish they weren’t so disgusting about it. And speaking of disgusting… “That’s enough, Latvi. Knock it off.”

Shuffle-dancing back and forth, his expression remained as it was. “Oh but my fun is just starting. Our friends here haven’t heard the best part yet! Why don’t I tell them what happens next?”

Instantly my eyes became slits, and a snarl burst from between my teeth. “Don’t you dare!”

But it was too late. Latvi had the crowd entranced now, all waiting to hear the rest of the story. “I dare alright! You see, Raiders, McCoy was acting on my orders, so he’ll be on the way here now that he’s done. Mercs, y’know, they want their money straight away. Plus he’s a griffon, so he won’t delay past meeting up with the rest of his team: McCoy’s Monsters? Have you heard of them?”

They had. A dozen hushed bubbling conversations broke out at once. Caber Toss and Sweet Lips were all smiles as they chatted amongst themselves, throwing frequent looks at Latvi and I.

This isn’t good. They’re getting frisky. “Latvi, we have a lot to do today, so tell your stories la-”

“WE DO INDEED, RED ICE!” He cut me off forcefully. “You see, McCoy will be here soon, and I’ve got just the job for him too!” He spread his hooves wide, calling everybody’s attention back to him. “Now you all know I’m not much of a fighter, but I do have other skills. Skills which allow me to hire McCoy easily, and will allow me to bring you Raiders all that you could ever desire: Caps, guns, mares, stallions, whatever you like! All that’s standing in the way…”

His wandering hoof stopped on me. “...is her.”

A collective grunt of confusion sounded out from among the savage horde. Sweet Lips, already annoyed with me for the deaths of her Woodpeckers, was grinning evilly, while there were almost visibly turning wheels in her husband’s mind as he tried to make sense of it all.

Glaring about, I saw plenty of uncertainty, but no solid support for me in the crowd. Still, I knew that I had to say something to get them back on my side, so I opened my mouth to speak.

Latvi beat me to it again. “You tripped up, Red Ice-no, Snowflake. You despise me, just like I do you, but instead of killing me when you had the chance, you tried to grind me under your heel. Well, you have failed!” He took a moment to brush some of his blond mane away from his face. “You still need me to fix your precious Memory Orb, but I never needed you at all. Soon enough, McCoy will take you out for me, and I’ll get back my position AND my horn!”

Instinctively, my hoof moved over the pocket of my jumpsuit, where I was keeping the last remains of Sombra. Latvi’s eyes followed the motion, as did every other pair present. No! I am not letting him win like this! “You think this is over, Latvi?! These are MY Raiders, and I won’t give them up to you!”

Snickering, he mockingly shrugged away my words. “You won’t have a choice, Red Ice. In the end, none of ‘your’ Raiders have any reason to back you up, while McCoy has plenty of support available. You can’t beat him.”

“I have beaten him! I did it in Lethbridle, and I can do it again anywhere I want!”

Latvi’s words had bite to them. “Prove it.”

Shit. He’d trapped me. I couldn’t back down now after he’d thrown out a challenge like that, not in front of Raiders. Strength and power ruled here, and if I didn’t take up the challenge, they’d tear me apart in seconds, and Latvi would get all he wanted. He might even try to get McCoy to bring him the girl he’d been obsessing over, Lithu.

Somehow, I doubt he’s gonna be all that upset for the grieving widow. Not really anyway. He might put on an act for her, even though he’s the one who-

Oh. Now there’s something.

Finally finding my own smile, I made the best of a bad situation. “Latvi, I was always going to take on McCoy. Don’t dare assume I’d run from a fight. But I’m not waiting around here for him to come to me. I’m going after him myself! I don’t need these Raiders to take him out, I can do it alone!”

He was getting what he wanted, but his muscles tensed under his blue coat, just a little bit, at my tone. That was fine by me, since he’d lock up in a moment.

“And you, Latvi, won’t say a word to anybody about this whole thing. McCoy is my prey.”

“And why should I listen to you?”

“You should use your magic to boost your own memory sometime. You forget that I know it was you who sent McCoy after Dent… and I know how to find Lithu.”

That got his attention. Eyes wide and nostrils flaring, his composure quickly slipped. “You stay away from her!”

Chuckling, I waved a hoof in a tsk-tsk gesture. “Oho no. You blab about my plans, and I’ll have a nice, long chat to Lithu about just who it was who killed her beloved. That… or I could just kill her myself?”

“You can’t!”

I just pointed at myself. “Red Ice, remember? For all that memory magic, you seem to really suck at keeping your facts straight.”

I left Latvi spluttering with impotent rage, and turned to Caber Toss. “Oi Haylander, I’m going after McCoy. Keep watch over things while I’m gone, and don’t let this idiot try anything.”

“Aye, nae bother. We’re all wantin’ tae see how yeh pull this off.”

“...Fantastic. Now then, I heard about a griffon settlement once, Gull Gulf. Do you know it?” Wings mentioned it, so here’s hoping I can find out something about her while I’m there too.

“Well ah don’t, but mah wife does.”

“Aye, it’s a ways sooth o’ here. Ah’ll point yeh in the right direction, an’ pack yeh a lunch.”

I nodded brusquely, resolving to ignore Latvi for the time being. “Well I’d best get going then.” Turning my chin upwards, I raised my voice. “You boys and girls be good now, or else I’ll be awfully sore when I get back.”

Given the cheer that went up, it seemed that the meaning went over most of their heads.

Soon enough I was on my way, following a crudely drawn map, provided by Ballbuster, hopefully in the direction of Gull Gulf.

“First time in a while I’ve been travelling by myself.” I mused. “It’ll be nice to get more than an hour or so of peace each day.” The Raiders were what they were: Blunt objects. Find something to fling them at, and away they go. They weren’t suited for much else. There was still a lot of work to be done in that regard.

Hopefully the griffons of Gull Gulf would be more pleasant to be around. While they could be stiff, and were unfailingly precise, griffons could still surprise you with what they got up to. I had been too long away from griffons without agendas towards me. McCoy and his monsters were enemies, while Wings was… far too complicated to give an easy answer for.

She’s fun though, and she’s a good person to have on your side. If only she hadn’t taken my stuff. Everything between us got a lot harder after that. “I think it’s about time for a reckoning on that issue. When I get back from dealing with McCoy, I’ll head over to Hoofshine and we’ll have it out, one way or the other.” If I survive McCoy, though I’m not giving Latvi the satisfaction of saying that out loud.

I hoped that my trip to Gull Gulf would be informative too. McCoy was one griffon issue, and Wings was another. Perhaps there were others there who knew about her? If at all possible, I planned to learn as much as I could while there.

“Hell,” I murmured to myself, “I might even learn something juicy enough to bargain for my gear. That’d be a win-win for everybody. I get my stuff back, and we aren’t on opposite sides anymore. Plus we won’t have to tense up when we’re both at the brothel at the same time. Well, she won’t at least. I still have the twins and Schwarzwald to worry about.”

...I have let a lot of people who don’t like me sleep at my place.

Yes, finding out information about Wings had definitely moved up the priorities list for my time at Gull Gulf. McCoy, being the actual physical threat of the two griffons, still took first billing, but Wings’ past was not something I could ignore any longer. I needed to find out something to explain why she did what she did, or something that I could use against to get my stuff back.

Either way, Wings had my attention again, and I wouldn’t be deterred until I got what I needed to resolve our situation, one way or another.

Nothing’s ever simple, is it, Blue Fire?

~~~~~~

My mouth hung open as I took in the scene before me.

Gull Gulf was beautiful. Set into a cliff face, it was everything La Buque might have been in its past. Between the hollowed-out homes of the griffons who lived there were gorgeous murals, great swaths of colour that painted the blue-est of skies, here, so close to the land. The griffons hadn’t accepted that the sky was lost, they’d fashioned their own instead. I watched as tiny chicks took their first flaps on that backdrop of self-made stratos, fluttering unsteadily under the watchful eyes of the hens. Still, this wasn’t what had my jaw hanging.

Gull Gulf was full of clouds. They were everywhere! Where La Buque had crumbling stone bridges, Gull Gulf had floating cushions of vapour. Tiercels leaned against them, hens lounged on them, and chicks raced through and under and around them.

These clouds were not barriers, locked together as unwilling wardens of the heavens, as was the case for the rest of Equestria. These clouds were free.

They are stunning. I reached out a hoof to touch one, half the size of a pony. I was beside myself with excitement to touch a real cloud. No more textbooks and terminal pictures, like in the Stable. No more Pegasi-powered-prevention, like in the rest of the Wasteland. These clouds were right here, in front of me, free to touch.

Roc is gonna be sooo jealous! Deciding I’d had enough savouring, I moved towards the blissful bubble again. “Come ‘ere, beautiful.”

Just as I was about to drop my limb into the cool vapour, a tiny spear shot out and jabbed straight into my skin.

“Hthththth!” Drawing back with a hiss, I saw blood slowly seeping out of the puncture. “What the hell was that?”

The little ‘spear’ rose further from the mist, resolving into the beak of an, admittedly adorable, hatchling. Delighted cheeps sounded out as she disappeared back into the cloud.

“...Little runt.” I grumbled. I made to turn away to find another cloud to play with, when a shout sounded from above.

“HEEEYYYY!!!” The word, yelled in anger, lasped into a keeling screech as several large hens landed down between me and the hidden hatchling.

“Back off, pony!” They swiped at me with their claws, driving me back. “Stay away from her!”

“Oh come on, I said ‘runt’!” I explained as I backpedalled, not wanting to start a fight with a bunch of angry mothers. I wouldn’t stand a chance… that’s the theory, anyway. Mothers get angry if you mess with their kids. Wouldn’t know myself.

More griffons were swooping overhead, some mere inches from my horn. No blood had been spilled, except by the little one, but it wasn’t looking good.

Click. The sound cut through everything else, instantly joined by the feeling of hard metal on the back of my skull. I froze. The hens kept coming. Feathers and claws brushed millimeters from my nose.

They only stopped when a clipped voiced spoke past my ear. “Thank you, ladies. We’ll take it from here. She won’t bother you again, I assure you.”

While none of the females were particularly happy with this, they did seem to accept it. All of them took off again, towing hatchlings and other children with them. As they flew off, one of them called back. “Better keep her under control, Eitom. We don’t want any trouble from uppity ponies.”

“Eitom?” I know that name, don’t I?

“At your service.” The barrel of the gun didn’t move from where it was pressed into my mane. “We meet again.”

Unable to move, I couldn’t see my captor. “Apparently so. It’s NOT a pleasure to meet you again.”

“Aha.” Mirth crept into his measured speech. “By that do you mean that it isn’t a pleasure this time, or last time?”

“Both, neither, take your pick.” I was already getting tired of talking to thin air. “Look, can we at least do this face to face?”

“Hmm… I suppose so. I hardly think that even the so-called ‘dumbest unicorn McCoy has ever laid eyes on’ would start a fight in this situation. Vastly outnumbered and without a weapon of her own.”

“Keep pushing and find out.” I growled. I’ve got a weapon, private proper. It’s on top of my head. I can’t wait to show you what I can do with it.

The gun barrel pushed in a little deeper. “Now, wait for just a little while longer, if you please. I’ll be calling in my colleague, and then we can have a more civilised discussion.” I hear him fumbling with something behind me. Kzzzch! “Wicker, are you there? It’s Eitom.”

Oh great, another of McCoy’s rabble. I began searching with my eyes, trying to catch a glimpse of the second Monster.

Kzzzch! “Yeah dude, Wicker here. Whassup?”

Almost immediately I stopped my searching. It was due to a sudden but very powerful realisation. I don’t remember what either of these two look like. I only remember McCoy.

“Can you come meet me in the market? I’ve got somebody here, and I could use your help.”

“My help? What’s going on?”

“Just come quickly, please.”

“Gotcha. Headin’ your way now.”

It was a tense few minutes as we waited for Wicker to arrive. Eitom seemed content to stay silent, which meant I had nothing to distract me except the stares of passing griffons, especially little ones who hadn’t left Gull Gulf yet, and found non-griffons a rare sight.

Mercifully, Wicker finally arrived, slamming down with a strong beat of his wings. It was clear where he got his name, as he was straw-covered from head to tail. Even his eyes were straw-coloured. Said eyes widened upon seeing me, and he looked over my shoulder. “Is that...?”

“It is.”

Wicker’s brow creased. “What’s she doing here?”

“I am not sure yet. Keep your gun on her while I come over there.”

Wicker didn’t need telling twice, snapping his weapon up and training the automatic rifle on me.

Claws clacking on the rocky ground, Eitom padded around me in a wide arc, always keeping at least one eye on me. In stark contrast to Wicker, Eitom was a mess of different colours. His feathers were so grey they almost looked black, while his lower body was so grey it was almost white. His beak was a richer brown too, bordering on orange. His eyes were utterly unremarkable though, never seeming to be focused on anything, giving him an air of complete disinterest.

Once he’d taken up station beside his fellow mercenary, he brought his own weapon up. “Now then, we-”

“Whatchu want? Why you here?” Wicker interrrupted. Eitom seemed unsurprised by the interruption, merely indicating for me to answer.

Awesome. I ‘love’ answering question at gunpoint. “Why should I tell you two?”

“Are our weapons not enough of a reason?”

“I’ve had bigger pointed at me, so no. If you want me to answer some questions, why don’t you try answering mine first?”

Sharing a glance, neither made a move until Wicker shrugged. “Okay. What do you wanna know?”

I had plenty of questions, but one was on my mind more than any other. “The clouds… how?”

Both Monsters chuckled mockingly. “Do you mean to ask how we have clouds down here when the almighty Enclave sealed the sky?”

Wicker spat on the ground angrily. “You damn ponies never change. The sky belongs to nobody and certainly not to you! We’ll use the clouds however we damn well want, and if those pegasi don’t like it then they can come on down, try an’ stop us!”

Eitom was less vitriolic, but there was displaying some pride in his friend’s words. “I could not have put it better myself.”

“...Whatever, keep your stupid clouds.” I pouted. “I’ve got other questions.”

“Yes, I’m sure you do.” Eitom and Wicker shared a smirk.

Jackholes! “Just tell me what I need to know so I can get out of here. There’s a griffon by the name of Wings. Tell me about her, or point me towards somebody who can.”

They started at the name, smirks melting into cold smiles. “Oh yeah, we can tell you all about her.”

“Indeed. We know a great deal about Wings.”

I cocked an eyebrow. “Do you now?”

“Oh yeah, she rolled in here not too long ago, looking for info just like you.”

“Quite the intriguing coincidence to have Blue Fire looking for answers, and then Red Ice follows so soon after, wouldn’t you say?”

Now that was surprising, and I doubt I hid it very well. “You… know she’s Blue Fire?”

“We do now.”

Fuck! “Fuck!”

As Wicker sniggered to himself, Eitom threw me a bone. “No, I kid. She told us. It was part of our deal.”

“Deal? What deal?”

Wicker stopped laughing, and jabbed Eitom in the ribs. “Dude!”

“Right, right, sorry.” He turned back to me. “That is between us and Wings, Red Ice. She wanted information from us, and she traded for it. That’s all you need to know.”

Unsatisfied, I pressed. “What did you tell her? Was it about Whinniepeg?”

Eitom had the loose lips, but Wicker lacked a poker face. He faltered noticeably.

Bingo. “It is, isn’t it? You told her about Whinniepeg.”

“No, we did not tell her about what happened when we found you in Whinniepeg.”

I didn’t bite. “Not what I asked, but thanks for that much.”

Eitom’s weapon came up again, joined quickly by Wicker’s rifle. “Alright. You’ve had your fun. It stops now. We’re not telling you anything more. We will deal with Wings later, when the time is right, do you understand?”

My schadenfreude-fueled good cheer evaporated. “Yeah, I understand.”

“Good.” Gruffed Wicker. “Now get out. You’re not welcome in Gull Gulf no more.”

“And I was just starting to feel welcome too.” I deadpanned. “I’ll leave when I’m ready. I have other things to do here.”

“What makes you think we’re askin’?”

Giving him the brightest smile I could muster, I made no move to leave. “Well, you could order me to leave if you want to…”

“Okay, leave. That’s an order.”

I continued as if I hadn’t heard that. “...but I feel I should first remind you two that you’ve forgotten something very important.”

Neither griffon was smiling back. Eitom was easing away from Wicker, looking like he was expecting a fight. “And what might that be?”

My smile turned into a snarl. “I’m Red Ice, and I don’t take orders from you.”

Their reaction was immediate. “Safeties off.”

This… could be better. Squaring my hooves, I shifted my weight a little. “Are you sure that’s wise, boys? You know what I’ve lived through, and you should know by now that I’ve got plenty of Raider friends who’d just love to get a crack at this place. And yes, they do know I’m here.”

Eitom’s nostrils flared and his pupils shrank. “THAT’S IT!” Enraged, he charged forwards, rifle butt whipping round and cracking me across the jaw. I flew backwards, crashing through clouds and wooden stalls alike. Splinter shards stabbed at my flesh, drawing blood.

I just barely saw him leap at me again past the stars in my eyes. Jerking myself out of the wreckage, I stumbled off-balance until his fist slammed into my face. I tasted blood as my nose cracked. Slamming through a half-open door, I landed in a heap amongst bags of supplies.

Screeching, Eitom unloaded his rifle into the storehouse. Bullets slammed into the back wall, the floor, and the bags around me throwing up clouds of dust as I shielded myself with my hooves.

“DUDE, STOP! YOU GONNA KILL SOMEBODY!” Wicker was pleading with squadmate.

The bullets cut off. “Yeah, I’m gonna kill her! She can’t come in here and threaten our friends, our families, over that Wings bitch!”

Still lying on the floor, I fired my horn backwards at the far wall, creating a filly sized sheen of ice.

“WHAT THE HELL D’YA THINK YOU’RE DOING, EITOM!” This gravelly voice was neither Wicker’s nor Eitom’s, but annoyingly familiar.

McCoy! He’s here? Shit. Without another thought, I punched straight through the ice, shattering the sheet metal underneath, immediately scrambling through.

As I did, I heard the two snap to attention. “Sir!”

McCoy wasted no time. “Report, Monsters!”

“Sir, ‘s Red Ice, Sir! She’s here. She wants information, Sir!”

“Dumbest damned pony I ever met! You better hope you didn’t tell her anything, Wicker!” McCoy’s voice got even rougher as he berated his troopers.

Spitting out blood, and a tooth, the jagged edges of the hole slashed at my haunches as I pulled myself through, leaving bloody gashes along my coat. Gotta get out of here for now. Come back with the Raiders. Make them all pay.

I found myself in a tight alley, I took off in the away-from-guns direction, weaving in and out of the buildings.

“BOSS, SHE’S GONE!”

“WELL GET AFTER HER, DOUBLETIME!”

I just ran. I had no idea where, or even if there was anywhere to go. I just ran. The alleys twisted and turned with no end in sight. “Where the fuck is everything?! I muttered under my breath. “I just want to find ‘out’!”

Bullets slashed at me from above, cutting grazes in my skin. My path blocked, I reversed direction.

“Found her! She’s over here!”

“Stay on ‘er, Monsters!”

“Yessir!”

“Fuck you all!” I screamed as I ran, ducking and diving to avoid the gunfire.

Bursting back onto the main street, I sprinted across without a backwards glance. Needcoverneedcoverneedcovwhothehellisthat?! Slamming into the hooded figure, we went down in a heap. Not having time to mess around, I kicked out at the idiot laying on top of me. “Get off!”

But he didn’t. Instead he grabbed at me. “Afraid not, Snowflake! Your time’s up.”

“Leave me alone!” I battered at him with my hooves, trying vainly to loosen his grip. One swing knocked his hood off, revealed a horn instead of a beak. A navy blue horn. “You?”

“Me.” Latvi grinned triumphantly as he held on. “I told you McCoy and I would kill you. I just can’t believe you made it this easy!”

“I’M GONNA K-” I broke off as the three griffons landed in the clearing. “Stay back, or else he dies!”

While the two troopers fixed their guns on me, the stone-grey leader of the Monsters appeared unimpressed. He fished a cigar out of his pocket, struck a match on his claw, and lit the thing. Taking a long drag out of the side of his beak. “No he don’t. He still owes me my pay for killing the buffalo. He lives until then. You’ve got no leverage like that. I can kill you whenever.”

Fear fueled angry stupidity. “Like you couldn’t do in Lethbridle? I wasn’t half as strong back then as I am now, and you still couldn’t take me out, buzzard.”

He almost bit clear through the cigar. Slate eyes hardening, he took a step forward. “Rockhaunch isn’t here to back you up this time, girl. You’re alone, you got no gun, and you’re between me and fulfilling a contract. Ya think this is gonna end well for you, greenhorn?”

“Take another step and find out. I don’t die before this one does, I promise you that.” Wrapping my limbs around Latvi, I lit up my horn. It was a poor bargaining position, but at least it gave the big griffon pause for a moment.

“You don’t get away with it this time, Snowflake.” Latvi seemed to be releasing all the stress and repression he’d built up during our time together in this moment.

Yuk it up, Latvi. I’m not dead y-... wait, what the hell is that?! “Are you kidding me with this? Now, seriously?” I couldn’t let go, but I tried in vain to keep my body as far from Latvi’s as possible.

McCoy merely grunted, awaiting an explanation.

I couldn’t believe this. Glaring at Latvi, who was going red, I momentarily forgot the guns pointed at me. “You sick bastard! You’re excited by this?”

The old bird nearly inhaled his cigar. “Say what?”

“Wow. Really?” Wicker and Eitom were struggling to keep straight faces.

“Ew gross, it’s poking me!”

“I-I-I…”

“You twisted little…”

“ENOUGH!” McCoy squawked loudly. “I don’t care what kinda weirdo he is right now. I still ain’t gonna let ya kill him until my contract’s complete, now let him g-ugh!”

The spinning cylinder, which had just clocked McCoy on the temple, bounced in the air for a second, just long enough for him to whip his head back around and glare at it.

Then it exploded, and the world went white.

McCoy howled in pain. Wicker was yelling. Eitom shot off a burst in surprise. Latvi and I let go of each other as we moved to block our eyes from the glare.

Or at least I thought he let go, but I soon felt hooves grab me once again. I swung out wildly. “Let me go, you bastard. I swear I’ll kill you for this!”

“Not me, svara. Come, now.” The steady voice was familiar, and welcome in this situation, if not exactly friendly.

“Cept? What are you doing here?”

“Saving you, it would appear. Follow me. If you must talk, do it as we run!” In my vision-impaired state, I could do nothing but let him lead me by the hoof, running away from the ever-increasing sound of pissed-off griffons.

It was long minutes until I could see well enough that I could keep up with him as we raced along the dusty plains. “Cept, what the hell is going on? Why are you in Gull Gulf?”

His jaw was set firm, and he didn’t look back as we ran. “We have been watching, you and Latvi, both. Our arrangement with him made it necessary.”

“You mean the one where you had Naiara sell me out at the worst possible moment? That arrangement.”

“...Yes. When we saw that he was following you, we followed him.” He didn’t seem particularly ashamed of it. “We did what was necessary. You were a part of the plan, unfortunately. There was no other way, svara.”

“Don’t call me that.” I snapped. “You don’t get to call me that any more. Naiara’s the only zebra who can.”

“...Fine. That does not change the situation, however. We agreed to provide the horn to Latvi in return for his services. They have not been provided, in large part because of your interference.”

“Cry me a river.” I shot back. “YOUR interference almost got me, Undertow AND Naiara killed!”

“That was not our intention.”

“No shit! Well it happened that way, and it is your fault, you and Atesh! What were you thinking?”

He didn’t answer, instead putting on an extra burst of speed. “Hurry, they will follow us.”

I sped up to match. “Nuh-uh. You tell me right now. What the hell did you expect was gonna happen when you sent Naiara into that situation?”

The sound of gunfire echoed behind us. I risked a glance back and saw flashes. “They’re coming!”

Again, he refused to stop or even look back. “My clan will drive them back. They will not reach us.”

“What about Latvi? He’s still back there.” I didn’t care about his safety. The little weasel could poke his head above the clouds and get shot up by the Enclave for all I cared, but he was with McCoy. Little bastard’s probably gonna use him to get control of MY Raiders. I still have his horn too, so he’ll be coming after me at some point.

“You will have to speak with Atesh about that. Come.” He slowed down level with me, sticking close. It was clear that it wasn’t a request.

“I do want a word or two with Atesh, so I’ll come with you. We’re not done though, you and I, not by a long shot.” Cept and Atesh would not find me the same person they met last time. I would make sure of that.

Cept’s only response was two words, muttered under his breath.

“Mua leija.”

~~~~~~

No level gain.

~~~~~~

Author's Notes:

As always, a big thank you to KKat, Y1, Auramane, Cascadejackal (he did the original cover art, which is still on the Fallout Equestria wiki), Void Heart (he did the new cover art), Shunketsunoponi and you, the readers. Please read and comment, and pass the word along if you like the story. Finally, because I find it a really funny coincidence to have another fic with a Stable 61 that’s set in Equestrian Canada, go read Fallout Equestria: Pure Hearts.

That’s all for now, folks. Please keep reading, commenting, and spreading the word on Old Souls. I really appreciate your feedback.