Omega

by Goldenwing

First published 4th of January, 2013

"You're not in Equestria anymore, pony. Everything out here will eat you alive, and everyone looks out for themselves first. They'll kill you without a thought, and you'd better be ready to fight back."

Dissero is just a simple merchant unicorn, leading his four friends around Equestria on the same boring, routine routes, making the same trades, scratching out a living in his airship and living as pitifully close as he can to his dreams. But all it took was one mistake, and now he and his friends are stuck outside Equestria, in the cruel and unknown Outer World, with the most dangerous crimelord known to ponykind hot on his tail and nothing but his crew and the ship they've stolen to keep them alive.

This story has been cancelled in this form. You can find the reboot here!

Ch. 1: A Little Adventure

Equestria.

Equestria is a big place. Vast horizons stretching from one coast to the next, dotted with settlements of pony, griffon, and half a dozen other species in climates of every kind. The map on my wall did its best to explain the majesty of the land, but nothing really ever compared to traveling it myself. Never has.

The map was old, the paper worn to a brown hue from age and trauma. Notes and sketches were crammed into all the empty spaces that could be found, and even more filled the sheets of paper pinned to its surface. I had stared at and labored over the map for pretty much all of my adult life. I could tell you the best way to get from any city to the next, including landmarks and shortcuts, plus all the towns nearby it important to my trade. I made my bits buying low and selling high, taking advantage of any difference in supply and demand that I could find.

The sunlight filtering through the window suddenly moved from the map to my face in a way that was very, very, bright and antagonizing. How does such a filthy glass let so much light through when I don’t want it? Whenever I actually needed it, it was never there.

What was I just doing…? I sighed inwardly. I get lost in maps too easy.

“No! I’m telling you, the problem isn’t the delivery system! It’s the electrolysis matrix!”

Nothing like the sound of arguing mares to clear the morning fog. I remembered what I was doing: checking over my logs to make sure everything was still in order. It was unlikely that anything had changed since last night, but it never hurt to be safe. It would bother me all day if I didn’t check it, anyways.

“By Celestia’s sparkly mane, you’re gonna kill us all! Just let me look at- “ A loud slam cut through the ship.

“I don’t have time for your foalish ideas! Do you have any grasp of how difficult it is to maintain this rusty old engine!? Your idiotic meddling doesn’t help!”

“Maybe if we didn’t have you working on it, it wouldn’t break down so friggin’ much!” A frustrated equine scream followed by a worrying metallic groan emerged from the ship, and I prayed that nothing too expensive had been broken.

We were traveling to Manehattan with my share of the latest harvest of Ponyville zapapples. They were regularly one of my most lucrative runs, even with my admittedly small hold in the market.

“What do you mean ‘we’? It’s my job to maintain the engine! I’m the cloudgineer! I’m the one who understands how this works! You get back to your plumbing or whatever it is you do!”

“You break everything!”

“I break everything!? Go set something on fire and stick your mane in it!”

The sound of a furious tussle leaked through the walls.

My stomach rumbled. Time for breakfast. Pouring over charts does no good if I die of starvation, after all. I glanced at the map one last time before leaving my quarters, entering a combination of a hallway and antechamber. Here, the three quarters, cargo bay, engine room, lounge, and stairway to the navigation floor above all came together. The sounds of conflict continued to leak out of the engine room, while the faint pounding of dubstep drifted down from the navigation floor.

I strolled into the lounge, a wide open room lined with a few sofas, tables, and portholes. A bar on the far side of the room separated it from the kitchen. Behind it stood a noticeably muscular giant of a stallion with a white coat and short-cropped, blonde mane and tail.

“Morning, Cleaver,” I mumbled. I trotted up to the cook. Apparently the mares’ screaming hadn’t completely woken me up yet.

“Hrm? Ah, Kaptain! Good afternoon. Have been up for hours, listening to angry fillies argue.” He spoke with a heavily accented baritone, turning on the stove to heat a pot of what I assumed to be leftover breakfast. “Why have you slept so late?”

I shrugged, glancing out the window idly as I sat at the bar. “I was reading late last night. Some books are hard to put down.”

The sound of angry hooves announced the presence of one of the loud mares from the earlier argument. “That pegasus is impossible! She has no idea how to treat that machine!”

A white unicorn mare stomped her way into the lounge and flopped down on a couch. Her short fiery mane and tail looked more ruffled than usual, and I could feel her anger even from my position across the room.

“Cleaver, food!” she commanded.

Cleaver made a small grunt as he shuffled about his kitchen. “Little pony should calm head. Stormslider knows her job. She is best trained member of crew.”

“Best formally trained, maybe!” she shot back. “That machine is suffering because of her. She has no idea how to treat it!” She pulled a lighter out and lit it with a burst of magic, holding the tiny flame close.

I turned to face her. “Calm down, Ember. She has only the best intentions for our engine. She’s hardly going to break the one thing keeping us up here.”

“How can I be calm when she’s in there tormenting that machine?” Ember said heatedly. The engine revved up for a few brief moments, as if agreeing with her.

Cleaver served me a bowl of tomato and bread soup from the pot, and brought Ember a fluffy omelet.

“Eggs again? Really?” She sighed.

“Enjoy meal. Calm yourself. You are no good to ship in distress,” Cleaver said. He returned to his kitchen and the bottle of vodka on the counter, reaching down to take a quick sip. Ember grumbled something under her breath.

“Thanks, Cleaver. I’m going to go check things with Silver,” I said. He pushed a small plate of vegetables towards me, and I levitated it to my side before trotting back to the antechamber.

The faint pounding of the dubstep was dramatically louder once I reached the navigation floor. Despite being played from the other side of the door which led to the cockpit, the music seemed to fill the entire level with an audible fog, blurring my vision. My pilot enjoyed playing dubstep when he flew, and he played it loud.

One couldn’t truly appreciate the volume until they opened the door.

Despite years of experience to temper my ears, entering the cockpit remained an exercise in incredible willpower. The vibrations in the air were so intense that passing over the threshold was like physically penetrating a wall of bubble wrap.

The cockpit was a room that seemed designed to confuse anypony inside as quickly as possible. Various levers, chains, pulleys, and pedals were crammed into the small space with no discernible pattern. The walls and dashboard were decorated with switches and gauges so worn that any identifying colors they might have had were long faded, and any labels that may have indicated their purposes were gone as well. In the center of the room, sitting before the bubble of glass at the front of the ship, Silver Feather bobbed his head to the beat. His tall silver mane, dark orange coat, and long tail bobbed and swayed in perfect tandem with the music as he eyed the instruments before him.

With some quick magic, I turned off the stereo in the corner that was so busily dropping the bass. Silver jumped, his hooves losing their beat, and flicked his head towards me in such a way that the goggles he had been wearing flew up his forehead and lodged themselves comfortably in his mane.

“Oh, Dissy. Hey there.” He glanced at the stereo to ensure it was still there.

It should be noted that Dissy is not my name. Dissero is. It’s just a familiar he picked up from my parents. Normally I wouldn’t respond to it, but as a longtime foalhood friend, I let him slide.

“Morning, Silver. How are we doing?” I asked him. My ears were still ringing, but I was used to the sensation.

“You mean afternoon, right? S’all good, though… we seem to be losing some engine output. I presume our mechanically minded fillies were debating on the best course of action, yeah?” The pegasus grinned, leaning to one side to eye an abstractly placed gauge.

“Yeah. Stormslider won, I think.”

“As she should. It’s her job, after all. She does it well, despite the trouble. Mind bringin’ me a snack? I haven’t eaten since soup this morning, and sitting here staring at the walls is hard work.”

“Beat you to it,” I said, floating the plate I had brought to him. He grabbed it with a wing and tucked it neatly by his shoulder.

“Thank our fine chef for me.” He stuck his snout into the plate. As I left, he flicked his music back on with his tail.

I’ve always disliked moments like this…

The vast majority of my crew’s time was spent lounging. All we really had to do was fly, after all. We had an engineer, Stormslider, but all she ever had to do was fix the engine. Once it was in working condition, she wasn’t really needed unless a particular burst of speed was required. Bursts of speed aren’t really high in demand in the trading business, and I wasn’t trying to set a world record or anything like that. Ember worked on other myriad machines and devices, but she also had just a maintenance role unless she was tinkering with something in her free time.

Cleaver’s only real job was to cook and save us the hassle of arguing over who was the worst chef. When he wasn’t preparing some massive meal, he relaxed and drank his vodka. As for myself, I walked around and gave them orders, but if nobody had any jobs to do I had no orders to give. Even Silver Feather had told me that ninety percent of his job as a pilot is staring at gauges.

We were all in our usual positions. Ember was brooding over her lighter and some complex geometric puzzle in one corner, deep in thought. I lay on a couch next to a window, reading some historical fiction set in the Lunar Wars. Cleaver relaxed at the bar, lazily humming some Stalliongrad folk tune to himself as he sipped from his bottle.

Stormslider was sitting in the opposite corner from Ember. She had her eyes closed, with music playing loudly enough through her headphones to serve as entertainment for the whole room. She had deep blue fur, with an unkempt mane and tail made up of a mix of lighter blues and reds. The ruby pendant on her necklace swung back and force as she bobbed her head. Luckily she didn’t listen to annoying music.

What we really need is… some excitement.

I still fondly remembered the days of my venturesome foalhood. Silver Feather and I used to have wild journeys together, only some of which were imaginary. We fought pirates, explored strange new lands, and led the legions of the Princess into battle.

We had become airstallions in the hope of living those adventures for real, but they had always just been pipe dreams. Things didn’t go exactly as planned, either…

Now I was stuck behind a desk, smiling false smiles at falsely smiling faces in an attempt to negotiate an extra bit out of a deal. It was some consolation that I still got to travel Equestria with exotic goods from every province, but it still wasn’t the life I had hoped for as a colt.

Suddenly, an abnormal groan shook the ship. The normal easy swaying motion of a well-piloted airship abruptly transformed into a rough vibration.

Ember and Stormslider immediately perked up, putting away their respective forms of entertainment. I could see each of the rival mares racing to mentally figure out what had gone wrong, who could be blamed for it, and who was going to have the skill to fix it first and best.

“Oy, Dissy!”

I briskly rose off my seat, leaving the book where it had been lying between my hooves. I could finish reading later.

“What happened?” I asked, making my way into the cockpit. A slightly annoyed Silver Feather was busily tapping at a gauge and holding onto a half-turned wheel.

“Well, I can’t say for certain, but my expert opinion says that that piece of manure we welded onto the hull in Canterlot is falling off. It’s bucking up the ship’s aerodynamics. Get one of the mares to fix it, yeah?” he said. “Maybe I’ll take a nap or something. We’ll have to stay hovering till it’s fixed or the hull’s gonna get all ripped up.”

“Ah, horseapples,” I said. “I better go tell them before they kill eachother over who’s to blame.” I could already hear the beginnings of a fight brewing in the lounge. By the time I got downstairs, Ember was searching for the magnetic boots she used to traverse the hull, and both the mares were sporting goggles. When it comes to competition, they sure do dress fast…

Ember approached me expectantly. “Hey, Dissero, where are the mag-boots? I’m going out to check the hull.”

Stormslider stepped in. “She’s the one who put it on last time. I told her, ‘add extra reinforcement to the rear edge,’ but she wouldn’t do it. Let me handle it, I have wings anyways.” The pegasus slid her goggles over her eyes and made for the hatch in the main hallway of the ship, near the cargo bay.

Her fiery competitor jumped in the way. “Look, I told you the first time that extra reinforcement would’ve bucked with the ship and that it was gonna fall of no matter what, remember?” she explained. “Dissero, now would be a great time to show me the mag-boots.”

Silver Feather glided down the staircase. “Fillies, c’mon. Why don’t you both go?” He jabbed a hoof in Stormslider’s direction. “I’m sure that if you defer to our mechanic who’s here to fix the ship, your aid would be greatly appreciated.” The blue pegasus bristled, but said no more. He trotted past the mares, satisfied that the matter was settled.

“Try and be more assertive, yeah?” he whispered to me as he passed.

I let out a tired sigh. “Go on, then, you heard him.” Ember and Stormslider exchanged suspicious glares as they turned to the hatch.

In the kitchen, Cleaver found where his vodka had rolled off to during the shaking and let out a small exclamation of joy.

I stood in the cockpit eyeing the Manehattan skyline, silhouetted by Celestia’s sun as it set on the horizon. The city was situated on the Marissippi, which flowed all through Equestria, and also home to one of the few bridges on the river suitable for trade caravans by land. Furthermore, small airships docked there from several local settlements. It was an important stop on my routes, and not just because of the plentiful bits I made off the zapapple trade.

We soon reached the Manehattan Skydock: a tall, thick tower with several aerial piers sticking out on each level like a metallic porcupine, hanging over the nearby port. Beneath it, ponies were hard at work loading and unloading boats, transporting goods between warehouses, and trying to cut the perfect deal in their quest for coin.

With night approaching, we hardly had to wait before one of the few remaining pegasus guides flew up and directed us to an empty pier. Silver eased the ship into position, and more of the local pegasi flew close with ropes ready to moor us to the tower. He turned off his music, flicked his goggles up into his mane with a smooth head motion, and nodded. We were ready to go.

We headed down into the lounge, where the rest of the crew were waiting. Stormslider and Ember both had on their personal saddlebags, and Cleaver waited by the hatch with his vodka in hoof.

“It’s too late to do any trading,” I announced. “Silver and I are going to go renew my license. We’ll be back and locking the door at midnight.”

“I need to go pick some things up. I’ll find a club to hang out at for a few hours before I get back,” Stormslider said. I nodded. She had mentioned something earlier about replacement parts for the engine. She trotted outside.

“I will follow engineer. Perhaps will find trinket to buy as well.” Cleaver took another swig of his vodka and stepped outside. No doubt he thought a crate of vodka to keep him going another week would be the perfect trinket. How the hay is he always so sober?

Ember stood alone, hesitating momentarily as she debated her choices. She was clearly still angry with Stormslider, and I doubted she wanted to roam the crowded city all alone. She turned to me.

“Guess I’ll go with you two, then,” she said.

She followed me and SiIver out of the airship, and we walked across the thick metal pier to the central tower. I looked down on the city, orienting myself with my destination. It never paid to get lost in Manehattan.

I stopped before a small booth jutting out from the tower’s structure. A young, and by the looks of it extremely bored, clerk accepted my license and squinted at it. I felt myself tense as he clicked his pen out and made a scribble on a paper by his side. Yawning, he hoofed the license back and waved us on to the elevator.

After a short ride down to the surface, we emerged into the trade district of Manehattan. I wrinkled my nose as the smell of fish assaulted my nostrils, drifting off the boats in harbor and overpowering any other scent that dared to resist. Warehouses dominated this part of the city, with tired stallions pulling carts filled with goods in and out of them, rushing to complete their jobs before the sun set. A few well-dressed ponies made their ways around the carts, walking as fast as they could without losing the laid-back, friendly air they needed to cut another deal.

I led the way at a brisk pace. Silver Feather followed close behind and Ember brought up the rear, eyeing the road nervously whenever we passed a crowd. We soon put distance between us and the tower, and the traffic began to thin. The buildings became less colorful and more run-down, and the ponies we passed began to lose the shine in their coats.

The sky darkened as we slipped down a dim alleyway, stopping before a shady staircase. A heavy and imposing metal door awaited us at the bottom, spotlighted by the rusty little lamp that hung above it. I raised a hoof and knocked once. The metallic bang echoed up and down the alley as we waited.

The small peephole on the door slid open violently, revealing an annoyed pair of eyes. They glanced over me for a few seconds. They disappeared. A long, intricate series of clicks and bangs sounded from the other side of the door. It swung open slowly.

A heavy and imposing stallion stood on the other side. He didn’t seem very pleased by our presence. He waved us in with the air of a merciful god. As Ember began to cross the threshold, he stepped in her way.

“Who’s she?” he asked. He narrowed her eyes at her as if he had just spotted her kissing his daughter.

I turned. “She’s with me,” I said. Ember stood her ground, glaring at the stallion. Should’ve seen this coming. She hasn’t been here before.

The stallion eyed her suspiciously. He stepped aside, returning to the heavy and imposing pose he liked to take next to the door. Ember trotted inside defiantly, sticking her nose up as she passed him. He closed the door, turning his gaze to take in the rest of the room like it was a blight upon Equestria.

“Thanks, Bite,” Silver said. His comment was ignored with extreme prejudice.

With the conflict solved, I led the way forwards. The room was dim, with most of the light coming from the neon lights that blinked and flashed across the floor, matching the heavy bass beat that shook through it. Ponies gambled in every corner, loudly exclaiming at a fall of the dice or a turn of the cards. A group of stallions in business suits exchanged masked threats over a table as they eyed the dancing crowd that filled the far half of the room distastefully. A circular bar surrounded a series of raised platforms, each one holding a couple pretty mares dancing suggestively, much to the approval of the watching stallions below.

Silver led the way through the crowd, using his wingspan to break a path. Ember stayed close behind him, eyes down, flicking her lighter on and off furiously. We came up to a simple door on the far side of the room, where we were greeted by a pair of reproachful, rugged bouncers.

“We’re here to see Masque,” I said. The two stallions frowned down upon us from atop their muscular necks, opening the door and stepping aside like a pair of carefully sculpted glaciers.

I took the lead as we crossed the threshold, emerging into a simple hallway. The efficient lighting contrasted harshly with the darkness of the club, and only the bass leaking through the wall destroyed what could have been a peaceful silence.

Ember shook herself as the door shut, standing up straight and stepping away from Silver, who she had been practically hugging during the walk through the club. I walked down the hallway, past a door that was busily radiating a squeaky thumping, with my two crewmates behind me.

My ears twitched as I heard the sound of a scuffle further down the hall. Without warning, the drywall exploded outwards. The rubble was quickly followed by a wide-eyed pony who seemed just as surprised by his ejection as we were. Silver fluttered his wings, leaping back just in time to avoid impact.

I looked down awkwardly. The pony looked up painfully.

A tall, muscular stallion lumbered through the doorway, closing it behind him with surprising gentleness. Ignoring us, he stepped past the new hole in the wall, grabbed the groaning pony with a wing, and dragged him away.

“And don’t come back!” shouted a mare with one hoof out the door.

Her accent quickly identified her as a native of Prance, and her expertly coiffed green mane and neatly combed yellow coat hinted at an uncommonly acute sense of fashion. Two contrasting masks, one laughing and the other crying, served as her cutie mark.

Her eyes passed over us, and she immediately switched from angry to welcoming. “Ah, Dissero! What a pleasure to see you!” she said. She extended a hoof to sweep me into her room.

“Hello, Masque,” I said. I allowed myself to be pulled in.

Her apartment was, to say the least, colorful. Costumes, hats, and clothing with enough variety to rival the crowd at the Summer Sun Celebration were strewn all over. Not a single inch of floor was visible through the mess, and the walls weren’t much better off, with the only bare patches being the door and the freshly made hole. A rectangular shape I took to be a bed occupied one corner, buried underneath reds and yellows. Next to the bed, a hideous rainbow blanket was draped over what seemed to be a lamp, if the light filtering through it was to be trusted.

“So I presume you’re here for your new license, dearie?” she asked. She swaggered to the one remotely neat part of the room: a desk covered in little pieces of plastic, glue, scissors, and other crafting supplies.

“Yes.” I eyed a shade of blue that seemed to be developing life. “I won’t be staying long, though. It’s late.”

She smiled. “Yes, I’ve already got it done! It’s around here somewhere,” she sang as if finding small pieces of plastic in an organizational apocalypse was one of her favorite pastimes.

Then again, she probably does end up doing that a lot…

She began trotting around the room, sifting through the upper layer of fabrics. Ember slid up to my ear. “She doesn’t seem like she’d be good at… something like this,” she whispered.

Masquerade’s ears twitched as she turned to Ember, wearing a bright smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Is that so, dearie? I suppose you wouldn’t know. One doesn’t get much recognition as a master of disguise.” A dangerous undertone lay beneath the words, offering a silent threat before it slipped away.

“Why, back when I was still into thieving I once stole a dragon’s hoard by disguising myself as discarded tape! You can only imagine what –“ She suddenly tripped over a stuffed snake, landing headfirst into a giant chicken.

Ember stifled a giggle.

She bounced back to her hooves as if nothing had happened. “And then, I took the money from selling the loot and disguised my vacation home as a peacock! That dragon was searching for years and never found me! Oh! No… maybe? Nope!” She laughed, tossing a few ID cards aside to be lost to ponykind forever. Or at least until she had to find them again.

Ember looked up from the disturbing blue filly doll at her hooves. “You disguised a house as a peacock and yourself as tape? Is that even possible?”

“Of course it is, dear! You just have to start thinking as the box,” she said. “Ooh, I think I know where it is!” She climbed over a fallen showcase and picked up an envelope on the bed-shape, pulling it out from beneath an overturned cash register full of purple socks. “Here we go!”

I levitated the envelope to my side. “Thanks again, Masque.”

“Not a problem, dear! Why, if you had actually gotten a real license, I’d be out of my favorite customer!”

I grinned half-heartedly. “Heh, yeah. I’ll be back after I make some sales tomorrow to chat,” I said. Silver snatched the envelope from my magic and fished out a pilot’s license with his picture on it.

“That’ll be fine, Dissero. I can’t wait to tell you about this time last year I used a cup of tea as an –“ She was interrupted as a pile of ridiculous hats collapsed, burying her alive.

We retraced our steps out through the club. The bouncers frowned as we passed, expressing their divine disapproval at our existence.

Stepping out of the alley, we emerged into an open plaza, surrounded on all sides by rundown buildings and occupied by a pitiful attempt at a park. The few citizens on the streets moved past at a quick canter, eyed greedily by groups of rough-looking ponies huddled together in the moonlight. I nodded to Ember and Silver, briskly heading towards the skyport where ship and safety alike awaited.

Unfortunately, we were intercepted.

As we trotted down a narrow shortcut, a burly stallion stepped out of a side alley and blocked our path. The flutter of wings announced the arrival of two pegasi landing behind us. We were surrounded.

“Horseapples,” Silver hissed, flaring his wings. Ember pulled her lighter out and flicked the fire on. I took a step back, and we formed ourselves into a compact, defensive triangle.

“Hold it!” one of the pegasi called. We froze, each one of us glaring at one of them.

A much smaller pony, his horn barely visible in the dark, emerged from the shadows. He sported a dirty bowtie and old fedora, commanding an aura of respect despite his size. A greedy gleam shone in his eyes.

“Youse merchants?” he asked. I nodded. Hopefully all he’s looking for is bits…

“Mmm.” He looked me over. “I got some cargo I need shipped. Real quiet-like,” he said.

I see where this is going. I prepared myself to refuse. Silver slid his goggles down with a quick nod of his head. Ember’s hooves slid over the pavement.

“It’s good stuff. Need it brought to Harmony City. Why don’tcha be a lil’ neighborly and ship it for me, hrm?” the little unicorn sneered. He smiled with mock friendliness.

“We don’t smuggle,” Ember growled. The unicorn frowned.

“Yeh don’t smuggle, just use false licenses, eh? Strange…” He narrowed his eyes. “Wouldn’t want anypony getting’ wind a’ that, would we now? Doubt they’d hold up to heavy… scrutinization.”

I glared at him. Masque was good, but she couldn’t get my name on the list of licensed captains kept by the Royal Aerial Society. An anonymous tip would make things difficult, at the very least.

I weighed my options. We could probably take them. They only had one pony more than us, and the little unicorn didn’t look dangerous. Still, I wasn’t much of a fighter, and the big stallion in front of me looked tough. Celestia knows if that unicorn has any fighting spells…

“What kind of cargo are we talking about here?” I asked. I had some smuggling experience. One run wouldn’t hurt. If it was a commodity I knew, I could handle it without too much hassle and avoid the fight.

“That don’t matter to you, now. All youse gots to know is it’s light, small, and pays well. There’s a buyer at Harmony City who’ll pay nice, and da customs there won’t even stop you. Just sneak it outta here and don’t get caught on the way there,” he said.

Silver Feather stepped up to my side, bristling. “I dunno about this, Diss. It’s too easy. There’s gotta be a catch.”

I furrowed my brow, deep in thought. Ponies didn’t usually blackmail others to help them make a profit. Silver looked like he was ready to pounce on the big stallion; he had some experience with fighting. I tensed, preparing my words to refuse and my body to fight.

A shadow flew by, barely visible out of the corner of my eye. With a furtive glance up, I saw more pegasi on the rooftops, watching, at the ready in case I resisted. I had no choice.

“Fine, we’ll do it,” I said.

Silver flicked his goggles up, shooting an appalled look to me, while Ember continued to glare. The unicorn smirked confidently, nodding to the pegasi on the rooftops.

I figured we could get it over with quickly and cleanly. Besides, a little adventure never hurt anypony, right?

Author's Notes:

Yay! Rewrites are exciting! It means I get to make a new wave of snarky comments!
Y'know, I didn't realize it until I rewrote this chapter, but there is actually a Mass Effect reference in here. It's pretty obscure, but let's see who picks it up.

Ch. 2: Welcome to Harmony City

I stood in the cargo bay, eyeing the little metal crates before me.

“Don’t open ‘em. Don’t even touch ‘em till you get ta Harmony City. If even da slightest ting is wrong when ye arrive, ye’ll have da law on yer tail.”

I turned, stepping out into the hallway and then the lounge. The music that usually leaked from the navigation floor above was strangely absent, replaced by a loud, persistent banging. I flopped back onto a couch, bending my neck to get a better view of the landscape passing below.

The clop of hoofsteps reached my ears, and I raised my head to see Stormslider approaching. She sat on the couch next to me.

“Brings back memories,” I said.

She nodded. “Don’t worry. We’ll be done with this soon.”

“It’s not all bad. Things have been pretty dull ever since we quit smuggling.” Maybe we’ll get some excitement out of it.

“Smuggling is dangerous. Surely you haven’t forgotten the time we were shot down?”

I frowned. “I think we came out of that better than before. We would’ve had to get rid of that dinky little airship soon anyways.”

“Just be careful we don’t end up outside the law again,” she said. “I didn’t graduate from the Royal Air Academy so I could run from royal patrols with you and Silver.”

I chuckled. “Trust me; I’m trying to avoid that.”

She looked up, eyeing the ceiling above us. The banging had stopped. “What could they possibly be doing up there?”

As if in answer, Silver Feather came tumbling down the stairs with a stupid grin painted on his face. He flicked his goggles up into a mane even more spiky than usual. “Dissy! Storm! We’ve done it!”

Stormslider cocked a brow. “What?”

Ember tripped down from above, falling on Silver clumsily. She lifted a weary head and squinted at her surroundings. “Marvelous,” she whispered.

“Dissy, come look!” Silver beckoned to me with a hoof, pushing Ember off of him with the other. Hesitantly, I approached the staircase. What in Equestria did they do?

Silver flew behind me, pushing his head against my rump and forcing me upwards. Surprised, I barely managed to prevent myself from falling upon landing on the navigation floor. I looked around warily. “What is it?” I called.

“In the cockpit!”

My eyes focused in on the door at the end of the room. Closed.

Ever so cautiously, I stepped up to the door. I paused, searching for defects. Traps. Anything out of the ordinary. I pushed the door open. My jaw dropped.

The cockpit was unoccupied. It looked exactly how it was supposed to, to my suspicious surprise, with the exception of a vastly intricate network of ropes winding through it. They were everywhere, integrating every lever, chain, and somehow even button into their dominion. Ropes took mind-boggling routes in, out, over, and between walls. If the cockpit had been a confusing room before, it was now a puzzle that would challenge even the most analytical of detectives.

“Isn’t it great?” I jumped at the sound of Silver’s voice in my ear.

“Silver, what is this?” I asked.

He giggled like a foal. “It’s an autopilot, Dissy! Ember helped me make an autopilot! Now I can hang out with you guys instead of sitting up here all day!”

“Oh,” I said. “Well, that’s good, I guess.”

“Hah! Good round!”

I flinched as Cleaver yelled his satisfaction, reaching out to pull the pile of chips in the center of the table closer to him. Frowning, I silently pushed my cards forwards. Another loss.

“Let’s go, Storm!” Silver said, grinning. “One more hand before we break.”

Stormslider swept the cards up off the table and shuffling them back into her deck. With the smooth confidence of plentiful practice, she dealt two cards each to Silver, Cleaver, and I.

I squinted down at my cards. King and Ace of magic. A good hand. I pushed a portion of my pitifully small collection of chips forwards to stay in the hand. With a flash of blue fur, the flop slid out onto the table. Seven of magic, Five of magic, Jack of harmony.

I bid a few bits, confident I could get a flush. All I needed was one more magic card. Cleaver frowned, but called anyways. Silver, however, raised, pointedly fixing me with a hard, emotionless stare.

This won’t go well for you, it said. How he managed to put so much message and so little emotion in a stare, especially while wearing goggles, confounded me. I called, and Cleaver folded.

Storm dealt the turn. Five of destiny. Lot of good that does me. I tapped a hoof to symbolize a check. Silver bet five bits. I hesitated, but called nonetheless. Just one more magic card…

Silver let a tiny little smile onto his visage. I ignored it, determined not to let him bluff me out again.

Storm flipped the river onto the table. Nine of magic! A flush! I tried to contain my emotions, pushing ten bits forwards in what I hoped looked like a last ditch bluff. Silver stopped smiling and cocked his head at his cards. He raised me another ten bits. I called, broke out into a wide smile, and slapped my hand onto the table face-up.

“Take that!” I exclaimed. “A flush!” I eyed the huge pot in the middle of the table greedily, already planning my future hands. Leaning against the couch behind me, I looked to my side and grinned at Ember smugly. She raised her eyebrows, quietly nodding towards the table. My eyes followed hers, focusing in on the cards that Silver had silently slid forwards.

A Six and Eight of magic. He had gotten a straight flush on the river. He beat me. Again.

I looked down at the five measly bits that remained before me. They looked so tiny. So insignificant compared to the hoard that blocked my view of Silver. Cleaver and Storm chuckled, exchanging humored glances. Silver offered me an irritating smile.

“Nice try, Dissy,” he said. “but I think you need some more practice.” He got to his hooves and flicked his goggles up. “So how about we take a break, and when we come back we can start betting on coin tosses or something?”

I stayed seated as Silver, Cleaver, and Ember headed for the bar, the stallions chatting enthusiastically about the card game while the mare followed behind quietly. Stormslider collected the cards, neatly arranging them into the deck.

“It surprises me that you’re still so bad at cards,” she said.

I shot an exasperated glare her way. “It’s not that I’m bad. It’s that he’s good.”

She raised a brow, shuffling the deck absentmindedly. “You’ve known him longer than any of us. I imagine he would’ve taught you something by now. I learned how to play at least competently when we were still at the Academy.”

“You never play against him though,” I said.

She grinned slightly. “Yes. I decided that dealing was easier. And more fun than losing all of my bits.”

The rest of the trip passed in much the same way. After losing a sizeable amount of bits at the poker table, I begged Stormslider to take my place and teach me to deal. The games passed remarkably slow as I fumbled to shuffle the cards correctly, but it was better than going broke.

It took us a week to reach Harmony City. I had been relaxing in the lounge, idly levitating a deck of cards over my head, when the city’s major landmark came into view: a massive wall of rolling thunderclouds, stretching up as far as I could see and off into the horizon to either direction, serving as a backdrop to the city itself.

I had heard of the Cloudwall, of course. It was impossible not to, with all the traveling that I did. Still, I had never actually seen it before. I shivered as I took in the behemoth, thinking of the stories. At least two hundred airships had fallen to its might, struck down by lightning storms and ripped apart by harsh winds as they tried in vain to discover what was on the other side. Even here, at Harmony City, where the Wall was weakened enough by age for the most skilled pilots to fly through, a dozen wrecks could still be seen lying under the clouds. It was too dangerous to retrieve them. Those who died amongst the storms stayed in them for eternity, their bodies left to the elements.

From what I knew, the Cloudwall had surrounded Equestria as long as anypony remembered. Even Princess Celestia was uncertain about its origins.

Harmony City was situated on the base of a peninsula, jutting out through the Cloudwall. The lack of water weakened the massive storm as it passed over the land, forming a narrow corridor where a talented airship crew could pass through.

If anything could be said of the city, it was that it capitalized on its placement. Its architecture was devoted almost exclusively to trade with the exotic lands outside Equestria. Even from our distance, miles away, towering skydocks could be seen rising up to touch the clouds, each one surrounded by a swarm of airships waiting for their turn to dock.

As we came closer, I began to pick out more detail. The city was practically bursting at the seams, with a plethora of new buildings halfway-built along its edges, all vying to get a share of the profits. Abundant skydocks gave every district the ability to trade directly with the aerial merchants that filled the sky. The three roads leading up to the western side of the city, opposite the Cloudwall, seemed to come alive with the colors of all the ponies coming to and fro. The central part of the city, protected by a tall wall, was so darkened by the shadows of the ships above it that it was impossible to pick out any detail.

Pushing myself off the couch I’d been relaxing on, I trotted up to the navigation floor and entered the cockpit.

“We’re here?” I asked.

Silver nodded. “Yeah. I’m gonna park us near one of these smaller skydocks. Hopefully somepony will come out to talk to us.”

After about half an hour of floating near one of the smaller skydocks near the city’s edge, staring awe-struck at the Cloudwall, a pegasus flew out to greet us. A knock sounded on the hatch.

I made my way down to the lounge and into the hallway which connected it to the crew quarters, engine room, and cargo hold. Ember, Cleaver, and Stormslider were already there, waiting in front of the hatch. Clearing my throat, I opened the hatch. A clipboard-wielding pegasus hovered on the other side.

“Wat’cha carryin’?” she asked.

I hesitated, suddenly realizing that I had no experience with the black market in Harmony City, or with how one went about as to announcing the wish to take part in it.

“Uh, stuff. From Manehattan,” I added. Hopefully she knows what I mean.

“What kinda stuff?”

“Y’know. Stuff.” I glanced at Cleaver with a silent plea for help. He knew more about the underground here than I did.

The big stallion lumbered up to the door, almost pushing me aside with his girth. “We are here to deal in local black market,” he stated.

“Ah, okay.” With a flap of her wings, the pegasus alighted inside the ship. She looked to Cleaver expectantly. “Lemme see what’cha got, then.”

“He is Kaptain,” Cleaver said, nodding in my direction. The pegasus raised a brow at me doubtfully, but nonetheless fell in behind me as I led the way to the cargo hold. Flicking on the light, I waved a hoof at the boxes.

“Some guys in Manehattan told us you’d be interested in these,” I said.

She nodded, scribbling a note on her clipboard. “Right. Good. You’re gonna want ta make for the Central Domestic skydock, in the central city.”

“What’s inside these?” I asked. “I’m just curious.”

“Don’t you worry about that. Do what yer told, get yer pay, and get out.” She began to walk out, before stopping and glancing back. “Just gimme half an hour to tell ‘em you’re coming.”

She left, and we waited. Silver set the ship to hover, and we each passed the time trying not to look nervous about our first black market trade in two years. Except Cleaver. He remained implacable.

After the allotted time had passed, we began the approach on the designated skydock, a smaller one just inside the shadow of the main swarm of airships, dwarfed by the titans of architecture that towered above it. I didn’t see any other airships docked on it. Stormslider tapped my shoulder with a wing.

“Silver wants to see you,” she said.

It didn’t take me long to enter the cockpit, unusually devoid of music. The silence was eerie, broken only by the occasional hiss or clank of the airship’s machinery. “What’s up?” I asked.

“I don’t like this,” the pilot said. “Look, some other ships are drifting in around us. Surrounding us. We won’t be able to escape if something goes wrong.”

I squinted through the cockpit glass, picking out the ships forming a vague circle around us, and the shape of the cannons on their sides. “They’re probably just watching for cops.” I hope.

I heard a noise behind me. The rest of the crew had joined us.

As we neared the skydock and details emerged, it began to look more and more dilapidated. Visible rust covered every surface, and some of the piers looked ready to fall off, or even completely gone.

“There’s no way those piers can hold an airship,” Stormslider observed.

“Yeah,” Ember agreed. “That structure hasn’t had maintenance for years.”

“I have bad feeling on this,” Cleaver rumbled.

“Would you all shut up, please?” I hissed. I felt myself beginning to panic. Looking out the cockpit glass, I saw a group of pegasi flying towards us. A chill ran down my spine as I saw the sunlight reflecting off the blades strapped to their feathers. “Ah, horseapples. Get ready for a fight, everypony!”

Cleaver shook his head, reaching for his bottle. “Is no use. Too many to fight. No way to escape.”

Silver turned around, opening his mouth to offer a retort, but was cut off by a determined knocking on the hatch.

“Open up!” a gruff voice commanded.

Ember grabbed me, pushing me back against the wall. “What the buck have you done to us?” she hissed.

Stormslider pulled her off. “Ember, calm down! Now isn’t the time.”

“How about you shut the buck up and come to grips with reality?” Ember shot back. “We’re all gonna die if we don’t do something!”

“You don’t know that! They have no reason to kill us yet!”

“Besides the fact that we know about their operation!?”

“We can work something out!”

“Open the bucking door before I have to open it for you!”

The mares fell silent, cowed by the roaring coming from just outside the hatch.

“I’ll get it,” I said.

Slowly, I stepped down the stairs and stood before the hatch. My crew followed behind me. I flinched at the metallic echo of another barrage of furious pounding. My crew positioned themselves around me. All eyes were on me.

I creaked the hatch open. “Yes?” I asked politely. Like a complete idiot.

The stallion on the other side fixed me with an evil grin. “Welcome to Harmony City,” he said.

And then his hoof slammed into my face, and reality slipped away.

I woke up, lying in a bed and full of pain.

It wasn’t a very comfortable bed, either, which I supposed was a good thing. If I was dead and woke up on a bed it would probably be like sleeping on a cloud, which pegasi always told me was wonderfully soft.

I opened my eyes to the sight of a neglected ceiling, with a few rays of filtered sunlight passing over its numerous chips and holes. A shadow moved at the edge of my vision. I tried to move my neck to get a better view.

Bad move. A wave of nausea overcame me, eliciting a pained moan. I decided to leave physical movement for later.

“Oh, you’re awake!” a gentle mare’s voice said. An earth pony stepped into my limited line of sight, wearing a tired but reassuring smile. She looked exhausted, with a worn magenta coat and a dirtied red mane. “We thought you’d be out longer. You seem like a delicate pony.”

I tried to ask the mare what had happened. Where I was. Where my crew was. But all that came out was another pathetic moan.

“Don’t worry, you’re in good hooves,” she said. “My name is Phoenix Down.”

“What happened?”

“You’ve been tricked, sold into slavery for somepony to make some extra bits,” Phoenix Down answered. She stepped into another room. I heard the sound of running water.

“Where am I?”

“The inner district of Harmony City. You’d better get used to it. You’ll spend the rest of your life here.” She returned with a damp towel on her back. Crouching over the only other patient in the room, she began to clean his wings.

“Who’s that?” I asked.

“Your pilot,” she said.

My heart sunk. I rolled over, fighting off the nausea to get a better look at Silver Feather’s softly breathing body. “How?”

“He tried to fight those pegasi in the air. He fell. I don’t…” she hesitated. “His left wing is bad. I don’t think he’ll ever fly again.”

My body went weak. I fell back, staring up at the holes in the ceiling blindly. A terrible feeling of dread, of disgust, of shame welled up within me.

Because of me, Silver Feather would never fly again. My best friend, who had always been there for me. In a desperate attempt to distract my darkening thoughts, I turned to ask more questions.

“Who are you?”

“You can call me Nix. Lots of ponies get hurt in this place, and I heal the ones that I can. Make them good and ready to work again. Keep them from dying. This is my home.”

“How did I get here?”

“Your crew brought you two.”

Of course. My crew. “How are they?”

“Fine. Physically, at least. I don’t know how they’re dealing with the… change. They should be out working. It’s their first day.”

Oh, Sweet... no. No, don’t think about it. I stared at the ceiling, mind blank, mouth open. A few minutes passed. “How long have I been here?” I asked.

“Just one night.” She walked over to a set of drawn curtains and pulled them open. A sliver of sunlight peeked around the silhouettes of the massive airships hanging in the sky.

“And I’m some kind of slave now?”

“Yes.”

“Any chance of rescue? Escape?”

“I’m afraid not, Dissy. I’ve lived here my whole life. Other ponies have been here longer. Nopony has ever gotten out. We all die in here.”

“How is that- how is that possible?” Surely the Princess, the Royal Guard! Somepony has to know about this!

“The Inner City is a well-kept secret. The Outer City handles all the trade with Equestria. Nopony knows the truth.”

Just then, I came to the full realization of the sheer weight of my mistake. My crew, the ponies that had become my family, that I’d been closer to than anypony else for years, were now slaves. And it was all my fault.

Silver would never fly again, by airship or wing. Stormslider would probably never get to tinker with the cloud engines she loved. Ember and Cleaver might be lucky enough to end up working as mechanics or cooks, but never as anything more than a slave to another’s wishes.

What must they think of me right now? I had just practically thrown their lives away. Destroyed their dreams. Realized their fears. In a world where everypony was happy, everypony fulfilled their destinies, and everypony got along, I had managed to find the one city that enslaved ponies and tossed them into it.

I should’ve fought, back in that alley in Manehattan. Ember was ready. Silver was ready. I was the only one that wanted to avoid a conflict. Even if they had gotten me, Silver could’ve flown away, and Ember was never an easy mare to contain. They would have been free.

I had been selfish, afraid for my own hide when it was theirs I should’ve been looking out for. Why did I try to take a shortcut? Was the ten minutes it would’ve saved worth all this? I could’ve waited for daytime before I went to see Masquerade.

Rage boiled within me. A terrible, all-consuming rage at the world that would do this to my friends. At myself, for letting it happen. Where was Princess Celestia? How could she let this happen?

I raised a hoof, punching the wall by my side as hard as I could.

“Buck!” I screamed. The wall shook from the impact. My body trembled with emotion. It wasn’t enough. I needed to shout my fury out at the world, to let all the emotion out with a barrage of violence, but I was too weak.

“Hey, stop that!” Phoenix Down ordered. She tossed a sharp stare my way.

Slowly, I lowered my hoof to reveal a new crack in the wall. A sudden exhaustion washed over me. I barely had the energy to speak anymore.

“How do you know my name?” I didn’t remember telling her. And if I had, I wouldn’t have given her my pet name.

“Your pilot told me, when the rest of your crew brought you two in. He was delirious, but awake.”

“Hmm. Okay.” I returned my gaze to the ceiling, examining its pockmarked surface absent-mindedly. “Tell me more about this place.” I hadn’t lost all hope yet. I couldn’t lose hope yet. Maybe we can still get out.

“Many years ago, an earth pony named Robber Baron took control of the city.” She rinsed the towel in a bowl of water. “Nopony knows exactly how he did it, but it’s likely that he started off as just another merchant, and used gold and underworld connections to either buy or replace every official that resisted him. He built the Inner Wall, and turned the Inner City into his own personal work force.”

“Why doesn’t the rest of the city do something about it? How has nopony found out about this yet?” I asked.

“It’s a well-kept secret. Outer City ponies think the Inner City is a glorious metropolis, where only the richest tradesponies are allowed. They even throw parties, whenever one of them is selected for the ‘privilege’ of joining us.”

“And the Princesses? Don’t they ever visit?”

She shook her head. “No. In all my life, I’ve never seen them anywhere but a poster.”

“What about the ponies in here?”

“The Baron is cruel, Dissy. He’ll freely kill you if you disobey him. And those are the lucky ones.”

I lay back down and closed my eyes. A life of servitude? Great. My crew was to spend the rest of their lives in this dark corner of Equestria, slaving their health away in the literal shadows of the world’s wealthy.

My ears twitched as the door opened, and Ember stepped through.

I shrunk away from her angry glare. The fire in her eyes was dampened only be the sweat soaking her coat. With an angry flick of her tail, she turned to talk to Nix.

“How’re they?” she asked.

“Dissy should be fine,” Nix answered. “Silver Feather needs more time.”

“Great. C’mon then, captain.”

I climbed to my hooves and fell in behind her as she stepped back into the hall. “Where are we going?”

“I’m showing you to your room.”

She began to walk, half-heartedly stomping her hooves like a mare that was too tired to act as angry as she wanted to. We ascended six flights of stairs in absolute silence, with nothing but her fury to fill the void.

“Ember, I- “

“Shut up.”

I closed my mouth. She was angry enough as it was. I didn’t want to provoke her, lest she turn around and try to set me on fire.

She was practically shaking when she led me down another hallway, past simple unlabeled doors draped in shadow. Our hooves clopped against the wooden floor, lit only by moonlight leaking through the single window at the end of the hall. Suddenly, she stopped.

I stopped behind her, confused. She showed no sign as to whether this was my room, or hers, or if she was just too tired to walk anymore or she just wanted to talk. A few silent moments passed.

“Ember,” I began.

With a sudden whirl of movement, she twisted around and bucked the door, hard. It broke straight off its hinges, collapsing inwards to bang against the floor loudly.

“Save it,” she said. “Enjoy your room.”

She took a dozen more steps down the hall, opened a door two rooms down from me, and stepped through.

Standing there, I had never before felt so ashamed. I’d known she would be angry, but that hadn’t made it any easier. Will the rest of my crew be like that? Silver Feather?

I jumped as a wizened old chuckling sounded from behind me. Twisting around, I was treated to the sight of an aged stallion, pulling at his pipe as he sat in the wooden chair placed up against the wall.

“Mare problems, eh?” he croaked.

Wordlessly, I turned to face my empty doorway.

Stepping over the threshold into my prison, I levitated the door back into position.

Author's Notes:

I couldn't really think of anything snarky to put here, and when I went to copypasta the old Author's Note from this chapter, I realized that it sucked.

So...
Uhm...

Come here often?

Ch. 3: Necessities

“Good morning, sir.”

Robber Baron turned around, pulling the cup of tea from his lips as he greeted the newcomer. “Ah, good morning.”

Pen Knife bowed ceremoniously, the fire in the hearth casting his flickering shadow over the varied collection of priceless furniture in the room. Sofas made from fabrics that only a select few Equestrians even knew existed, paintings of vistas thousands of miles away, and display cases containing strange technologies Equestria had not yet discovered decorated the room. It could be said with certainty that, out of every room in all of Equestria, Robber Baron’s personal lounge was more exotic and foreign than any other. The only thing in it that could be called Equestrian was the very pony who owned it.

Baron took a final sip of his tea. He set the cup down regretfully, wishing he could’ve had just a few moments longer to enjoy the taste. But alas, such is the life of the richest pony in Equestria. He smirked.

“Okay then, Pen, what’ve you got for me?” he asked. Rising from his seat, he walked past the visiting unicorn and began out the door.

Pen Knife followed behind. “Would you like the items in need of your attention first, sir? Or the general reports?”

Baron mulled over the decision briefly as he walked. “General reports.”

The aide nodded, levitating a sheaf of papers out of the folder on his back. “Very well then, sir.” He cleared his throat. “The shipyards report that the prototype chassis was recently finished, and they will be sending it out for test runs shortly.”

Baron smiled, ignoring the sights of the city as he walked past a window. They had gotten old after the first decade. “Excellent. How long until it will be ready for shipping?”

“A few months, sir.”

“Good. Carry on.”

Pen Knife adjusted his glasses. “Reports show that our recent gem deal with the Jackal is proving to be extremely lucrative. Besides the increase in gold flow, the Jackal himself is also quite pleased with the trade.”

“Good. Invest half of the new income into public relations. Take a third and put it towards the politicians. Save the rest.”

“Very well, sir.” The conversation stalled momentarily as Pen scribbled something on the clipboard floating by his side. “Also, sir, it seems that the rebels raided one of our warehouses last night.”

Robber Baron arched a brow. “What did they take?”

“Moonstone, sir.”

Baron came to an abrupt halt, nearly causing Pen Knife to bump into him. He twisted his neck, a dangerous look in his eyes as he turned to face the other pony. “How much?”

“A whole shipment, sir.”

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and counted to ten. “An entire shipment?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Have we reacquired it yet?”

“No, sir.”

“You know how I hate wasting money, Pen.”

“Yes, sir.”

Baron returned his eyes forwards, looking down upon his city. There was an entire shipment of moonstone hiding down there, out of its rightful place. And it was expensive. It required contacts amongst the Moon Princess’s highest lieutenants, a daring smuggler to pull it out from under her nose, and a skilled moonsmith to put to use without her knowledge. Such a theft was a massive financial loss.

And if there was anything that the Baron hated in this world, it was an investment that didn’t return.

“Arrange an execution, Pen. Do we have any rebel prisoners?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Two of them, and their families. If you can’t find a family, pick another one,” Baron said.

He walked away without another word. The only sound was the scribbling of pen upon clipboard.

Nobody steals from Robber Baron.

“You’ve ruined my life.”

“There are some acts which cannot be forgiven.”

“This is all your fault!”

My eyes shot open as I was jolted awake, second-hoof sunlight dripping in through the curtained hole in the wall trying to impersonate a window. I heard a dulled wooden knocking, followed by shouting, somewhere in the hall outside my door. I lay in bed for a few more moments, my mind blissfully blank.

A sharp knock brought me back to the present. I rolled over in the bed, just in time to see my precariously balanced door slam into the floor.

I squinted up at the muscular indigo earth pony that stepped over it. His lip curled as he caught sight of me.

“You!” he shouted. “Up! Foundry duty starts early, and I won’t have my shift late for some sulking piece of first-day shit!”

I returned my gaze to the window, blearily trying to evaluate what time it was. I was so tired. Everything was happening so fast.

The bed shook with the impact of a sudden kick from the stallion, knocking both me and the mattress down to the ground.

“Up!”

Buck you.

I remained on the ground, silently resisting.

“Ugh, not this shit again,” I heard him mutter. I felt a sharp pressure on my neck as he pulled me up with his mouth. My hooves scrabbled over the floor as I fought to regain my balance.

“Work starts at dawn, six days a week! You will return to your lodging at sunset! You will call me Boss! You will report to Foundry Two every damned morning or I will personally drag you out into the street and whip your flank! Now go!” He punctuated the order with a heavy stomp.

To my embarrassment, the stomp startled me into stumbling forwards. I glared at him as I walked out into the hall, meeting his stern gaze with as much defiance as I could muster.

Several other ponies were making their way up the hall, towards the staircase. They all looked just as exhausted as I was. Their coats were dull and their eyes empty, in a way that I had never seen before amongst the happy, pastel-colored ponies of Equestria.

Boss shoved me from behind, sending me stumbling forwards. I caught myself on the opposite wall and, resisting the urge to turn and try to tackle the larger pony, fell in with the others.

I was swept downstairs and out into the street by the ponies around me, where we all joined a large crowd gathering in front of the building. Squinting upwards, I got my first look at my new home. It was a plain construct: a brick-and-mortar building with curtained holes marking each room. A simple white “12R” was painted on it, just above the door.

“Move!”

The crowd lurched forwards, spurred onwards by the command. Together we shuffled forth through the streets of the Inner City. The simple residential buildings around us were soon replaced with the architecture of industry: steel mills, ironworks, foundries, and manufacturing plants. Smaller groups of ponies broke off from the main crowd as we passed them, filtering into their respective workplaces.

I looked up, and was treated to a sight unlike any I had seen before. A dozen massive skydocks towered above me, each behemoth connected to its neighbors by sturdy steel bridges. The sky was almost completely blocked out by the fleet of trade ships floating above the city; what little light reached the Inner City itself was forced to slip between the ships, putting the district under a state of perpetual twilight.

As I returned my gaze forwards, I noticed guard towers built around the path. Each one held a pair of ponies within, their faces hidden by grim, dark suits of armor. I shivered as one of them gazed down on me. There was something inexplicably… unnatural about them.

“Halt!”

I almost bumped into the mare in front of me as the crowd shuffled to a stop. Glancing around, I suddenly realized that most of the crowd we had begun with was gone; only about thirty ponies remained.

Before us was a large brick-and-mortar building. A pair of tall smokestacks poked out of its roof, identifying it to be of industrial purpose. I stood up to my full height, straining to see the words painted on its front over the shoulders of the pony in front of me.

“Foundry Two,” I read aloud.

The line advanced quickly, and I soon found myself standing before Boss, frowning at me through the glass of the booth he occupied.

“Name?”

“Dissero.”

He made a fierce scribble upon something out of my view. “Race?”

I narrowed my eyes at him. Can’t he figure it out himself? “Unicorn…”

Another scribble. “Previous occupation?”

“Merchant.”

One last, vigorous scribble. I began to doubt the legibility of his writing. “Step aside and wait.”

I complied, removing myself from the line to allow another stallion to advance. He gave his name, waited while Boss marked something on his paper, and then continued onwards, around a corner and into the depths of Foundry Two.

I noticed another pony standing by my side. He had an inky black coat, and was drawn so far into himself, huddled against the rough wall behind us, that I almost didn’t notice his wings. He glanced up at me shyly, looking away when he realized I saw him.

“You new here?” I asked.

He nodded. He looked young, like a colt fresh out of the home. We were both relatively small compared to the large, built-up ponies that lived here, but he was even scrawnier than I was. An image of a paintbrush trailed by stars adorned his flank.

“My name’s Dissero,” I said.

“Moon Dream,” he replied.

I looked around. The line was almost gone. “How’d you end up here?”

“I came to draw the airships,” he said. “I got closer than I wanted.”

Boss’s harsh voice cut through the air. “You two, over here!”

The line was gone, leaving only Boss, now outside the booth, tapping a hoof impatiently. I stepped forwards, and Moon Dream followed nervously behind.

“Welcome to Foundry Two!” he barked. “You will be working with the furnaces! Come with me!”

Is the constant yelling really necessary? He marched down the hallway, and we followed into the central structure of the foundry. It was dark inside, with narrow slits supplying sparse daylight. Large casts were stacked against one wall, and giant iron cauldrons hung suspended from the roof, slowly lumbering around the room as a few ponies labored over the pulleys attached to them. Two large doors on the other side of the building rumbled open as I followed Boss, revealing a pair of massive pony-drawn carriages, the stallions pulling them straining against their yokes.

Boss led us down a narrow flight of stairs tucked into a corner. We emerged in a much more compact room, somewhere beneath the main one. Eight brick furnaces were aligned in two columns of side-by-side pairs, with two ponies waiting expectantly beside each pair.

Boss stopped besides an unoccupied pair. “You two will be operating these furnaces!” he explained, still shouting. He pointed to me. “You will supply each one with coal!” His hoof turned on Moon Dream. “You will supply them with air!”

He narrowed his eyes, glancing over us one last time before marching back to the stairs. He shot a look over his shoulder, a snarl already prepared for the rest of the room.

“Get to work!” he roared.

I jumped at a sudden bang by my side. A chute in the wall I hadn’t noticed before had slammed open, dumping a pile of coal onto the floor.

Gingerly levitating a piece to look at it closer, I suddenly met eyes with Moon Dream. I saw my own misery reflected back at me. He opened his mouth to mumble something.

“I suppose we should get started.”

The sharp shriek of the whistle rang in my ears.

The hard stone floor rose up to meet me. I lay there, drenched in sweat, and vaguely aware of Moon Dream collapsing by my side. My magic sputtered and died in much the same way that my body was trying to. A few pieces of dropped coal rained upon my coat, adding to the already thick layer of coal dust on it.

I stared straight forwards, panting, and cherished the next few seconds of peace. My ears registered the sound of hooves clopping past. How can they still be standing?

A shadow cast itself over me. With a gargantuan effort, I rolled over and looked up, to be rewarded with the sight of Boss grinning down at me.

“Hard work, eh, newbies?”

If I hadn’t been so exhausted I would’ve frowned. For a moment, I thought I’d heard a distant second cousin of sympathy.

“Take tomorrow off. You’ll be working every other day until you can manage two days without dying. You’ll get used to it,” he told us. “If there’s one good thing about foundry work, it’s that it makes you hard.”

The journey home was almost as hard as the work itself. The sun had both risen and set during my time in the foundry, and my tired hooves stumbled over every bump in the path as I dragged myself back to my building. Moon Dream staggered next to me. During the day we had determined that his room was just down the hall from my own.

By the time we reached our rooms, we were too tired for any kind of real goodbye. We exchanged half-dead glances of acknowledgement. He opened his door and stepped through.

I stepped over my door and collapsed into bed, not even bothering to levitate it into place.

Oh, sweet.... damn. My whole body ached like it had never ached before. Even my horn ached. I couldn’t even levitate my sad excuse for a blanket off of me without summoning a massive migraine all too reminiscent of being punched in the face.

Maybe... yeah. No magic for today.

I stumbled out of my room to find the building mostly deserted. Everypony must be out working. I spied the old pegasus that had laughed at me when Ember bucked my door down, sitting in his chair and smoking a pipe.

The old pegasus looked up and cracked a toothy smile my way. “I see Sword Breaker has elected to give you a day off,” he laughed. “Hard first day?”

I nodded uncertainly. Who’s this guy? “Why aren’t you out with the others?”

“Hah! Work, an old pony like me!” he exclaimed. “I’d break my back out in that foundry. Sword Breaker may be tough, but he cares. He’s just as much a slave as the rest of us.” He winked at me as he said the last few words, taking a long pull at his pipe.

“Who’s Sword Breaker?” I asked.

“Oh, well he probably introduced himself to you as ‘Boss.’ He likes that kind of thing.”

He released a puff of smoke, leaning back contentedly. A shaft of sunlight lit up his face, revealing a veritable army of wrinkles and spots.

“You’re the oldest pony I’ve seen in this place so far,” I said.

“And probably the oldest you’ll ever see, until the day I die!” He chuckled. That’s starting to get on my nerves.

“Why doesn’t anypony make you work? I didn’t think the Baron was the kind of pony to allow retirement.”

“He’s not, boy. The good Baron would never let a pony rest as long as his hoof can still be raised, and even then he finds a use for us.” He smiled to himself. “But when you’ve survived here as long as I have, you find ways.”

I nodded. “Suppose I’ll go look around then.” I began to make my way down the hall.

A cane flashed out, slapping me on the knee as I tried to pass him. “Ow!” Where the hay did he get a cane?

“Now listen here, son. I’ve heard about you and your crew. Unfortunate business, but don’t you worry: they’ll come around. Friends are hard to find here, and sometimes harder to separate. What’s your name again?”

“Dissero.” I rubbed my knee with my other leg. I really don’t need ancients beating me with sticks right now.

“Ah, yes. Dissy! I remember now.” He chuckled again. “My memory is not what it once was.”

Remember? I had never told him my name before in the first place, let alone the pet name Dissy and my parents used. The old stallion looked behind me and smiled. “Ah, Moon Dream. I see you too have been graced with a free day.”

“Yes, sir,” Moon Dream said. He stepped up to my side.

“Always sad to see a young pony like yourself caught up in this hell.” The old stallion released a series of hacking coughs before taking another pull at his pipe.

“Y’know, that’s not very healthy, sir,” the younger pegasus said.

“Bah, don’t worry about me. I would’ve been dead years ago if it wasn’t for some lucky placement.” He winked at us, and shifted so we could see his cutie mark: a glowing hot ingot. “I have a talent for metal work, you see. Kept me alive longer than anypony else in the foundries. I’ve lived through generations here, seen many of these skydocks being built. A few years off my life won’t hurt. Oh, pardon my manners!” He took another pull on his pipe. “M’name’s Old Ironhide.”

“Pleased to meet you,” I said. Moon Dream murmured agreement.

“Hey, where is Nix’s room?” I asked. Old Ironhide chuckled.

“It’s not too hard. You go down to the second floor, and her room is the second door on the right as you leave the stairwell,” he said.

I excused myself, leaving the two pegasi to talk amongst themselves. I followed Ironhide’s directions to a nondescript door on the second floor and knocked lightly.

“Come in!” Nix called. I entered to find her tending to Silver Feather’s hurt wing. The pegasus was awake, and his face scrunched up in pain. He bit down on the towel in his mouth as Nix set the broken bone in his wing and tied it in place with bandages and tape.

Silver spat out the towel. “By Celestia, that hurts!” he hissed. “And itches!” he added, rolling his back.

“Stop that, and try not to scratch,” Nix ordered. “Actually, you’d better not move your left foreleg much at all,” she said after a moment’s thought, easing him back into a lying down position on his bed.

Nix looked up to see who her visitor was. “Oh, hello Dissy,” she said. “Silver Feather is well enough to talk now, as you can see. I’ll be right back.” She got up and walked into the adjoining room, leaving me alone to face my best friend.

Silver fixed me with a hard look, similar to the kind he‘d used on me at the poker table. I approached him meekly, trying to figure out how to apologize, already anticipating his rejection.

“Silver,” I started, but he cut me off with a wave of his hoof. Here it comes. I was about to lose my best friend.

“Save it,” he said. I was doing a lot of apology saving recently, it seemed. He stared at me for a full minute, and then he said, “I already got my revenge.”

I cocked my head, unsure if I should be happy or depressed. What?

Suddenly, he broke into an evil, playful grin. “I was conscious as I was being brought here...” he started, “and I made sure that everypony thought your name was Dissy.”

“W-what?” I had been expecting anger. Sadness, scorn, contempt. This was literal foal’s play.

I gathered myself together enough to smile. “Thanks.”

I sat by his side, and spent the rest of the morning there. Nix, Silver, and I talked about whatever came to mind, when she wasn’t tending to him or the one other, unconscious patient in the room. Every now and then she asked for my assistance, and I gave it freely. It was my only way to repay her.

Eventually, I dozed off. Despite last night’s sleep, I was still exhausted, and Nix’s room was full of unused beds.

I was roused by the sound of heavy hoofbeats out in the hall. Nix came out of the side room to eye the door, ears twitching curiously. Silver was in the midst of a deep, herb-assisted slumber.

Suddenly, the door burst open.

Three ponies rushed in, carrying the moaning form of a fourth between them. “Phoenix Down!” one of them called.

Nix rushed to the corner of the room where her satchel was placed. “Place him on the table! Gently!”

The ponies cleared a space on the wide metal table that dominated the center of the room and placed their companion upon it. They all wore thick, dirty clothes and caps. One of them had a strange device slung about his neck, vaguely stick-shaped and covered with strange runes. “He’s been shot!”

“What happened? Give me some space.” Nix brushed the others away as she bent over the moaning body. Two of the dirty ponies went to watch the windows, while the one with the rune-covered thing stayed near the table.

Nix beckoned to me with a flick of her tail. I leapt to my hooves. Grabbing a pair of scissors in my magic, I carefully cut away his clothes. I wrinkled my nose in disgust. The wound was bleeding badly, and the fur around it was matted with dirt. Nix grabbed a damp towel and began to gently clean the filth.

“We were smuggling supplies when the Baron’s ponies ambushed us. We had a few casualties, and most of us escaped, but there’re some too weak to take back. We need you to care for this one until he’s good enough to make it home,” the pony with the rune-covered device said. I gave the wounded pony something to bite as Nix poured cheap alcohol over the wound, eliciting a muffled scream.

“I’ll care for him. You’d best go before you’re found here,” Nix said authoritatively. “We don’t want anypony else hurt.”

The two near the windows pulled back, filing out into the hallway. The third followed after them, stopping in the doorway to speak. “We’ll send someone to check him every Sunday.” Then he was gone, as suddenly as he appeared.

“Dissy, hold him down,” Nix ordered. She reached for a pair of tongs, and I put my weight down on the pony’s chest. He moaned in agony as Nix reached into the wound with the tongs, biting the towel so hard I thought he might pop a vein, and passed out.

The tongs came out red, with a bloodied stone sphere covered in runes between its fingers. Nix dropped it into a nearby tin.

“What’s that?” I asked.

“It’s a bullet, Dissero,” Nix said as she continued to remove shrapnel from the wound. “The Baron’s ponies shoot them out of rune guns. They’re kinda like hoof cannons. One of the ponies that was in here had one.”

“How do they work?”

“Ancient lunar magic, from the Nightmare Wars. We don’t know much about it, as the Baron keeps it a closely guarded secret. What we do know is that unicorns can store their magic in runes written on moonstone, to be released with command words from other ponies. The Baron knows somepony real high up who gets him the moonstone.”

“And who were those ponies?”

“They were rebels. Surely you didn’t think that the Baron could be running Harmony City like this for so long without some kind of resistance?”

Huh. “Are they recruiting?”

Nix shot me an alarmed look. “Surely you aren’t thinking of joining? Rebels die every day, Dissero. If you think life under the Baron is hard, you can’t imagine life against him.”

“I can’t just sit by and let him own me,” I pushed.

She glared at me. “Nopony lives long as a rebel, they all die eventually. If you join them, your fate will be no different.” She turned back to her work, looking away from me. “If you truly want to throw your life away, then feel free to sign up.”

“How?”

She shook her head. “I’m not telling you how to kill yourself. I’m sure if you walk around outside they’ll run into you eventually.”

Wow, it’s dark out here.

I walked up to another alley, peering down it curiously. The sun was setting now, and with the stars blocked by the airships above, only the sunlight that reflected off the taller buildings reached the surface.

Where are they?

I squinted, straining to pierce the darkness. Nothing. Come on, did you really think you could just walk out and find rebels in one night?

My ears twitched at a scrabbling sound to my left. I turned, just in time to be knocked over by something that ran between my legs.

“Hey!”

“Get back here!”

“Stop it!”

I jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding being trampled by four thickly clothed ponies. They galloped past me, into the alley, and were swallowed up by the night.

“Hey, wait!” I ran after them. They look like rebels!

I darted through the pitch-dark alleys, following the sound of chasing hoofbeats. I heard a loud metal clash, the sound of scrambling hooves, another shout, and then silence.

It was so dark that I could barely see. I slowed to a stop in an empty courtyard, unsure of where to go next. A pair of trash cans had fallen over and were knocking into each other in a corner. My ears twitched.

A rough pair of hooves wrapped themselves around my neck.

I gagged, gasping for breath as I waved my legs around haphazardly. Things started to go dark.

“Wait!”

I fell to the ground, my neck finally free to breathe again, retching. I rolled onto my back, to be rewarded with the sight of three stallions looking down on me.

“He doesn’t look like one of the Baron’s.”

“I thought work didn’t end in this district for another half hour?”

“Well, what’s he doing out here then?”

“Well, he doesn’t look like- “

“I’d like to join you!”

They stopped talking. A frown, a raised brow, and a grin looked down on me. I waved them away with a hoof to give myself some room to stand up.

“Who is it?” The fourth rebel, a mare, pushed her way into the circle. She eyed me over suspiciously. She was holding a struggling, grey-furred filly in her magic. “What are you doing here?”

I swallowed. Here we go. “I’d like to join the rebellion.”

She raised a brow. “Well, you don’t look like much, but... Just let us deal with this scrap and then we’ll head for the safehouse.”

The filly bobbed up and down. “Let go of me! I have to get to my brother!” She flapped her legs around wildly, as if trying to swim out of the magical grasp and escape.

“I’m afraid that’s not possible, little one,” the mare said. “We gave you a chance, and you didn’t take it.”

“I have to get to my brother!” the filly repeated.

“What are you doing with her?” I asked.

One of the stallions glanced my way. “She’s a Baron spy. Seen too much, and since she didn’t agree to join us...”

A second stallion finished for him. “We kill her.”

I blinked. “Wh- what? You can’t kill a foal!”

The mare fixed me with a hard stare. “We have no choice. It’s the life of this filly or the good of the rebellion. We have no place to put her.”

I gaped. “No! That’s not right!”

One of the stallions pulled me aside. “Look here, recruit. The rebellion is the only thing here that’s fighting back against the Baron. We can’t afford to take any risks. She has to go.”

“No! Find another way!”

He frowned. “There is no other way. She thinks the Baron will give her her brother back, and she won’t give in to us. She needs to be silenced.”

“Listen to yourself!” I growled. “Aren’t you supposed to be helping these ponies? You can’t kill their foals!”

“There are certain unfortunate necessities that must be seen too. Are you sure you have the drive to join us?” The stallion punched my shoulder lightly. “Have you got what it takes to serve the greater good?”

“Well, yes, but-”

A high-pitched squeal rang through the night.

I looked at the rebel before me, terrified. He nodded at me grimly, patted me on the back, and began to walk back to the rest of his group. My eyes followed after him.

I focused in on a trickle of blood, and a foal-shaped shadow on the pavement.

I turned and ran as fast as I could.

Author's Notes:

So, when I was done with the re-write, Chapter 2 came out to 11,000 words. Considering it was ungodly long even in the first version, I decided to split it into two. Nice move!

How ye like that Baron? He's just always so dapper!
Oh, yeah. Child murder.

Am I going to hell for making snarky comments on this chapter?

Ch. 4: Last Chance

“Now, let’s see if you can get this one. Hrm... what is the name of the earth pony leader that helped unite the three tribes?”

“Chancellor Puddinghead!”

Robber Baron smiled. “Yes, that’s right.”

He reached out a hoof and rustled the filly’s mane. “Now go along and pack your bags. You have a long journey ahead of you.”

“Yes, sir, Mister Baron!”

The filly nodded enthusiastically and snapped into a mock salute. With a giggle, she twisted around and ran down the hall, disappearing out of sight around a corner. The Baron turned to Pen Knife, who was standing by his side with his ever-present clipboard.

“How much longer until that one’s ready, Pen?” he asked.

“The filly, sir? Another decade, I believe.”

“And what position is she being groomed for? Baltimare?”

“Minister of Commerce for Baltimare, sir.”

“Ah, excellent.” Baron took a moment to mull over his mental notes. “Is the current minister with us?”

“No, sir. Claims to be unbuyable.”

“Well, make sure his assassination is clean.”

“Yes, sir.” Pen Knife made a small scribble on his clipboard.

How the hell does that clipboard of his work? Robber Baron had never once seen him turn to another sheet, and yet somehow he managed to always have a relevant page on it. Boggles the mind.

Baron glanced out the window. “Is the execution ready?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Good. Give the Inner City a day off. I don’t want a single one of them to miss it.”

Without any real conscious direction, my panicked hooves eventually brought me to the closest thing I had to home: my little apartment in building 12R. I crashed through the still unsecured door and tossed myself into bed.

How could they kill a filly?

I woke up the next morning to the pleasantly surprising sound of laughter out in the hall.

Rolling out of bed, I took a minute to stretch. My body still ached, despite not having to work yesterday. I hate this place.

Poking my head out my room, I glanced up and down the hall. Old Ironhide was in the same position as always, squinting down upon a few mares playing at cards from his chair. Levitating my door back into place, I trotted down the hall.

“Morning,” I said.

The mares looked up briefly, nodded acknowledgement, and returned to their game. Old Ironhide greeted me with a puff of smoke. “Morning, Dissy! Have you heard the news?”

I cocked my head. “No. What’s happened?”

He frowned. “The good Baron has decided to grace us all with a holiday.”

I blinked, taken aback by the foreboding tone. “Well, that’s good... right?”

One of the mares coughed loudly. The other two exchanged condescending looks as Ironhide shook his head. “No, I’m afraid not. The good Baron only grants us his ‘holidays’ when he wants us to attend something. And when he wants us to attend something, it’s never something good.” He punctuated the sentence with a meaningful pull on his pipe.

“Oh.” I ran a hoof through my mane, suddenly self-conscious. “Well, thanks for telling me then. I’ll be off.”

None of them offered a farewell, and I left them in silence. I climbed down the stairs to Nix’s floor, found her room, and knocked twice.

“Come in.”

“Hey, Nix. Just thought I’d come and—”

I stopped, halfway in the room. Silver Feather and Nix were there, as I had expected, but so was Stormslider. My mind debated whether or not to slip back out before she noticed, but it was too late anyways. She had me now, eyeing me with that cool, collected look of hers.

“Hello, Dissero.”

Might as well get this over with. I stepped the rest of the way into the room and shut the door behind me. “Hey, Storm. I just wanted to say—”

“Save your apologies and listen,” she interrupted. At this rate I’ll have enough apologies saved to open a small business. I glanced at the clock and mentally noted the time. No doubt she had prepared a debilitating series of accurate, detailed jibes.

“I’m a rational pony. I like to judge ponies by their intentions. I know you had good intentions. You didn’t want this; you’re not evil.” Her brow furrowed with well-controlled anger. “As such, I will forgive you, and instead direct my anger at the bastard that runs this city, and has me cleaning the only sewers in all of Equestria full of disgusting, foreign shit.”

I blinked. I smiled. Perhaps Old Ironhide is right after all. Storm gave me a curt nod and turned to Nix.

“Do you have a towel I can borrow?” she asked. For the first time I noticed the dampness dripping off her mane.

Nix grabbed a neatly folded towel and tossed it to her. “If you have sewer duty, you’ll have to keep it.” She looked to me. “And Dissy, Old Ironhide tells me you have foundry duty. You’ll need this.”

She hoofed me a plain, yellowish-white bandana. I held it up quizzically.

“To tie around your muzzle,” she added. “It’ll protect you from the smoke and fire.”

“Ah, of course.” I draped it over my neck experimentally. “I don’t know how to tie one of these.”

“I’ll handle it.” Nix crossed the room and tied the bandana around my neck before I could open my mouth to protest.

“Uh, thanks.”

“No problem. Can you help me with this poultice?”

Clang! Clang! Clang!

My ear’s twitched. I drew the curtains on the nearest hole in the wall aside and glanced down the street. “Nix, what is that?”

“Whatever the Baron called the holiday for is about to happen. We all need to get to the display yard,” she said. She grabbed a fresh roll of bandages and wrapped it around Silver’s bad wing. He mumbled something irritably.

I narrowed my eyes. There was something coming around the corner, down the street. What is that...?

As it rounded the turn and came into full view, I realized what it was. A small airship, slowly working its way down the street. A bell was fixed to the top of it, being rung by a stern-looking unicorn.

As it passed by, Nix put her supplies back into her bag and stood up, stretching. She looked down to Silver. “Get up. You can walk now, as long as you take it easy, and you’re better off not staying here.”

He climbed to his hooves, rolling his shoulders experimentally. “Why not?”

She frowned. “The Baron doesn’t like it when we miss things. Sometimes he raids buildings, and if he finds somepony skipping...”

Silver nodded. “Right, I get the picture.” He flourished a hoof towards the door in mock ceremony. “Shall we go, then?”

The street was crowded. Every pony in the Inner City lived in the same compacted residential district: twenty buildings over five blocks, and they poured out of their residences like trickles meeting a river. The bell ship passed over me, casting my world into a second layer of shadow even deeper than the one cast by the tradeships above. I scanned the crowd, looking for my other crewmembers. In the distance, a team of the Baron’s police broke into a building.

The sun was just starting to set as we arrived at the display yard. It was the only truly open space in the Inner City, which usually made an uncomfortably efficient use of space. The wide, circular yard marked the very middle of Harmony City, gently sloping down from the edges. At the bottom of the yard, where it flattened out, a wooden scaffold had been erected. The hooves of hundreds of enslaved ponies kicked up a thick cloud of dust, making it difficult to see. I coughed. Despite being called a yard, there wasn’t a single blade of grass in sight.

On the opposite side of the yard, surrounded by a clear and cleanly paved courtyard, was the Baron’s Tower. I craned my neck, awed by the sheer height of the behemoth of architecture. The ships were thicker here than anywhere else. The shadows were, too.

I looked over to Nix. She had a rag wrapped around her muzzle. I coughed again and pulled my bandana up, waving the dust away with a hoof. “What are they going to do?” I asked.

She met eyes with me. She looked worried. “It looks like an execution.”

My eyes widened. “An exe—a what?”

“RESIDENTS!”

The crowd quieted. I looked back to the scaffold as the dust settled. A grey pegasus paced the length of the makeshift stage.

“A CRIME HAS BEEN COMMITTED.”

I stretched myself to my full height, straining to see over the ponies in front of me. A bespectacled yellow unicorn was standing in the scaffold’s shadow, horn glowing. He must be amplifying the voice.

“TWO NIGHTS AGO, ONE OF THE BARON’S PERSONAL WAREHOUSES WAS RAIDED BY A GROUP OF THUGS CALLING THEMSELVES ‘REBELS.’ THIS ACT CANNOT GO UNPUNISHED.”

I heard movement behind me, and turned around. Two lines of the Baron’s police were marching through the crowd. I stumbled as the crowd was pushed and shoved to clear a path.

“THESE SO-CALLED ‘REBELS’ MUST LEARN THAT THEIR ACTIONS HAVE CONSEQUENCES. THEY HAVE STOLEN YOUR FOOD AND ENDANGERED YOUR LIFE. THIS CANNOT GO UNPUNISHED.”

The double line emerged from the inner circle of the crowd. Between them was another line of ponies that I hadn’t noticed before. Stallions, mares, and foals. Silver cursed under his breath.

“THESE NINE RESIDENTS, WHO ONCE ATE THE BARON’S FOOD AND SLEPT IN HIS HOMES, WERE CAUGHT WITH THE STOLEN GOODS. THIS CANNOT GO UNPUNISHED.”

I narrowed my eyes. No, that can’t be right... there are foals in there! There were only four adults; two mares and two stallions. The other five were just foals, stumbling as the police pushed them, eyes wide with fear.

I leaned towards Nix. “I don’t understand. There are foals down there,” I whispered.

She nodded somberly. “They’re just examples. The Baron doesn’t care if they’re truly guilty.”

Silver scratched at the ground angrily. “Guilty?” he spat. “The Baron is the only guilty one here.”

“AS SUCH, THEY HAVE BEEN SENTENCED TO DEATH, BY THE JUSTICE OF THE BARON.”

The nine were on the scaffold now. Nooses had been placed around their necks. The foals were sobbing uncontrollably. Even from a distance their shaking was visible. The adults stared forwards in silence.

With a wooden rattle, the bottom of the scaffold fell away. One of the foals, a small colt, shrieked as he fell. In an instant the nooses tightened, and he fell silent. In the quiet of the yard, the sound of the nine victims gagging carried far and clear. Not a single pony in the crowd moved a muscle.

Silence fell. The yellow unicorn made a mark on his clipboard.

Time passed. Moon Dream and I grew stronger, hardened by our work in the foundry, and the days began to run together. I woke in the morning, marched to Foundry Two, donned my bandana, and slaved until past sundown.

Dream and I grew close. Our mutual hardships drew us together, and soon I began to see him as a little brother of sorts. On Sundays most of us were given a day off to rest after the week’s toil, and he and I spent hours in the small courtyard behind our building. He drew the airships on whatever rags he could find, using pieces of charcoal and chalk that had been smuggled in or scavenged from factories. He even drew a makeshift map of Equestria on my bandana. I began to wear it more often. It became more of a part of me, like Silver’s goggles and Storm’s necklace.

Ember eventually came around. Storm and Silver managed to convince her that I truly was sorry, that I hadn’t meant for any of this, and that being mad at me would only make things worse and, honestly, it would make more sense to be mad at the Baron. I don’t know if she completely accepted it, but she did fix my door as a token of friendship. It was nice to have a working door.

With the help of Old Ironhide, I made contact with a rebel smuggler and got hold of a bottle of what Cleaver would call “the good Stalliongrad vodka.” I knocked on his door and presented it to him one Sunday, and after sweeping me up into a grateful bear hug, I was forgiven. If only all of my problems were so easily solved.

My life fell into the pattern of an Inner City slave. I worked Monday through Saturday. On Sunday I relaxed. There was a roughly two-hour long period where my crew, Moon Dream, and I were all free at once, and we spent it relaxing in the courtyard. Sometimes Nix joined us, when she wasn’t busy. We spent the day complaining about our jobs and daydreaming about escape. Sometimes it even felt like being free. Still, a passing patrol of the Baron’s police always yanked me back to reality.

“That one’s my favorite,” Moon Dream announced one Sunday. He pointed with his pencil, at a relatively small ship orbiting the Baron’s Tower. It didn’t look familiar, and it wasn’t docking or departing like every other airship was always doing. “It has such nice aesthetics.”

He returned to his pad, a pitiful collection of bound together papers that Stormslider had found in the sewers and saved. Silver peered up into the sky, squinting as a beam of sunlight landed on his face.

“She does look pretty slick,” he said enviously. “Look at those wings. And thrusters, too. Bet she can pull some sick tricks.” His wing had stopped healing after two weeks, but it still wasn’t any good for flight. It never quite closed at the proper angle, and it could only be extended stiffly for some quick, pained gliding. A pang of guilt ran through me as I looked at it.

“Our old ship was nice,” I said. It had been my ship, after all. Sure, we pooled our bits to get it. But my name was the one on the false license.

“Our old ship was worth nineteen bits,” Ember stated. “Trust me, I was there when we scrapped it.” Silver and Cleaver laughed.

Stormslider lowered her magazine. “I wonder what kind of engine it has,” she murmured. She was always reading magazines on Sundays. She found a few in the sewers every now and then.

And then Ember had to return to her room. Her job began at midnight, and she needed to start sleeping early in the day if she didn’t want to risk punishment. Cleaver left soon after, mentioning that he would be expected to pull supply carts for the next day’s work soon. Silver climbed to his hooves, claiming he had an appointment, and trotted away. Stormslider wrapped up her magazine and headed for the street with some words about the night shift. Moon Dream glanced up at the setting sun and decided to go scavenging for supplies. Left alone, I made my way to Nix’s room.

I became a sort of assistant towards Nix. I helped her care for stable patients, and watched over them when she went out for supplies. The rebels ran a black market in some factory too decrepit for working, where ponies traded whatever they could find. The rebels gave out smuggled goods, speaking about “destabilizing the system.” Useful bits of trash drifted in through the sewers. Sometimes things would fall off the airships. Those were always worth a lot, if they didn’t break.

Nix and I talked about whatever came to mind. We discussed recent events, and plotted escape routes and coups. It wasn’t anything serious, of course. We didn’t have any real hope of getting out alive.

More time passed. I glanced at a calendar and idly noted that almost two months had passed. I looked in a mirror. My coat was getting dull, though it still wasn’t as bad as those who had been here for years. Moon Dream heard rumors about the rebels planning something big. His work was becoming popular; makeshift paintings now adorned the halls and walls of building 12R.

Cleaver hadn’t lost his impeccable ability to find alcohol along with his freedom. Stormslider told me that he had managed to gain access to some kind of underground bar. I wasn’t sure whether or not to be surprised. The Baron didn’t approve of alcohol, or really anything that he didn’t give us, and as such the rebels decided that running bars helped to destabilize the system, and set one up. Cleaver talked his way into discovering it. Apparently he was surprisingly charismatic when booze was at stake. The rest of the crew often went there on Sundays, but I wasn’t much for drinking. Dream was too young, and Nix was too busy.

I was forced to attend a few more executions. Another hanging and two firing squads. Each time foals were involved, and each time the true culprits were replaced with pointless “examples.” The second hanging moved me almost as much as the first.

After that, the effect started to wear off.

It was a Saturday. Besides the approaching relaxation of Sunday, there wasn’t much else to say about it. Nothing out of the ordinary to warn me about what would happen. Perhaps if I had paid more attention, I might have seen something.

I was given the privilege of leaving the foundry early. Boss liked to give us each one day of early leave per month. Normally Moon Dream and I used ours on the same day, but for some reason I used mine that Saturday without telling him early. He was surprised, but since Boss made us tell him our day a week in advance, he couldn’t do anything about it. I think Nix might have needed me for something, or perhaps I’d decided to go drinking with Cleaver.

I left the foundry in high spirits. As high as they get with the constant presence of the airships and the Baron’s police. I looked up to the sun, trying to gauge the time of day, when—

Boom!

I was knocked to the ground with an explosive force. My horn jabbed itself into a rock, causing a jolt of pain to race through my body. My ears rang. I rolled around in a state of semi-consciousness, mind blank, overcome with confusion.

When I finally regathered my thoughts, I looked behind me.

Foundry Two was up in flames.

I sat there for a few moments, staring blankly. Then my mind kicked back into gear. I staggered to my hooves.

“Moon Dream!” I yelled as loud as I could, hoping against hope that he might come stumbling out of the flames.

Clumsily, I ran towards the burning building. “Moon Dream!” I pulled at a piece of rubble with my magic, but it was too heavy. I couldn’t lift it. I couldn’t focus. Another stab of pain ran down my side. I tripped and fell, vision blurring as tears welled. He looked up to me. I was supposed to protect him. He was like a little brother. I pictured him in the courtyard, pointing out an airship he liked as he sketched with his charcoal and scavenged paper.

I noticed the bandana, still covering my muzzle. I tore it off, staring at the map he’d drawn for me. Just like the old map I’d had, in my old airship. Not quite accurate of course, and missing some important features, but...

I was vaguely aware of ponies running frantically around me, screaming, but I ignored them. I don’t know how long I sat there, gazing at the flames. Time slipped away.

“Dissero! Dissero!”

A small sliver of hope awoke within me. I turned around. “Moon Dream?”

Nix ran up and pulled me into a shaky hug. She looked over me, hooves searching for wounds. “I came as soon as I heard! Oh, I was so worried! Are you okay? Where’s Moon Dream?”

I turned back to the fire, slowly. Silently.

She raised a hoof to her mouth. “Oh.”

“Nix, what just happened?” I asked. She didn’t respond. I jumped to my hooves, grabbing her and shaking her to get her attention. “Nix! What just happened?”

“It’s the rebels!” she cried. “They’re trying to cripple the Inner City, or draw attention from the rest of Equestria. They’re blowing up buildings all around the industrial district!”

I gaped. “How do you know about this?”

“Old Ironhide told me as I passed him in the hall. He’s known for weeks, but he hasn’t told anypony.”

Rage. Anger coursed through me. That old pegasus killed Moon Dream. He’s killed hundreds with his silence. “Let’s go,” I barked. “We’re going home. I’m going to give him a piece of my mind.” Or my hoof.

Nix followed close behind as I led the way to building 12R. Other fires raged across the city, contrasting against the sky of the setting sun. It seemed the rebels had planted bombs everywhere. I heard battle in the distance. Ponies screaming, pegasi crashing into the ground, and rune grenades detonating. Night came, but the sky was still red. I coughed as a gust of ash blew into my face. The ever-present airships began to evacuate, running for the safety of the countryside. One of the huge, towering skydocks that so defined the city toppled over, groaning, and crashed into the ground. The rebels must have killed hundreds of innocents with the bombs alone.

The route was longer than usual. We were forced to detour around streets blocked by battles, rubble, and paranoid police. It took us two hours to reach building 12R, eerily unchanged by the day’s events. If it wasn’t for the sound of fires burning and ponies screaming in the background I could have almost forgotten about it all.

I bucked the door off its hinges and stormed up the stairs. Nix trailed behind.

I burst into the hallway. The silhouette of Old Ironhide sat in front of a window at the end of the hallway, framed by a fire in the building on the opposite side of the courtyard. I charged forwards, shouting my grief.

As I drew closer, I picked out detail. The silhouette picked up color, and I found the old pegasus dead in his chair, a rusty old wingblade attached to a feather. Blood ran down his neck, puddling around his pipe on the floor.

Coward!

My vision went red. I began to tear the hallway apart, smashing my hooves through the weak drywall and magically tearing doors of their hinges. I focused in on the corpse, raising my hooves, ready to beat it into a pulp.

Nix jumped in front of me. “Stop it!” she shrieked.

I caught myself. Calm down. I fell into a sitting position, breathing heavily, hooves still raised. This isn’t solving anything. I had lost control.

Moon Dream...

“Nix!” I grabbed her, pulling her close. “We can use this as a diversion! To escape!” I need to distract myself. I can’t think about it right now.

“I... I don’t know...” Her eyes strayed to the body before us.

I was trying to think of words to convince her when Stormslider came flying up from downstairs. “Cap—Captain!” she stuttered, landing heavily. She squinted at me. “C’mere... we got shomthing for you!” she slurred.

What? Is she drunk? Then I remembered. Cleaver had arranged for the rest of the crew to drink with him today. Cautiously, I followed Storm as she stumbled down the stairs, Nix close behind me.

“You... you are gonna like thish!” Storm bragged. She tripped on the last step as we reached the ground floor.

We stepped outside, and my jaw dropped.

Hovering in the street, quietly and somewhat leaning to one side, was Moon Dream’s favorite airship. It was even more gorgeous from up close. And hanging out of a hatch near the bottom, looking down the street, was Cleaver.

“Kaptain! We have found you a ride!” he exclaimed. He reached out and swept me off my hooves like a foal, pulling me into the ship.

“Wait!” I shouted. He dropped me, and turned back to the outside. “Nix! C’mon, we can escape!”

She hesitated, looking back at the building that she had spent almost her whole life within, at the city she had come to call home despite its hardships, at the sky full of fire and airships full of armed ponies, shooting down at the rebels below.

Stormslider pushed her drunkenly from behind. “Lesh go, Mish!”

Nix jumped, startled out of the daze. Wordlessly, she galloped up to the hatch and leapt inside. I smiled at her, and she returned it nervously. Storm tumbled into the ship as Cleaver shut the hatch.

A door to the side led to what looked like a cargo hold. Cleaver led us up the stairs, past a recognizable engine room, and out the door at the top.

We passed through a short hallway into what looked like a building still under construction. Some thin walls, more for separation then structure, were placed about half-heartedly as if to outline rooms. We walked past them into an open lounge startlingly similar to my old ship in arrangement. At the far side of the lounge, against the front of the ship and behind a bar, was a kitchen area.

We went up one more story, using a thinner and shorter staircase between the half-done rooms and the lounge, and came out onto what I assumed to be the navigation level. A long, wide table filled the middle of the room. At the end of the room, past a short hallway, was the cockpit. It was much larger than the one in my old ship, with enough room for my whole crew to stand in it. And they were.

Silver was at the helm, goggles on, trotting about in a distressingly drunk fashion as he piloted a ship which, as far as I knew, he had never entered before. Ember was slouched in a corner, squinting at her surroundings and mumbling to herself, trying to light her lighter but lacking the sober focus needed to cast her spell. Storm leaned against the wall in the hallway behind us, smiling lazily. Cleaver stood straight, like he always did, as if he had not just taken part in a series of drinking that had left the rest of my crew nigh incapacitated, and Nix planted herself outside the cockpit, so out of her element that she could hardly move.

In the time that we had taken to climb the stairs up to this level, Silver had guided the ship up to a flying altitude. I gazed down on the city through the cockpit’s bubble of glass. Sparse pockets of fire and fighting were spread throughout the city, leaving the space in between largely undisturbed.

I looked to Cleaver. “How did you get this ship?”

He gave me a knowing smile. “Kaptain, let it simply be said that the good Stalliongrad vodka gives a pony great heart and courage. But for record, it was Ember’s idea.” Silver and Storm nodded, murmuring drunken agreement.

“Did you steal this ship?” Nix asked incredulously.

“Well, yes. Did I not make this plain?” Cleaver replied. He sounded offended.

“Are we being chased?” I asked. Please say no, please say no, please say—

“Yesh!” Silver exclaimed. “Look, there’sh a few ships closing in behind ush now!”

My heart dropped. “How can we escape? The rebels have got the whole place up in arms. There’s no way we’ll be able to get out to Equestria.”

“That’sh just it,” Silver said deviously, a wicked grin stretching across his face. “I’ll take ush through the Cloudwall! It’sh our last chance to get out of thish hellhole!”

I leapt forwards and grabbed him forcibly. “You can’t be serious!? You realize that hundreds of ponies have died trying to cross that, sober and extremely well-prepared?”

“Yesh, but they weren’t me,” he bragged. I began to feel very much like a pony who, after the conductor of the train he was riding in fell asleep, was watching a very, very hard and fatal wall approach at an alarmingly fast speed.

Nix poked her head into the room bravely. “He’s right, it’s our only way out.”

I turned on her. “Don’t you be supporting this! I thought you wanted me alive!” Don’t panic. Don’t panic. Don’t panic!

“Don’t worry,” she reassured me, “I’ve heard that pegasi inside the Breaks simply know what to do. Luckily, we have a pegasus pilot. But he should really wear a blindfold, or his eyes will get in the way.”

Celestia help me. My heart was jumping out of my chest. “You want a drunk pegasus to fly an airship he has no experience with through the most dangerous path in Equestria, with a blindfold on?”

“Pegasi are the only things that can navigate the Breaks, and Storm is too drunk to even stand up straight. The Baron’s ponies go through here all the time, we can too!” she argued.

Stormslider rose from her position to put in a comforting statement. “It’sh all good. Back at the Academy, boozsh hash only made him a more recklessh flyer.”

“That doesn’t make me feel anything close to better!”

“But, you shee,” she added, “although he flied more recklesshy, he shtill didn’t crash, so he wash actually kind’ve a better pilot.”

“What is wrong with you, Stormslider!? You’re supposed to be the voice of reason!”

“Wait, guysh... I don’t have a blindfold,” Silver piped in.

Apparently roused by an instinctive desire to bother me, Ember suddenly mustered the magic needed to untie my bandana and wrap it around Silver’s goggles. Satisfied, she smiled and promptly passed out.

A few cannon balls flew past us, shot from behind. I weighed my options. Death at the hooves of the Baron, or the Breaks? Certain death, or near certain? Looking ahead, the maze of thunderstorms and tornados swirling around eachother in a seemingly random dance of death didn’t seem very inviting.

My stomach lurched. We were moving forwards. Silver was smirking dangerously under his blindfold. The Breaks approached.

Silver raised a hoof in excitement and pushed a slider forwards. “Here we gooooo!”

The first thing that I noticed was the constant roar of thunder. The lightning struck out from the black clouds surrounding us so frequently that the thunder made a constant, rolling boom.

The second was the shaking. The entire ship shook so violently that I was worried it would fall apart. Stormslider was much too drunk to support herself amongst the vibrations. Nix and I both staggered about trying to keep our balance. Cleaver was impeccably still. Silver danced about, pulling levers and slapping switches, unbothered.

The third thing I noticed was the massive storm cloud that suddenly appeared in front of us, ready to send us down to our doom amongst all the failed travelers of ages past.

But Silver was already moving to avoid it, even before it was there. “Thish ish an excellent shhhip!” he shouted over the thunderous roar as he flew, informing us on the pros of the ship as if we were just walking through it as it sat in the dealership. “It’sh ash much a thought to fly ash I dreamed it woul’ be!”

I was shaking. Not because of the wild vibrations, but because I was so scared shitless that we were all about to die in some fiery lightning explosion. Luna save me, not fire. I hate fire. I noticed Nix clinging to the floor, eyes squeezed shut.

“Don’t worry, he’s a very good pilot!” I told her, raising my voice to be heard over the local weather. I wasn’t sure if she noticed, so I turned back to face the front, closed my eyes, and repeated that sentence to myself over and over.

I heard Silver let out another whoop and begin to hum a tune which I recognized as Flight of the Valkyries. All of a sudden my stomach was falling behind. I peeked open an eye to find that we were literally falling, the storm clouds racing past us as we rapidly approached the ground.

“Ach!” Silver exclaimed in a surprisingly good Germane accent. “Even her falling isht grasheful!”

I heard an explosion behind us that didn’t sound like thunder. “It seems one of our followers has hit a storm cloud!” Cleaver cackled in an entirely unhealthy way. Hay, this whole thing is unhealthy. Oh, Princess, by the Elements of Harmony help me!

A large tornado descended to the ground, not in front of us, but actually around us. For a few brief moments, we hovered in the eye, moving along with the walls of the tornado as it tore across the landscape.

How did I get into this? Have I written my will yet? I haven’t spoken to my parents in years! Why, why, why!? I just want all of this to be over!

To the side, I saw another of the ships that was chasing us come crashing through into the eye, decorated as a big burning ball of flaming wreckage.

Silver let out an alarmingly happy shout that made my heart skip three beats. The ship bolted for the wall of the tornado. I braced myself for impact, but as we were about to collide with the barrier of wind, the tornado dissipated around us.

“Look Dishy!” Silver cackled maniacally, “no eyesh!”

“Silver! Stop toying with my instinct for self-preservation!” I swear if we get through this alive I’m going to wring his neck and break his other wing!

Storm clouds closed in on each side, over and over again. But each time, Silver was already moving the ship to avoid them. Tornadoes and storms appeared and dissipated at incredibly distressing speeds, moving to intercept us and then simply blowing apart after they missed. And all the while, the thick walls of the Breaks were visible on each side, marking the point where the Cloudwall once again turned into the impenetrable net of thick electrical death.

I yelled as loudly as I could, for what it’s worth.

I felt the ship lurch forwards as if struck. Silver let loose an evil laugh, reassuring me by saying, “Don’t worry! Mosht airshipsh can handle a shingle lightning shtrike!”

“Were we just hit by lightning!?” I shrieked like a little filly. I noticed that Nix had passed out from terror. Stormslider was lying on the floor, laughing her flank off like there was something terribly funny about imminent death. Cleaver was sitting in a corner, discreetly humming what sounded to me like a funeral dirge.

“It’sh okay! It wash jusht one!” Silver called. As if to disprove him, the nearby clouds unleashed another wave of lightning bolts, and I felt the ship shake violently as it was struck several more times.

“We’re loshing altitude!” He cheered as if that was just the best thing in the world, and was so unspeakably, delightfully happy to experience it that there was no way he could ever properly express it.

We’re going to die. I just know we’re going to die. We’re all, going to die. Die die die! All of us! Dead! Aaaaaaaaagh! We’re all gonna die!

Silver’s maneuvers were slowing down. Without a fully sealed balloon to sustain the ship, he had to divert the maneuvering thrusters to keep us up, and couldn’t turn, rise, or fall as fast. It seemed like everything was over when, finally, we broke out of the clouds and into clear, precious sunlight.

I looked up into the glorious sun of Princess Celestia, cherishing its rays. I hadn’t gotten a clear view of it for so long. Hadn’t been able to really feel its light. But I was free now!

Free at last! We were free! I began to pass out right there. The last thing I felt was my joy at being free. Free!

Author's Notes:

And out of Equestria we are!
What did you think of that execution? Intense? I liked it. Writing it. I'm not into killing foals. DON'T JUDGE ME.

I considered putting an actual link to Flight of the Valkyries in here, but meh. Look it up yourself if you wanna listen to it.

Ch. 5: Cardinal Direction

“Okay, so now what?” Silver Feather asked.

I tried to ignore the question. Spread out on the table before me was a standard map of Equestria that we had found on a wall elsewhere in the airship. The shadows of the rest of my crew played across the table along with my own. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Nix sitting next to a window, staring out at the Cloudwall behind us.

Stormslider cleared her throat. “I think it would be best if we figured out what is happening now before we decided what to do for the future, if we want to make a good and logical decision.”

Quiet murmurs of agreement passed around the room.

“Well then, if I may,” she began, “we’re hovering above the Great Sea, in an unfamiliar airship stolen from the most powerful crime lord and connected merchant in Equestria, with no known stores of food or water, and almost all under massive hangovers. Can we agree?”

Everypony agreed.

She continued. “So, our top priority right now is survival. The airship will provide shelter, but we still need food and water. We have two choices as to where we can get that. One is Equestria. None of us know what the other is, or how to find it.

“To return to Equestria, we must pass through the Breaks. They are most likely to be heavily guarded by the Baron. To get elsewhere, we must cross the Great Sea without any knowledge of other landmasses or a reliable source of food. So which is it?”

I closed my eyes tight as a heavy silence descended upon the room. We don’t really have a choice. Returning to Equestria means death at the hooves at the Baron. Leaving means a slow death from starvation in the middle of nowhere.

But at least we’d have a chance.

Or a better chance, anyways.

“I say we leave.”

There was no response, at first. Everypony looked away as I raised my eyes from the map. None of us wanted to go. Even if we survived, we’d be going somewhere so distant, so unknown that we couldn’t even begin to imagine what we might come to.

“I agree,” Silver said. We exchanged glances, and I gave him a thankful nod. A wave of relief washed over me. Even to the ends of Equestria, he had my back.

The rest of the crew was quick to follow, nodding assent. I could tell they were glad to have the decision made by someone else. They didn’t want the responsibility. That was mine to take on.

“Okay. First, we need to explore this ship and figure out what it can do,” I said.

Ember narrowed her eyes. “And who made you captain?” she challenged, flicking her tail aggressively.

I looked down, flinching away from her challenge. Why should they let me lead them again? I had already led them into slavery. I hadn’t been the one to break us out. Now we were embarking on a journey to nowhere with no plan, no map, and no food. If I can’t handle one trade stop at Manehattan, how can I lead them into the unknown?

Cleaver stepped up. “We have already forgiven Kaptain,” Cleaver said firmly, raising himself to his full height. Ember wasn’t deterred.

“He’s already led us to slavery! He didn’t even help to get us out. He just lay in the corner and screamed like a filly!” she yelled.

“Ember!” Stormslider snapped. “We all have our jobs. His is to coordinate us, and we’ll need it in this ship. Would you prefer to lead us and leave the ship unrepaired? Or give Silver control and let us crash into the sea? We’ve already been hit by lightning several times. You need to focus on keeping the ship working.”

Phoenix Down rose from her position, sitting along the outside of the room and gazing back at Equestria longingly. “Let him try again,” she said softly.

Ember grimaced, ears back with hostility. “Fine,” she growled. She glared at me. “This is your last chance. If you buck up again, I’ll torch you myself.”

“Well, then.” Silver placed his hooves on the table, offering an easy smile to diffuse the tension. “Now we’ve got that settled, I suppose we should pick a direction, yeah? I’m thinking east,” he suggested. “It’s never done me wrong, and I’ve got a nice feeling about it.”

I cocked a brow. “Any more rational reasons you may wish to grace us with?” I asked.

“No. You got a better idea? I’m the pilot anyways. Trust my intuition.” He winked at me. I was not reassured.

I glanced around the room. Nopony offered any opposition to the direction. I sighed. “Fine. We head east and pray to Celestia we find land. But before we go any further, we need to search this ship for anything of use.”

“And name her, too,” Silver added.

Stormslider eyed him skeptically. “Name it?”

“Well yes,” he asserted. “Can’t fly around in an unnamed ship. What happens if we meet another crew and have to distinguish between our ship and theirs? I don’t see a name anywhere.”

I shrugged, sitting back half-heartedly. “Well, he’s got a point.” This is gonna be our new home anyways... “Any suggestions?”

“Pride of Stallions?” Cleaver suggested.

Five incredulous looks were shot his way. He glanced around hopefully, saw he wouldn’t be getting any support, and looked back down to his last bottle of vodka, crestfallen.

“I think Omega would be a rather fitting name,” Stormslider said.

“Is that even a word?” Nix asked.

“It’s the last letter of the ancient pegasus alphabet,” I supplied. “It represents the end, or the last of something.”

Silver grinned, nodding. “Well, here we are at the end of the world, and this ship is the last chance we’ve got. I can’t think of a better name.” The rest of the crew murmured agreeably.

“It’s settled, then. We’ll name it the Omega. Now, can we please get to searching it?”

We divided the ship into sectors, with one pony assigned to each. Silver Feather handled the navigation floor. Ember and Phoenix Down split the cargo bay. Stormslider explored the engine room. Cleaver and I split the main floor.

We didn’t find anything very inspiring at first. There was nothing useful in the engine room, besides the engine, which was beginning to show damage from the lightning. The kitchen lacked any food, despite our hopes to find some. The cargo hold was empty, besides a few beds, construction supplies, and tools Ember was happy to get her hooves on. We all picked one of the unfinished rooms on the main floor, and Ember began building and removing walls to make six larger rooms.

Surprisingly, the navigation floor contained the best find.

I had been half-heartedly sorting through debris from the chase, brooding over our inevitable deaths, when Silver called out from above.

“What is it?” I asked, poking my head into the cockpit. He was standing before a small, narrow hallway that I hadn’t noticed before.

He grinned. “So here I was, looking for shortcuts, just tapping around, and bam!” He pointed to the hallway with a flourish of his hoof. “Secret passageway!”

I raised a brow. “Shortcuts?”

“Well, yes. Airships are mechanical creatures, full of all cogs and chains and stuff. They’re compactly designed, too, so there isn’t much room for all the machinery. A tap in the right place can do the same thing a lever on the other side of the room does, or even something entirely new. Our old airship had a few. I was just looking for this one’s.”

I nodded. It makes a kind of sense. Peering into the tiny opening, I squeezed myself inside. It was only a couple meters long, and just big enough to walk through. It was pitch black with my body blocking all the light from the cockpit.

Lighting my horn, I scraped through it with a burst of claustrophobic energy and came out into an unlit room. Dim shapes surrounded me, lining the edges of my vision. I fumbled around blindly, found a string hanging from above, and pulled it.

With a static buzz and a strained flicker, the bulb above me turned on. The dim light wasn’’t much, but it was bright enough for me to get a better look at the room.

A pair of shelves lining the wall held several rune guns, like the ones I had seen in Harmony City. A crate of rune grenades and boxes of ammunition were stacked up on the far wall. I smiled. A weapons stockpile!

Grabbing one of the guns with my magic, I squeezed myself back into the cockpit where Silver was waiting. “Look, it’s a bunch of rune guns!” I exclaimed. “This ship must have been important enough to have weapons stored here for defense, but nopony reached it in time.” Amazing.

“Sweet!” the pilot said. “Let’s get the others and test it out on the deck.”

“Deck?”

“Oh, yeah. There’s a ladder in here to the top deck, too.” He pointed towards a ladder at the rear of the cockpit. “It’s flat enough for walking, but the railings are kind of short.”

Trotting forwards curiously, I clambered up the ladder. The wind whipped at my mane as I pulled myself up onto the smooth steel of the ship’s deck, carrying the salty scent of ocean sky. Cautiously, I raised myself to my full height and looked around. My jaw dropped.

I blinked, stunned by the sight of the empty, endless horizon. The air was clear, and the clouds sparse. An infinity of water stretched out before me, its size matched only by the equally infinite sky. I turned, my hooves clopping gently against the metal deck. I turned more. The water and sky showed no sign of any end. And then I saw the Cloudwall.

A massive wall of rolling black clouds, stretched up and to each side as far as I could see. Flashes of light and distant rumbles marked the presence of lightning as it arced through the gargantuan storm. If the Cloudwall had seemed big from inside Equestria, it looked absolutely massive from the outside, large enough to compete even with the ocean and sky.

I was struck with a terrible sense of loneliness, even as Silver’s shadow came into view at the edge of my vision. In the course of a single day, my world had been both massively expanded and frighteningly contracted all at once. Now I only had my crew, myself, and my ship, in an endlessly empty world.

“Hey, you alright?” Silver’s hoof laid itself firmly on my shoulder.

I shook my head, managed to close my mouth, and swallowed. “It’s just... so much.”

“Yeah,” Silver said. Even though he was behind me, I could easily hear the adventurous grin on his face. “Great, isn’t it?”

I turned, meeting eyes with him. “You’re crazy, Silver.”

His wild grin only stretched wider. “What tipped you off?” He glanced back to the ladder. “Anyways, what do you think about showing the others those guns?”

I gathered the crew, handing out guns and a few bullets to each as they arrived on the deck. Soon the six of us stood in a rough circle, manes and tails flapping in the breeze, and only occasionally turning to get another glance at our new world.

Now that I held one of the guns before me, I could examine it more closely. A bolt on the side could be pulled to open a slot to stick another bullet into the gun, and it had a simple scope on top. It wasn’t a very large or long weapon, being mostly barrel, and had a firm, smooth stock.

“So, does anypony know how to shoot one?” Ember asked sarcastically.

“Oh, well that’s easy,” Silver said. “You just uh… just… hrm.” He pulled the bolt on his gun a few times, only managing to eject an unspent round uselessly.

Cleaver held his gun up to the sky, squinting at it suspiciously. “I see no trigger.”

I waggled the scope with a bit of magic experimentally, to no avail. “Have any of us actually shot a gun before?” I asked.

“Many times,” Cleaver said. “But this gun lacks trigger.”

Nix spoke up, standing a little ways away from the rest of the crew. “I think… I think it’s voice activated. You use a trigger word to turn on the magic in the runes. I’ve heard the rebels using it when they practice.”

“Well, what is it?” Stormslider asked.

“I think the word is… ignus.”

With a sudden burst of dim light, the gun in her hooves began to hum. She let out a startled squeak, dropping it and backing away. The gun rattled loudly as it vibrated on the metal surface, the humming and glowing steadily growing more intense until, with a surprisingly quiet woosh, a bullet shot out.

The bullet ricocheted off the deck, zooming away and bouncing off the railing.

Ember leaped out of her shocked crouch, advancing on Nix angrily. “Are you crazy? You could’ve killed us!” she hissed.

I rushed forwards, pushing her back. “Hey, calm down! Nopony was hurt, and now we know how to activate them! No harm done.” I glanced around in search of some way to change the subject. My eyes alighted on the clouds floating past us. “Why don’t we try some target practice?”

“On what?” Cleaver asked?

Silver scoffed, using his wings to balance on his hind legs. “The clouds, of course.” Wobbling slightly in the heavy wind, he balanced his gun on a foreleg, took aim, and spoke the trigger word.

A glowing purple round shot out of the barrel, streaking through the sky far wide of every cloud in the sky.

Stormslider laughed as the other pegasus fell back, dropping the gun in alarm as he lost his balance. “Some shot you are,” she said, raising her own rifle.

A single spoken word later, a bullet punched straight through the center of a nearby cloud, leaving only a gentle purple haze and a whiff of vapor to mark its path.

“Wow,” Silver said, climbing to his hooves. “She’s pretty good at that.”

And so the days stretched on, and the Cloudwall gradually drifted out of view.

As we traveled, the constant need for food, water, and maintenance drove us into a strict schedule. Stormslider flew circles around the ship all day, gathering the sparse clouds that hovered above the waves, stopping only to trudge down to the engine room for a few minutes. Silver Feather spent long hours in the map room, squeezing every cloud dry until he was dripping just as much as the clouds themselves. Cleaver spent his time finding food with a makeshift spear, made from a sharpened piece of deck railing and tied to a rope we found, throwing it into the ocean from the bottom of the low-flying ship and heaving anything he caught back up. Phoenix Down spent her days helping whoever needed aid with their various duties, and Ember trekked up and down the length of the ship, taking pieces from the sturdier areas to reinforce the increasingly severe structural wounds that had been inflicted upon the ship during the chase.

As for me, I was left with a guilty few tasks. I couldn’t help the pegasi with the water, I didn’t know enough about mechanics to maintain the ship, and I couldn’t really cook. All I had to contribute was my horn, and I put it to work levitating whatever needed levitating. I held pieces for Ember, helped Cleaver with his makeshift harpoon, and supplied Silver with a steady flow of buckets.

By the end of each day, when we gathered in the lounge and collapsed exhausted on our sparse collection of furniture to eat and drink what we’d managed to collect, we barely had the energy to speak to eachother. My hunger was so ravenous that I devoured my ration of fish within minutes, both relishing and hating the food at the same time. I could barely swallow it, disgusted as I was at the concept of eating meat, but I was so hungry that I couldn’t stop.

For the first week or two, my dreams were plagued by darkness, fire, and ash. I relived Moon Dream’s death, the discovery of Ironhide’s corpse, the harrowed escape from Harmony City, and all the other atrocities I’d witnessed firsthoof over and over, countless times. Eventually though, the constant exhaustion of the days built up to the point where I was too tired to dream, and I would collapse into a blissful unconsciousness every night, given a few moments of rest before rising to begin again.

The concept of time began to fade. There was nothing to mark it except for the sun and moon, and trivial thoughts like the day of the week simply disappeared. There was nothing to discern one day from the next; everything ran together. I began to ground myself not in the passage of time, but in the worsening state of my crew. We grew lean, with only a few fish to split amongst ourselves. Heavy bags formed under our eyes. Our coats became ragged and dull. Despite being free, I still felt like a tired slave under the Baron’s control.

Only one day managed to stand out from the others. I had been trudging up the central stairwell, exhausted as usual, the feeble glow of my magic surrounding a collection of recently emptied water buckets, when I heard a low roar from the back of the ship.

My ears twitched. I paused, raising my head from its half-asleep position near the floor, and was suddenly knocked off my hooves as a great force pushed me down. The stairs shifted around me, and my stomach knotted as I was caught in a brief moment of freefall before my back slammed into the hard steel landing behind me, four steps down.

I groaned, raising my hooves to protect myself from the onslaught of dropped buckets raining upon me. A few moments passed as I lay there, being pushed down by the mysterious force, until my mind finally clicked into gear and I realized what was happening: we were ascending, and fast.

I clambered to my hooves, leaving the buckets behind, and raced as fast as my tired body would let me up the stairs.

A minute later, I burst into the cockpit, gasping. Silver was there, gazing downwards at something underneath us from the swept forwards glass screen at the front of the room.

“What was that?” I asked, walking up to his side.

“Look,” he said.

I looked down, following his gaze.

“Sweet Celestia...”

Far beneath us, half-submerged in ocean spray, a behemoth fish was rising out of the water. It’s massive jaws were wide open, revealing rows upon rows of razor-sharp teeth, each one the source of its own waterfall of dripping saliva and saltwater. The teeth slammed together as the beast’s ascent slowed to a stop, and it began to fall back into the water.

I watched wide-eyed as its body rolled to the side, showing dozens of aged scars from battles past and a ridge of sharp barbs along its spine. A pair of small, sinister eyes rolled into view, full of hatred and intelligence. It wasn’t the look of a predator stalking prey, it was the look of a killer, a murderer that had failed to entrap his target.

A shiver ran down my spine as it splashed back into the water heavily, disappearing underneath the waves.

Silver stepped back from the glass and flicked his goggles off. He let out a heavy sigh of relief and gazed up at the roof.

“We won’t be flying low anymore,” he said.

More time passed, more water passed, and more hope of finding land passed away. I knew that continents usually had some distance between them, but airships were fast movers, and it felt like we’d already traveled the distance of a dozen Equestrias already.

Ember finished with the renovation of the quarters, giving us six decent-size rooms for us to call our own, even if there wasn’t anything to put in them. Now she spent most of her time on the increasingly flimsy balloon, trying to hold it together. We began to travel slower and slower as Silver was forced to divert forwards propulsion to upwards propulsion. Worse still, after the appearance of the sea monster, it was too dangerous to fish. Luckily we had a few days of fish stockpiled.

I just hoped we found something before we ran out.

We did.

I was sitting with Silver in the navigation room, trying not to get too wet as he filled buckets from a fresh harvest of clouds.

“I don’t understand this ship,” he said. “I thought we would’ve crashed into the sea a week ago, but somehow it manages to stay up.”

I yawned. “I thought you were keeping us up by directing our engines to push upwards?”

He shook his head, brow furrowed. “Yes, but we shouldn’t have enough power to keep the ship up like that. The balloon is practically empty and our engines are faltering, yet somehow we still float. It’s like the thing is made of air.”

I shrugged, climbing to my hooves. “The important thing is that we survive. I’m gonna go get some fresh air.”

Fresh air.

For the tenth time that day, I climbed up onto the deck to get another glimpse of the sky. Nothing had changed since last time, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The Omega was a small ship, and being stuck inside it for so long was driving me crazy. I stepped up to the railing and peered down into the ocean. How much longer until it all ends?

Sighing, I turned around and began to walk slowly back to the ladder. I paused. What was that?

I returned my gaze to the sky, squinting. There was a shape out there. A silhouette in the sky that was distinctly un-cloudlike. It had wings, but it was too small to be a pegasus. Surely Stormslider isn’t out that far...?

My eyes widened as I came to the sudden realization. My heart soared. I twisted around, practically fell down the ladder in my haste, and bowled Silver over. Water buckets went flying, spilling their contents all over.

“What are you doing?”he growled. He tried to wriggle out of my grip, splashing more water from his soaked mane, but to no avail. I grinned at him stupidly.

“Bird.”

He cocked a brow. “What? Have you finally—” he paused, locking eyes with me as if he had heard me for the first time. I stepped back and allowed him to rise into a sitting position. We stared at eachother.

“Bird?” he asked.

I nodded. “Bird.”

“Bird!”

“Birds!”

Silver leapt to his hooves, flapping his good wing excitedly as he let out a cry of elation that could be heard all throughout the ship.

“We’ve reached land!”

Land was close at hoof, and we began to hope again.

The birds were a beautiful gift. Not only did they herald land, but they also gave us a new source of food. On the day of the discovery we had only had two fish left in our stockpile, and they were the least savory specimens I had ever seen, even with my limited experience with meat. The birds were still meat, of course, and they didn’t taste anywhere near good, but they were food.

We would survive. We had survived the journey, though it had been hard. Sitting in the lounge the day after the discovery, forcing myself to nibble at some bird as I looked over my crew, I could still scarcely believe it. We were all exhausted. With the arrival of the birds, the stress of the journey was finally lifted. Our manes and coats were disheveled and dirty, but we were alive. We’d made it.

“Hey, why don’t we do something fun?” Silver suggested. He was lying on the end of one of the old, broken-in couches that had been in the lounge when we stole the ship.

Nix perked up from her spot leaning against the wall. “Like what?”

He shrugged. “We could try some target practice with the rune guns.”

She relaxed back against the wall, apparently uninterested in the idea, but the rest of the crew all nodded their agreement.

We spent the rest of the day on the deck with the guns and some bullets, able to work on something besides survival for the first time in weeks. Stormslider was a pretty good shot. She hit her target cloud more than anypony else, and even managed to hit a nearby bird. The bullets had some heavy punch to them, and the bird went flying away from the force of the impact. She kept looking at her gun as she fired, as if trying to figure out how it worked, and later went into her room with it and a clip of ammunition to tinker.

I was, of course, a terrible shot. I couldn’t hit the long side of a cumulonimbus.

As the sun began its descent, we came upon what I took to be the mainland. For the first time in what felt like forever, something besides blue occupied the horizon.

Our shadow came ashore on some kind of wasteland. I scanned the land beneath us from a window, but deep fog made it difficult to pick out much detail. A gust of wind blew a hole in the mist, and I glimpsed grey, lifeless earth. A mountain range ran parallel to the coastline in the distance, and the faint silhouette of some sort of city lay far up the coast.

“What do you think lives out here?”

I jumped, looking behind me. Nix stepped up to my side, eyeing the window anxiously. “What do you mean?” I asked.

“Something has to be living here,” she said. “I doubt they’re ponies.”

I turned back to the horizon thoughtfully. “I don’t know. I know dragons and griffons are from outside Equestria. Maybe there’ll be some of those.”

“Yeah,” she agreed. She looked at me and smiled. “As long as you’re with us, I think we’ll be safe.”

I furrowed my brow, confused. How can she say that? I’ve never led my crew anywhere but slavery and exile.

The wasteland passed below us. Sparse clumps of trees and bushes surrounded shallow pools of water, but I saw no animals. I found my mind drifting. Thoughts of Moon Dream, the rebels, and the fate of Harmony City passed through my head as I looked down upon the unknown world.

Suddenly, Silver Feather came bounding down the stairs. “Hey, Dissy. Get everypony upstairs. We may have trouble.”

“What is it?”

We were all assembled around Silver in the cockpit. He pointed upwards, towards another, smaller ship that I hadn’t noticed before circling above us.

“There’s another ship there,” he said. “They’ve positioned themselves above us. I don’t like it.”

Cleaver squinted up at the ship. “Those markings, what are they?” he asked.

Three distant, distinct booms sounded. A second passed. With a loud crunch, a massive bullet impacted the cockpit glass and ricocheted away.

Ember shouted an expletive, and Cleaver almost dropped his bottle in surprise. The crew crouched instinctively as two more bullets whizzed past us.

“Evasive maneuvers!” I shouted.

“Oh really, you think so, genius?” Silver replied. He leapt for a group of four large wheels, turning them two at a time. “Hey Diss, turn that slider all the way up!” He pointed with his good wing.

I ran to obey, shoving the slider forwards with both hooves. The ship shot forwards like it had been fired from a cannon, and we began losing altitude fast. I heard our attackers fire another salvo.

Silver shoved me aside, goggles down. “Thanks! Step aside now, please!” He lunged for a chain hanging from the ceiling and pulled it with all his weight. Our downwards motion slowed dramatically as three more bullets flew underneath us. He turned two of the large wheels, and we began to rise.

“I’m gonna put us into that mountain range,” Silver said, indicating a group of mountains ahead of us.

“Don’t we have any guns on this thing?” Ember asked. “What kind of crimelord makes a ship with no guns?”

“Storm, the engines!” I said. The blue pegasus nodded and sprinted down the stairs to the lounge. Shortly afterwards we picked up speed, gliding smoothly between two mountains into a narrow valley. More bullets flew past, bouncing off of mountaintops.

“Ideas, anypony?” Silver tugged on the chain again, and a bullet flew right past our noses..

“I dunno, ram them or something.” Ember suggested. The pilot found the time to turn and glare at her.

Luckily, our pursuers weren’t very good shots. Another bullet flew wide, hitting a mountainside ahead of us and spawning an avalanche.

The sound of tearing metal announced the arrival of a heavy metal ball as it slammed through our hull and into the navigation room. It ricocheted off two more walls, broke the table, and rolled to a stop, hissing quietly.

Ember’s eyes widened. “It’s a bomb!” Nix slid under the wreckage of the table, shaky hooves over her head. Cleaver dashed for the explosive, twisted on his forehooves, and bucked it cleanly back out the hole it had made. Half a second later, I heard a loud boom. The ship rocked to the side slightly.

“They are shooting explosive bullets,” Cleaver explained.

“Hey, thanks for telling us Sherlock,” Silver muttered.

C’mon, think think think. An idea came to my mind. “Get the rune guns and head for the deck,” I ordered.

“First good idea you’ve had in awhile,” Ember quipped. She squeezed into the hidden armory, and guns and bullets began to float out.

With weapons in hoof, Cleaver, Ember, Nix, and I climbed out onto the deck. Silver stayed in the cockpit. “I promise not to throw you off!”he called.

Our attackers had a much smaller, more makeshift ship than ours. It looked like somepony had taken a sea vessel, welded an engine to each side, and tied it to a balloon. The Omega was four stories tall and around 200 feet long; the hull of our pursuer’s ship could probably fit in the lounge, minus its engines and balloon. I spied several shapes moving around on its open top, including a griffon, idly spinning a grappling hook.

They fired another volley. The Omega dipped slightly, and I almost lost my balance as the cannon balls flew a few feet over my head.

“Shoot the engines!” I commanded. We all raised our guns, and the soft hum of rune magic and trigger words filled the air. The wooden hull of our pursuer’s stood no chance against the heavy rune slugs, which ripped through it easily. The ship listed to the left, and was then thrown into a wild spin as the failed engine suddenly exploded. The propeller flew upwards, cutting their balloon in half.

Bereft of propulsion and with no means to keep it in the air, the little wooden ship plummeted out of the sky. It crashed into a mountainside, rolled briefly, and burst into flame as the second engine followed the lead of the first.

I rocked on my hooves as the Omega slowed to a stop.

Cleaver leaned on his gun like a cane. “Perhaps we are lucky, and all ships here will be made of wood, yes?”

Silver’s hoofsteps sounded behind us. “Nice shooting, guys! Who needs ship-to-ship cannons when you have these babies, right?”

“Don’t get too cocky, I think some of them survived.” Ember pointed at the five winged shapes flying towards us from the wreckage.

“Oh, great. They fly. I’mma go get my own gun.” Silver turned and rushed back down the ladder.

As they approached I began to pick out detail. The closest two I recognized immediately as griffons, but the other three were completely foreign to me. They looked like the gargoyles I’d seen in paintings of the time before the Princesses, with sharp claws and wide wingspans. As Silver returned to the deck, brandishing his own rune gun, the five attackers flew up into the sun and dove down at us.

They slammed into the deck, weapons ready. Nix and I were separated from the rest of the crew, who had gathered into a rough line. They managed to fire off a quick volley of shots, killing two, before another two fell upon them.

The remaining griffon turned to me. He approached slowly, with a wicked grin painted on his beak. His wings flared, revealing the array of deadly blades fastened to them.

Nix dropped her gun and fell over in fear. I raised my weapon, finding myself at a sudden loss as to how to fire it. I desperately searched for some kind of trigger as the griffon charged forwards.

The griffon was only a few feet away when I remembered. “Ignus!” I screamed. The gun began to charge, but the griffon knocked it aside before it finished, and the bullet sped into the sky harmlessly as he continued to tackle me, driving me back.

“Stop! Please stop! I don’t want to fight you!” I beat his back with my forehooves as I fought to get a grip on the floor. The wind was knocked out of me as he pinned me down at the edge of the deck.

“But I do,” he hissed. He raised a wingblade for the killing blow. I struggled vainly to break free.

A bullet suddenly exploded out of his neck, splashing blood all over my face. His body went slack as the force of the round propelled it through the railing.

The griffon tumbled off the deck, and the claw stuck in my shoulder dragged me with him. I screamed as the weight pulled me over the edge.

I slid down the side of the ship, flapping my good leg wildly in search of something to grab.

My body spun sideways.

My right hoof slipped off the edge of the ship.

I scrabbled for a hold with my left.

The ship fell out of reach.

The griffon’s claw ripped free of its host.

My heart stopped. I found myself in the sickeningly empty, screaming abyss of freefall.

I thought I heard someone calling my name, but the wind carried it away. The ship dwindled rapidly above me. Silver’s head poked over the edge of the ship.

Don’t you jump. You can’t catch me with that bad wing.

And then a cloud blocked my view of the Omega, and there was nothing left but me and the wind. I fell past the clouds, surprisingly calm, tumbling head over hooves. I closed my eyes...

They shot back open. No! No giving up!

I twisted my neck, somehow turning my body to face the swiftly approaching ground. There was a lake beneath me. I felt my horn leaking magic as adrenaline surged through me. Time seemed to slow down.

I focused all my magic onto my body, but I couldn’t slow myself. It was impossible to overcome the mental barrier that stopped all unicorns from levitating themselves. On a frantic whim, I tried an alternate technique.

I reached out with my magic and grabbed the air, pushing it under me. The air resisted, escaping my magical grasp through every little hole it found. Nonetheless, I felt myself slowing down.

The lake was almost on me. I waited. I only had one chance, and the timing had to be perfect.

I put all my magic into one massive upwards push, from the lake up to me. The surface of the lake rose up underneath me like a fountain, slowing my fall.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to stop me completely.

And then the hard surface of the water hit me, and my world went dark.

Author's Notes:

And I'm
FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE... Freee- Fallllin'

Ch. 6: Perspective

“It’s getting late.”

“No, we can’t give up yet.”

“Silver, the sun is going down.”

“I’m not giving up on him yet!”

Silver Feather turned back to the cockpit glass, straining his eyes. He knew that Stormslider meant well, and that he shouldn’t have snapped at her, and that she was probably right, and that...

No, not yet.

He felt her place a hoof on his shoulder. “Silver, nopony can see in this darkness. If you keep searching through the night, we might pass right over him.”

He took a deep breath and leaned back, reaching up to feel the reassuring presence of his goggles. She’s right.

“Dawn, then. Tomorrow.”

She gave him a little smile. “Yeah. Tomorrow.”

The two pegasi spent a few silent moments together in the little room, amongst the machinery. Silver glanced up, and his eyes met hers.

She pulled him into a comforting hug, looking over his shoulder, out the glass, to the tapestry of foreign stars beyond it.

“We’ll find him tomorrow.”

“Daddy?”

My father looks up from his newspaper, smiling at me. “Yes, son?”

“When I grow up, I want to be an airship captain, just like you and grandpa!” I exclaim proudly.

“Hehe, is that so? Well maybe if you study hard and try your best, you’ll get into the Royal Aerial Academy. Then you’ll be well on your way...”

Consciousness returned to me in much the same way that a piano returns to the ground after being launched from a ten story window.

The first thing I noticed was the pounding ache that had established dominion over my body, followed shortly afterwards by a soft but scratchy surface against my back. What happened?

I opened my eyes slowly. I flash of pain shot through the back of my head, and I moaned loudly.

“Ooooh! He’s awake!” a high-pitched voice announced.

“Someone go get Colonel. The pony’s awake,” another, deeper voice added. I heard the sound of receding hoofsteps.

All at once, I remembered. The Baron. Harmony. The Breaks. The Great Sea. The attack. My fall.

My eyes shot open. In front of me was a hard, rocky surface. I tried to take a step forwards, and was alarmed to find gravity push my hoof back against the wall.

You’re lying down, idiot.

Ah, yes.

Consulting my prior experience with waking up after severe hits to my face, I decided not to try moving my head. The apparent presence of someone waiting for me to wake up was comforting. I relaxed. I was probably safe, for now.

They could be saving me for some kind of sacrificial ritual, after all. I don’t know what these ponies are like.

My pounding migraine was making it difficult to attribute any serious thought to the issue. I decided to cross that bridge when I got there.

The sound of multiple hoofbeats reached my ears. I assumed that one of them was the ‘Colonel’ I’d heard about, whoever that was. Hopefully he wasn’t some raging cannibal shaman.

A dull brown mare with sharp red eyes stood over me. Thank Celestia! Ponies!

On closer inspection though, she didn’t look like any pony I’d ever seen before. Her snout was wider and longer, and her ears had distinctive tufts of fur on the ends. Her mane was long and wild, half green and half black, and on what part of her neck I could see there were spots of darker brown and green fur.

“Greetings,” she said. “My name is Colonel. We saw you fall, and recovered you from the lake.” She glanced down the rest of my body. “Your survival is somewhat... miraculous, Equestrian.”

Lacking the ability to form a coherent response, I moaned my agreement.

“You’re injured and in need of rest, but don’t worry. We will take care of you until you get better. Then you’ll have to pull your own weight, or we’ll let Blood have you. You don’t want that. Her collection lacks a unicorn horn.”

Who are these ponies? I couldn’t decide if I wanted to feel safe or threatened. I let out a neutral croak of acknowledgement.

“Good, so we have an understanding.” She beckoned off to one side, out of my view. The movement revealed a pair of wings on her back.

“This is Pyrestripe. She will care for you until you can do so yourself,” she explained. Feeling strong enough to try movement, I twisted my neck to get a view of my caretaker.

Unfortunately, it was hard for me to get a good view of things. I was on one of a few empty bedrolls spaced over the surface of some cave, with water buckets and tables spread around. I couldn’t see much else though, as most of the room was blocked by the small throng of ponies watching me with varying shades of interest.

None of them looked like any pony I’d seen in Equestria, though. They were winged like pegasi, but they all had thinner, leaner bodies, with skinny bellies and prominent chests. Their legs were taller and more limber, and they had wide cheeks with large snouts, small eyes, and tufts of fur on their ear tips. But what stood out most about them were their coats.

All of them had some kind of markings in their fur. Most of them had stripe patterns running up their legs and necks, but I also saw large, scattered, spots and long stripes that crossed their entire bodies.

Colonel was pointing at a brown-furred one at the fore of the group. She had a deep red mane and a short tail, with bright scarlet eyes that glowed like fire. Inky black stripes ran up the fronts of her legs, neck, and cheeks, tapering off to sharp points at the ends.

Colonel trotted away, followed by most of the other ponies. Only Pyrestripe and one other remained.

Pyrestripe cocked her head. “What are you doing all the way in the Outer World, Equestrian?” she asked.

I don’t even know. She stared at me as I lay there for a few moments, too beat up to speak.

“Hm. I’m sure you can tell me later, if you don’t die. I’ll be taking care of you. I’ll bring you water and whatever you’re capable of eating, and make sure Blood doesn’t get you,” she said.

“My name is Blood!” the other pony exclaimed. She was a tiny thing, with white fur and blood red mane, eyes, and tail. She had patches of red fur on her knees. I couldn’t tell if her cutie mark was just a simple red splash or if she had a stain on her coat.

Blood brought her eyes right up to mine, smiling ear to ear as she focused in on my horn. “You have a very nice... horn! I don’t have any. Horns, y’know. I’ve never met a unicorn before! Can I have it?” she asked hopefully. Her quirky, high-pitched voice threatened to raise my migraine to new levels of pain. Her ecstatic shaking was starting to worry me, too.

Pyrestripe pulled her off like a mother restraining her filly as they passed through the toy section. “Back off, Blood. You can’t have him unless he dies or turns out to be useless. If that’s the case, maybe then I’ll let you have him.”

Blood pouted dramatically, watching me with a wistful eye.

Pyrestripe turned back to me. “Now you may have figured this out already, but Blood wants your horn. Watch your step. She doesn’t take things from living creatures.”

I nodded slowly. These ponies are crazy. I began working on escape plans. I could feign weakness while I got better, and slip out when their guard was down. But I don’t know this place. There could be anything out there. I couldn’t risk getting caught. Even if I escaped, what then?

I decided to let them care for me and try to earn their trust. Once I knew this ‘Outer World’ better I could come up with a better plan.

Pyrestripe raised a brow thoughtfully. “I wonder... what do you have for a lifemark?” She walked around me to get a better look at my flank.

“A scroll? A closed scroll? You’d better not be some kind of diplomat, for your own sake. That doesn’t work too well in the Outer World.” She turned to speak to Blood. “I bet you’ll end up getting your horn after all.”

Blood nodded enthusiastically. “Yes, finally!” She fell onto her back and began rolling around, giggling.

Sweet Celestia... save me.

“Hey, let me fill you in on something.” Pyrestripe leaned closer, lowering her voice to a whisper. “You’re not in Equestria anymore, pony. You won’t find love nor tolerance here, just war and betrayal. Everyone in the Outer World is for themselves first, and if you can’t help them alive, they’ll find a way for you to help them dead. Unicorn horns sell pretty well, and the folk here aren’t much for Equestrians. You’ve never been popular, with what you did.”

She smiled, and a shiver ran down my spine. I felt my heartbeat speed up. “You’d better hope you can help us out, Equestrian. Or we’ll kill you ourselves and sell your hide to the nearest rich goyle.”

Time passed. It was impossible to really tell how long, but I guessed it to be around a week or two. Pyrestripe kept up a constant presence, mostly because whenever she left Blood would come in and fix me with that creepy stare of hers. I didn’t like Blood.

I became well enough to walk and talk, but tried to hide it. Despite the earlier plan to earn their trust, I wasn’t confident enough to disturb the peace. So I stayed where I was, and pretended to be too weak to do anything.

But they didn’t fall for it.

Colonel came into my room, followed by a stallion I hadn’t seen before. He had dark, smoky fur and harsh yellow eyes. Most of his small, jagged blue stripes ran up the front of his legs, except for one on the side of his face and another across his snout. His wingtips were blue, and his thick, bushy mane alternated between blue and white. His cutie mark depicted a sharp, blue lightning bolt.

“It’s been two weeks, Equestrian,” Colonel began. “You show no sign of improvement, despite what our healer forecasted. She said you would be well by now, but Pyrestripe tells me you behave like a lame stallion. Do you know what we do with lame stallions?”

The new stallion stepped forward. “We kill them. So get the fuck up before I crush your skull.”

I jumped to my hooves, reserving no doubts as to the validity of his threat. I had a feeling my play for time had gotten me off on the wrong hoof.

“We aren’t stupid. I could tell you were stalling,” Pyrestripe said.

“Your name,” the stallion demanded.

“Dissero.”

“Hrm. Dissero.” Colonel eyed me over. “Well, Dissero, we’ve saved your life. Now what can it do for us?”

“Answer wisely,” the stallion sneered.

“Hey, calm down, Blitz. Equestrians panic easy,” Pyrestripe said. She trotted to his side and put a restraining hoof on his shoulder.

“Uhh...” What do I tell them? I had no idea what these ponies did. Would a trader be of any use to them? If what Pyrestripe had told me was any indication, peaceful professions weren’t much good. I opted for something more open-ended. “I’m a quick learner.”

Colonel raised a brow. “Quick learner? Very well, Dissero. We shall see just how quick you learn. Come with me.” She turned and made for the empty doorway carved through the cave wall. I fell in behind her, with Blitz and Pyrestripe behind me.

I took advantage of the opportunity to orient myself. Leaving the small cave that had housed me for the last two weeks, I came out in the corner of a much larger one. I spied several other tunnels carved into the cave walls, and spotted some of the strange ponies flying between them or chatting amongst themselves. Sunlight filtered through a wide hole in the ceiling, capable of fitting three ponies shoulder-to-shoulder.

I was led to a shallow, sandy pit directly beneath the hole. A pair of rocks formed a sort of broken circle around the pit, with shelves and racks leaning against them displaying a varied collection of weaponry.

Colonel stepped confidently to a rack and picked out two spears, holding them with her wingtips. I was grateful to see that the sharp steel points had been replaced with simple wooden balls.

She trotted into the center of the pit and turned to face me.

“Choose your weapon,” she said.

“Wh—what? I don’t know how to fight,” I stuttered.

“You say you’re a fast learner? Here’s your first lesson: you must fight if you’re to be of use in the Outer World. Now pick up a weapon, or I’ll beat you to death.”

Buck. Buck buck buckity buck. I looked over my choices. Practice weapons of all kinds presented themselves to me. Swords, daggers, spears, maces, hammers, and even wooden flails and blunted arrows. I didn’t know a thing about fighting, but I had knew that every Royal Guard was trained in the usage of a sword. It must be a good, balanced, weapon. Committed to the choice, I levitated a wooden sword to my side.

Colonel seemed to be surprised, but she quickly recovered. “I had forgotten that unicorns can levitate things. A sword? Very well, then. Come into the pit.”

I stepped out hesitantly. She spread her hooves and flared her wings. The sword hovered shakily between me and her.

“Defend yourself.”

She flapped her wings hard, raising her hooves off the ground and covering the distance between us with alarming speed. I stumbled backwards, slapping one of the spears away haphazardly and falling beneath the other one.

In an instant, she had both spears at my neck.

“Well, that was a pitiful display,” someone said behind me. I looked back to find Blitz, Pyrestripe, and several others watching. Blitz was shaking his head in disgust, and Pyrestripe was laughing quietly. I felt a push on my neck, and turned to face Colonel.

“Up. You’re trying again.”

“You’re sure you don’t want to come?”

“No, I’ll just... I’ll just watch the ship.”

Stormslider frowned, watching as Silver Feather stared out at the horizon. He was leaning against a wall coated with gauges, goggles down, no doubt remembering some old adventure from his foalhood with Dissero.

“Okay, then,” she said. If he wasn’t up to it, there was no point in forcing him. “We’ll be back before sunset.”

She left him like that, pushing the worry from her mind. It’s understandable. Give him time.

It wasn’t that she didn’t grieve, too. Dissero had been an old friend of hers as much as his, but she was well aware that there wasn’t time for grief right then. Survival came first. Emotion is a flaw in the mind of an engineer.

She passed through the lounge, down the rear stairwell, and joined the rest of the crew before the main hatch. “He isn’t coming,” she reported.

Ember rolled her eyes as she opened the hatch and stepped outside. “He’s starting to get on my nerves,” she said.

“Give him time,” Cleaver consoled. “His loss is not easy.”

The crew minus it’s pilot filed out into the fresh air, and Ember’s magic closed the hatch behind them.

The rest of my day was just more of the same.

Colonel beat me senseless, over and over. Worse, she somehow pinned me in a different way each time. She pinned me up on the wall, pinned me with my own sword, and even hung me from the ceiling. Then she cut me loose and let me fall to the sand.

“You’ve a month to learn. After that, we stop holding Blood back, so you’re fucked if you can’t fight.” She trotted away.

I lay on the sand, coughing and covered in sweat. Colonel hadn’t even been out of breath. Pyrestripe and I were the only ones left at the pit. The others had left one by one, each eventually growing bored of the beatings.

She walked up and poked me with a hoof. “Get up, Equestrian. I’ll show you where to find food, and where you’ll sleep.”

I rolled over and stumbled to my hooves. “Thanks, Pyrestripe,” I mumbled.

“Just call me Pyre.”

I trudged to the nearest rack and put my sword away, too exhausted to do it magically. Pyre led me to a relatively flat, open part of the cavern. A few other ponies were lounging around there, eating and chatting on mats and cushions spread over the rocks. In the middle of the cushions, a flat rock had been decorated with food and plates. My mouth watered at the sight.

“Serve yourself,” Pyre said. “One meat, one drink, and some greens. Don’t be too greedy.” She stepped forward and began to serve herself.

Meat? Ponies didn’t eat meat. It was an atrocity. Sure, we do it in times of great need but... this is different. They eat it voluntarily. I looked around. Three of the strange ponies were laying on a group of pillows, ripping big chunks of meat with their sharp teeth.

Ponies don’t have sharp teeth, either.

I grabbed a plate and stacked some recognizable fruits and vegetables on it. Apples, oranges, carrots, potatoes. I surreptitiously avoided the meat and unfamiliar stuff. I searched the table for water, but found none.

“No water?” I asked.

Pyre laughed. “Water’s harder to come by than booze, Equestrian. It does just as well.”

I settled for a thick brown liquid that, as far as I could tell, was mud. “Isn’t there a river or something around here? What about the lake I fell in?”

“That water is fucking terrible. Trust me, this shit is better.”

There were three distinct groups of cushions in the cavern. Most of the strange ponies there were eating in the one nearest the food table. The other two were further away. One was completely vacant, and a lone pony ate at the other.

Pyre and I sat at the vacant one. She began to eat quietly, glancing up to make sure I was still there every now and then. I was famished, but couldn’t really get into the eating mood. I nibbled at my food half-heartedly.

“So, what do you ponies do around here?” I asked.

Pyre stared at me, apparently amused at something. I cocked my head at her, and realized that the chatter had suddenly gone quiet. I slowly looked behind me, wondering what had happened.

I found myself nose to nose with Blitz. My eyes widened as his narrowed. This close, his strong scent was overpowering. “What did you just fucking call us?” he growled.

“Uhm...” I began. He grabbed me by my bandanna, managing to somehow pull me closer even though our snouts were already touching.

“Get this straight, pony,” he spat, “we’re not like you. We’re recusants. And don’t you fucking dare call us ponies again.” He glared at me harshly, and I did my best to look submissive and compliant. What’s the big deal with being called a pony? They looked like ponies, more or less. Meat-eating, razor-toothed, somewhat bent out of shape pegasus ponies. Deciding that now was not the time for questions, I nodded enthusiastically.

Blitz let go of my bandanna, and I fell to my knees, eyes down, praying to Celestia that he wouldn’t change his mind and kill me right now. These ponies—no, these recusants, are crazy.

“I’ll let you go this time, since you’re new around here. But next time, I won’t be so easy,” he said.

I noticed some of the other recusants giving me harsh looks. Trying to avoid their gaze, I turned to face Pyre. She was biting on some meat absentmindedly, smiling.

“You’re a real charmer,” she said.

I ignored the comment and crawled a little closer, lowering my voice. “So... what do you recusants do around here?” I asked.

She shrugged. “We’re bandits, more or less. The Outer World doesn’t take kindly to us. They think we’re thieving, merciless, immoral mercenaries. Which most of us are. But really, they don’t give us much choice.”

We continued to eat in silence.

I was happy to get my teeth on some vegetables again, but the sounds of the recusants tearing into their meat sickened me. I felt like if I looked up and saw one of them take another bite I would vomit.

It didn’t help that Blood came to sit next to me. I wasn’t sure if she was even eating anything. I tried not to look, but I felt like she was just staring at me the whole time. Staring right at my horn with that ridiculous, creepy smile of hers. Every few minutes she would creep closer, until I could feel her breathing on my ear. Then Pyre would give her a stern look and she would back off. The whole time I was worried I’d commit another social crime and everyone would come beat me up.

It was not the most comfortable dining environment.

It had without a doubt been the strangest day in Stormslider’s life.

The four ponies had ran a circuit of the small town they’d landed near, only occasionally looking up to make sure the Omega was still parked in the neighboring plain. They had passed bears and griffons and bartered with wolves, zebra, and some of those strange gargoyle creatures for supplies, but had lacked the financial might to get much of anything. Still, it was better than nothing.

Stormslider had her eyes fixed on the side of the road, watching the buildings pass by. She saw a trio of griffons examining a message board of some kind completely plastered with papers. She was too far to read them, but the words “dead”, “alive”, “pay”, and “job” seemed to be popular choices for the large print of the titles.

“Have we got everything we need?”

Storm wrenched her gaze away from the curious town to look to Ember, who was shuffling through the cart of goods being hauled by Cleaver. The big stallion glanced back with mild curiosity. Nix was hiding practically under his hooves, looking around her frightfully at the strange inhabitants of the town.

“Is there a chisel in this cart?” Storm asked.

Ember frowned. “No. Uh... there. That stall has one.”

The two mares made their way over to the stall, manned by a panting wolf. Storm noticed Ember looking at the same message board she’d seen earlier.

As they arrived, Storm set her mind to the twin tasks of haggling and not getting freaked out by the wolf’s fangs. Or by the fact that she was talking to a wolf.

“Mares! Good day! What are you looking for? My stall has everything you could ever need!” the wolf lied.

“Yes, yes.” Ember brushed his claims aside with an absent-minded hoof. “How much for the chisel?”

“Chisel? Ten coppers! A fine price! Discounted!”

Stormslider rolled her eyes. Every one of these merchants sounded the same. The only difference was the price. Would be nice if we actually had some copper.

“We don’t have any copper,” Ember said. “But I can offer you a piece of moonstone.”

Storm rummaged through her saddlebag and picked out a rune slug, presenting it for the wolf’s greedy eyes. She could tell that the wolf saw it as an object of value, as everyone else in this town seemed to. However, he didn’t seem to know that she knew.

“Ach!” He smiled. “Moonstone! For fifteen pieces, I will give you the chisel.”

Now it was Ember’s turn to roll her eyes. “I don’t have time for this shit.”

A small, almost impercetible glow encased her horn. With a soft clink, a candle on a shelf at the rear of the stall fell over. The cloth walls of the stall burst into flame with such speed that Storm wasn’t sure if Ember had stopped at merely knocking over a candle.

The unicorn levitated the chisel off the countertop, ignoring the wolf’s cries for help, and curtly returned to Cleaver and his cart. Stormslider hesitated, looking back. The wolf had left his stall and ran for the building with the message post outside. He barked at the trio of griffons and tossed a pouch at them. They caught it, nodded, and headed for the stall, wings at the ready.

She shouldn’t have done that. Still, Storm followed her to the cart. They’d got the chisel. That wolf was trying to scam us. He probably deserved it anyways.

She tried to ignore him as he lamented the loss of his precious stall.

After we ate, Pyre led me to a deep indentation in the cavern lined with bunk beds. “You sleep here. Pick a bunk that doesn’t look lived in.” She trotted away, leaving me to myself.

A lantern hanging lopsided from the ceiling struggled to spread some light around, to little effect. There were four beds, spaced equally along the cave wall. I tiptoed past a sleeping recusant and picked out a bottom bunk that looked relatively unused.

I crawled in and lay down, exhausted.

“Hey there!”

I jumped. Another recusant had been on the bunk above mine, and was now leaning over the side. He fixed me with a friendly smile. His long blonde mane hung beneath him, sprouting from a coat the color of dry hay.

“Uh, hello,” I replied.

His deep green eyes flashed as they caught a burst of lantern light. “My name’s Hunter, and you must be the Equestrian. Dissero, right?” I nodded.

“I saw you get the shit kicked out of you by Colonel. Don’t worry, if you fuck up enough she’ll give you hints,” he said helpfully.

I ran a hoof through my mane self-consciously. “Yeah, I don’t really know much about fighting.”

“Well you’d better shape up fast! You’ll get killed by the first fucker who sees you, waving sticks around like that.”

I heard hoofbeats, and Hunter turned his head to greet a recusant mare approaching us. “Hey, baby,” he said playfully.

She had a deep red coat and inky black mane. She was slender, even for a recusant, with black stripes on the fronts of her legs, a black snout, and a splotch of black around her tail. She’s gorgeous.

“Hello, Hunter. And hello to you, Equestrian. I am Navery.” Her voice was silkier than a filly’s mane.

I grinned like a fool, looking away from her soft amber eyes. “I’m Dissero.”

Hunter jumped down from the bunk above me, and I saw that he had brown stripes running up the fronts of his legs and another across his snout. He and Navery embraced briefly, rubbing snouts affectionately, before turning to face me.

“So, what’s your story? What’s Equestria like? How’d you end up in that lake?” Hunter asked. Navery sat by his side, seemingly bored.

“I’d rather not talk about it,” I said. I had had a hard day, to say the least. Leaving a bed for the first time in weeks only to be beaten to an aching numbness and threatened one way or another multiple times. Right now I needed time to think. I needed a plan. A way to learn more about the Outer World, enough that I could survive on my own until I could get back with my crew. I needed to learn to fight well enough to defend myself in what, from what I’d heard since arriving, was a hostile and dangerous land.

You’ll never find your crew. You’ve got a whole world to search.

I pushed the nagging thought to the back of my mind.

“Okay, if you insist. We’ll be leaving you, then,” Hunter said. He nudged Navery, and the couple trotted out into the main cavern, around a corner, and out of sight.

I stared after them blankly, lost in too many ways for comfort. My crew is gone. My ship is gone. Even my home is gone. I set my head down and closed my eyes, dreading what the next day might bring.

Fire. A building covered in fire. The flames lick out the windows and the smoke fills the air. Screams and sirens in the distance, the sounds of conflict and death. A young, inky black pegasus walks out of the flames, his eyes fixed to mine. His mouth is open in silent agony. The screams steadily grow louder. I rush to hold him, and the skin starts to melt away from his bones.

My heart was pounding. My fur was covered in sweat. I shook myself as I rose from the bed and put a hoof to my forehead, trying to push the image away. I could hear Hunter snoring above me, and the sounds of others sleeping nearby.

I also heard screaming, somewhere else in the cave.

I slid out of the bed, warily trotting out of the sleeping area to follow the faint sound. It led me to another cave, halfway up the wall of the main one. I climbed up using a makeshift staircase of rocky protrusions and poked my head inside.

Colonel was sitting there, calmly watching as a scrawny griffon cried. He was tied to a post jammed into the ground near the back of the cave. His ribs were visible through thin feathers, and prominent bruises covered most of his body.

What the...? I moved to back away, but one of my hooves hit a rock behind me. It fell down to the cavern floor, making an echoing crack that felt like it’d wake everyone around for miles.

I cringed as Colonel turned to me. Her eyes were covered by shadow, and her face somber. “Oh, it’s you. I was just thinking of you. Come, I want you to watch this.”

I hesitated, but she beckoned me closer. Her voice held a quiet authority that was hard to resist. I walked to her side, eyeing the griffon nervously.

“What’s going on here?” I asked.

“I don’t like griffons,” Colonel said nonchalantly. She ignored my question. “I’ve lost many good mares and stallions to them. They’re cruel and heartless killers.” She glared at the sobbing figure in the darkness. “They hunt us down and present our severed wings and heads to those who would pay. They don’t even do it for the money. They enjoy it.”

The griffon looked up and saw me. He reached out with a bloody talon. “Please! Let me go!” he begged. I took a step back, unsure of how to react.

“Silence!” Colonel snapped. The griffon shrunk back as if struck, returning his gaze to the floor and sobbing quietly.

“Griffons have a very interesting idea of reputation, Dissero. When one of them is captured, they refuse to acknowledge that they failed to protect their own. They leave them behind. And yet, the captured griffon still feels loyalty to his flock. It takes considerable... encouragement... to get him to reveal any kind of information,” Colonel said.

Blood stepped out of the shadows, from another entrance I hadn’t noticed. She was smiling like a little filly, pushing a bloodstained, wheeled table before her. I saw scalpels, corkscrews, knives of all sizes, tongs, pliers, and a myriad of other devices. A cold chill ran down my spine.

“Please! Just let me go! I’ll never bother you again! I’ll pay you! Please!” the griffon shrieked. He staggered away from Blood, pulling at his chain faintly.

“Come here, silly griffon! We’re going to have some fun!” Blood giggled. She ran a hoof along the surface of the table thoughtfully. “Lets see, what do you want to do first? I don’t think I have a beak quite like yours yet... it’s cute!” she squeaked. She grabbed a scalpel and approached the griffon merrily, beaming with excitement.

I averted my gaze. I’m never getting out of here alive. “Look at it,” Colonel commanded. I silently begged her to let me leave the place, let me go back to my bed and forget about this. “Look at it!” she repeated, more harshly this time. I obeyed.

The griffon was weakly trying to fend off Blood with his arms and wings. “Hey, stop that! That’s no fun!” Blood said playfully. She grabbed one of the griffon’s wings, pulling hard. He shrieked, flapping frantically to try and get away as she reached for a rusted bonesaw.

I leaned closer to Colonel. “You’re not gonna let her do this, are you?” I whispered frantically. Why is it so damn hot in here?

Colonel stared straight ahead. Her eyes were dull and her face blank. “I’ve killed many in my life. I’ve killed with my hooves, killed with my orders, and killed with my mistakes. It’s too late for me.”

Blood brought the saw down upon the griffon’s shoulder, humming to herself as she cut through his wing joint. The sound of the saw scratching across the bone made me sick. The griffon shrieked louder than ever before, his voice breaking as tears ran down his face. The severed wing fell to the floor with a soft thud, and blood squirted from the wound. I staggered to the side, caught myself on a wall, and retched.

“A long time ago, I was different. I had ideals. I believed that there was right and wrong. Those beliefs got others killed. Now I know that there is no right and wrong. There is only perspective,” Colonel continued.

Blood stepped back to admire her hoofwork and grinned briefly. “Wait a minute! You’re all uneven now!” she said, frowning. The griffon lay on the ground, feebly grabbing at his missing wing. “Don’t worry, I’ll fix you up real quick!” She grabbed a dull knife and pulled the griffon up to a sitting position with her mouth.

I tried to close my eyes, or turn my head away, but I couldn’t move. Colonel continued to watch, her expression unchanging. “I decided that, regardless of what it took, I would do anything to keep my recusants alive. I vowed to stop at nothing to protect them. Since then, I’ve come to realize exactly what that means. Exactly what I’ve had to sacrifice.”

Blood sunk the knife into the griffon’s wing joint. I heard a sickening crunch as she twisted the blade and pulled it out, stabbing the flesh around the wing over and over again. Blood squirted out of the wound and onto her face, dripping onto the rock below.

“I’ve done terrible things for my clan, Equestrian.”

Blood grabbed the griffon’s wing, now hanging limply from his side, and pulled it loose with a quick turn of her head. The sound of the bones cracking was drowned out by the griffon’s blood-curdling scream. I could see his broken bones hanging out. The torturer licked the blood off her snout and smiled.

“Now, how about that beak?” She grabbed a pair of pliers.

“No... please.... please let me go...” the griffon whimpered. He was beyond screaming now. Colonel calmly walked up to him and lowered her face to his.

“You know what I want,” she said softly.

The griffon shuddered. I stared into his eyes, transfixed, unable to look away despite wanting more than anything to run from the room. I saw his survival instincts struggle with his drive to protect the flock. He shook his head and closed his eyes. His feathers were stained with tears and blood.

“Very well, then. Have your fun, Blood.” Colonel turned her back on him and stepped past me slowly.

“I admit, I envy you, Equestrian. You come from a land where murder is nigh unheard of, and your only brush with death is at the funerals of the elderly. If I was you, I would do everything in my power to return to it, before you become something you’ll regret.”

Colonel’s hoofbeats receded to nothing as I continued to watch the grisly scene before me. Blood had pulled the griffon’s beak off with the pliers. It lay on her table now, cracked and bloodstained. The griffon was lying in his bodily fluids, his tongue hanging out of the hole in his face, as Blood cut his belly open. With an enormous effort, I managed to wrench my gaze away, but I could still hear his guts fall to the floor as Blood sang merrily.

I ran from the room, but the screams ran faster.

Author's Notes:

There's the gore!
Blood also enjoys baking.

Ch. 7: First Time For Everything

“You sleep well?” Pyre asked me.

“Yeah,” I mumbled. I had not slept well. I had barely slept at all. Any semblance of sleep I might have gotten had been shattered by gory, bloody nightmares.

“Good. You’ll be busy today,” she said. She beckoned with her head, and led me towards the eating area for breakfast.

I didn’t feel like eating, but I managed to finish an apple.

“Colonel wants you to meet the others. I’ll be showing you around the place,” she said. I nodded. I wasn’t really in the mood for meeting people.

“Hey, something wrong, Equestrian?” Pyre asked.

“I’m just feeling kinda... out of place,” I said.

She smiled. “Nothing wrong with that. You are.” She winked at me and flicked her tail suggestively. I ignored the hint.

We trotted to another unfamiliar side cave. This one looked much more artificial than the others, with a clean-cut doorway and a relatively flat floor. “This is where the clan eggheads pass their time,” Pyre explained. She led me inside.

The first thing I noticed about the room was the long table filling up one side, festooned with alchemical tools and containers of every size and shape. Burners, flasks, tubes, and a furnace competed for space. Most of them were shoved up against the sides of the table, with a select few given the privilege of being neatly arranged in the middle. The place felt like a chemistry class. Two recusant stallions were debating about something, standing before an empty flask and waving chemicals around at each other.

“This is a lesson. Not an experiment. Right now we’re making poisons, put the octaazacubane down and pay attention,” the green-furred, gray-maned one said patiently, waving a bottle of something in the face of his student.

“But Blight, just imagine what we could get if we substituted some into this process instead of the lipopolysaccharides!” the student implored, holding another bottle up. He was the biggest recusant I had seen so far, with grey fur and an orange mane. He kind of reminded me of Cleaver.

“That is not a toy, Flintlock! One false move with a sample that size and the whole clan will come down with—”

“Hey, ladies, you meet the Equestrian yet?” Pyre interrupted casually. The two arguing stallions turned to face us, surprised. Flintlock accidentally knocked down a flask labeled with a dreadfully long name, spilling a bright yellow liquid on the floor. It hissed and steamed as it touched the ground. They both flinched as the glass broke and put down the chemicals they had been brandishing a few seconds ago.

“Oh, hello. Giving him the tour, Pyre?” Blight asked. He glared at Flintlock. “Clean that up right now before you kill us all.”

Flintlock smiled sheepishly and grabbed a broom leaning on the wall nearby. “Hey, Pyre. Hey, new guy,” he said.

“Hello. I’m Dissero,” I offered, glancing at the hissing liquid nervously. I wasn’t a scientist, but the stuff looked like it was about to explode.

Blight walked up and shook my hoof. “Greetings. My name is Blight. I’m the poisonmaker around here. Over there is Flintlock. He’s supposed to be my student, but he seems more interested in...explosives.” He shook his head disapprovingly.

I nodded. “So, uh, what does that... stuff, do?” I asked.

“Don’t you worry about it. It’s very stable,” Blight said. Part of it burst into flames. “Do you mind if I get a few shavings off your horn sometime? I haven’t really been able to procure any samples of unicorn dust and I’m curious to see what it can do.”

I blinked. Why is it everyone around here wants a piece of my horn? You’d think that they had never seen a unicorn before. “Uh... sure?”

“Oh, great! I’ll be right back,” he said. He trotted through a doorway on the other side of the room.

“Blight was Colonel’s best friend when they were younger,” Pyre said. “They built this clan together. He could boss us around if he wanted, but he’s more interested in his poisons.”

Flintlock finished cleaning the spill. “So, Dissero. Unicorns can cast spells, right?” he asked.

I nodded. “Yes, but we’re limited by our cutie marks.”

Pyre stepped between us, grinning. “Woah, woah, woah, slow down. What the fuck did you just say?” she asked.

“We’re limited by our... cutie marks?” I repeated. Do they get pissed off over cutie marks too?

“Cutie? Cutie?” She fell over laughing. “You call them fucking cutie marks! That is the cutest thing I’ve ever heard!”

I blushed and looked away. Flintlock was snickering too.

Pyre recovered and sat up, wiping a tear off her face. “Listen. Dissero. If you want to be taken seriously in the Outer World, don’t call that stamp a cutie mark. Out here, we call them lifemarks.”

Right. I guess it is a pretty silly name for something to base your whole life on. Flintlock pushed past Pyre.

“So, what spells can you do?” he asked. “Anything explosive?”

I scratched at the ground shyly. I didn’t really have any spells to speak of, besides a simple navigation spell to determine an airship’s heading. But I didn’t want to look like a pansy. “No, nothing explosive,” I said.

He frowned. “Oh, that’s too bad. Do you mind if I get some shavings off your horn? I’ve never worked with unicorn dust before and I’m curious about what it could do.”

Deja vu. So far, three of the six recusants I’d met wanted my horn. “Sure,” I said.

He smiled. “Great. I’ll be right back!” He trotted away towards where Blight had gone. I heard him talking to someone else in the hallway, and an elegant orange mare stepped out into the room.

“Hey, Pyre!” she said. The two mares embraced briefly. “What’s up?”

“Just showing the Equestrian around,” Pyre said. The orange mare looked to me and smiled widely.

“Hey! I’m Faerie!” she said. She trotted up to me and gave me a hug. She took me off guard, and I didn’t react fast enough to hug back before she pulled away. Great, now I look like an idiot. “What’s your name?”

“Dissero.” I really needed a name tag. I was getting tired of introducing myself over and over. At least the mares here are pretty.

“Oh, that’s a cute little name,” she said. “How are you liking the Outer World?”

I fell off an airship the first day I got here, got ‘rescued’ by a band of crazy warped ponies, am constantly being threatened with a gruesome death, shadowed by a creepy little sadistic mare, and beaten by wooden sticks. Oh, and I just saw a helpless griffon get torn to pieces for nothing.

“It’s... wonderful,” I said.

She giggled. “I could show you a few little cubbyholes I know sometime, if you want,” she purred. She walked past me, briefly rubbing her flank against mine, and flew out into the main cave. I found myself looking after her, heart beating faster.

Pyre stepped into my vision. “You like what you see? I’m sure you’ll get your chance eventually. Just don’t die or piss us off first,” she said. “Anyways, knowing Flint and Blight, they’ve gotten distracted with something and it’ll be hours before they get out here. I dunno about you, but I’m not up for the wait. Let’s go meet Shatter.”

We left the room. Pyre led the way towards the sandy pit in the middle of the cave. “Shatter is our best martial artist. He usually spends all day practicing at the pit and sparring with whoever’s around. You didn’t see him yesterday, though. Colonel didn’t want him around, with you fumbling all over the place,” she said.

“I wasn’t fumbling,” I muttered half-heartedly. She laughed.

As we approached the pit, I began to hear the sound of metal striking metal. Ping, ping, ping, ping. It grew in volume as we got closer, never settling into any one pattern. I saw Blitz fly into the air, wearing a pair of wingblades, and then dive back down.

Coming to the edge of the pit, I found the source of the noise.

Blitz was flying, rolling, and running around his opponent furiously. He moved faster than any pegasus I had ever seen, striking, moving, and striking again. He ducked low, lashing out at his opponent’s legs.

The white recusant he was fighting moved even faster. He held a rapier in his feathers, expertly dancing away from Blitz’s attack and riposting, but Blitz was already out of the way, moving to attack from another angle.

“There he is. Looks like Blitz managed to coax him into a spar,” Pyre said.

Holy hay, I thought. I stared in awe as Shatter danced away from another attack. His hooves were a blur, each step precisely placed, measured, and purposed.

Blitz skidded to a halt in the sand, panting heavily. Shatter planted himself opposite, holding the rapier out in front of him confidently. They stared each other down.

Blitz flapped his wings, kicking up sand as he dashed forwards for another slash. Shatter dipped his head, slid underneath the wingblades, and lightly nicked his opponent on the neck with his blade.

Drops of blood stained the sand.

“Your loss, Blitz. Blood on the sand,” Shatter said. He slid his rapier into a scabbard on his back.

Blitz spat into the sand, ignoring the cut. “It’s no big deal. Let’s go again.” He flared his wings and slid into a fighting stance.

Shatter sighed patiently, but nonetheless reached to unsheath his sword.

“Hey! You two!” Pyre said, trotting between them. I followed slowly, getting a closer look at Shatter.

His ears twitched as he turned to face us. His slow, measured movements spoke of a calm composure and quiet confidence. His white fur contrasted with deep blue eyes and similarly colored patches on his legs and wingtips.

“Yes?” he asked politely. Blitz scratched at the ground impatiently.

“Cool off, Blitz. Go patch yourself up while I introduce Shatter to the Equestrian,” Pyre said. He snorted, looking to Shatter for backup.

“Go ahead, Blitz. We can do more later,” Shatter said. Blitz snorted and flicked his tail, flying away angrily.

“So, you met the Equestrian yet? His name is Dissero,” Pyre said. She waved a wing in my direction. I stepped forward, dipping my head politely.

“Hello,” I said.

“Greetings,” Shatter replied. He looked me over carefully, and I fidgeted nervously under his gaze. I got the impression that he was sizing me up for something.

“Want some advice?” he asked.

My eyes widened in surprise. “Uh... sure.”

He grabbed a practice sword and tossed it to me. I reflexively caught it with my magic and held it out in front of me.

“Colonel’s idea of teaching consists of swamping you with experience. She’ll beat you a thousand times and expect you to figure out what’s wrong by yourself. If you fuck up bad enough, she’ll give you a hint. I subscribe to more conventional methods,” Shatter said, taking a position opposite me in the sand pit. I braced myself.

“Loosen up,” he said. “The first key to surviving in combat is right frame of mind. You won’t fight well if you’re tense or worried.”

Makes sense. I tried to push away the terrifying image of being beaten by the best fighter amongst a clan of insane outlaw bandits.

“Second: stop thinking of your weapon as a weapon. Think of it as part of you, like your hooves. Think of it as just another feather on your wing. A feather you can use to protect yourself.”

I looked at the sword awkwardly, unsure of how to interpret the advice. Pyre spoke up from the sidelines. “Hey Shatter, in case you didn’t notice, he doesn’t have any wings.”

He cocked his head. “An extension of your... magic. Just another spell.” I nodded.

“Third: never allow your focus to slip. You must be aware of everything around you at all times. You must know the terrain under your hooves before you step on it. You must know where every immediate threat is and where your weapons are, always.”

I nodded again. This is getting complicated...

“Fourth: Practice. Fight imaginary opponents at whatever speed you require, until fighting becomes instinct.”

So is he gonna attack me or.... are we just gonna stand around and chat or what?

“Fifth. Stop thinking. Clear your mind and let your body think for you.”

What? “How am I supposed to focus, think of this sword as part of my magic, and be constantly aware of everything without thinking?” I asked.

“You’ll get it, eventually,” he said.

Okay then... “So, now what?” I asked.

“Now, you pay attention.”

Time passed. Over the course of a month I learned the lessons the recusants taught me. Shatter’s training session helped immensely in my bouts against Colonel. They became more than a desperate struggle to stay on my hooves. I even came close to winning once.

We began as we usually did, circling each other slowly from opposite sides of the pit. Only Shatter was watching at the time; the rest of the clan were off doing whatever it was they liked to do.

I levitated my practice sword in front of me confidently. I no longer feared her assault as before. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to keep her off forever, but I felt... prepared. Unlike before, now I was ready for it.

“Remember,” she said, “Don’t limit yourself.” She had been telling me that for the last few days now. She had been repeating the tip over and over, before each bout, and I knew she would keep repeating it until I learned the lesson she wanted.

Relax. I felt my muscles loosen up. My hooves slid through the sand. I waited for her to spring into motion.

Colonel flapped her wings. Sand rose into the air as she dashed towards me, hooves just inches above the ground. I held my sword out in front of me. Not a weapon. Just another spell.

A spear flashed for my neck. I sidestepped, and raised my sword to deflect the second spear. She flew past me, and we both whipped around to face each other.

I charged forward, swinging for her neck from the side. As expected, she blocked it easily, using her other spear for a rapid counter attack. I ducked underneath it, rising up inside of her range. She leaped back before my sword reached her, and it swept through empty space. I stumbled briefly, unbalanced.

She came running back the instant her hooves touched the ground. Her spears flashed in and out towards me with practiced expertise, and I stumbled backwards. I couldn’t find any opportunity to regain my balance amongst the fierce assault. My steps became uncertain and I found my sword lagging behind my thoughts. I could barely get it up to block each attack by the time I reacted.

Stop thinking so much.

I cleared my mind. My body took over, and my sword caught up to Colonel’s attacks. I gained confidence. We continued to exchange blows, blocking and countering as we traversed the sand.

Don’t let your opponent lull you into a pattern.

Fuck, I thought. I tried to break away, but I was too slow. She lashed out and tripped me. I fell onto my back and crawled away, frantically deflecting her spears. My sword was too slow. I couldn’t move out of the way when her spears slipped past my guard. I began to falter.

Don’t limit yourself.

Okay, how the fuck am I limiting myself? What assets did I have that I wasn’t using? Magic? I was already levitating a sword, and I lacked any other useful spells besides telekinesis. I didn’t even have a very strong telekinetic grasp or range. I just had a knack for levitating a few things at once.

Wait...

I risked a glance towards the weapon rack where I knew the swords were kept. I noticed there were two more practice swords waiting—

A spear grazed my cheek and slammed into the sand by my head.

I turned back, diverted a spear headed for my neck with my sword, rolled out of the way of her other spear, and directed my magic towards the sword rack. Unable to look for fear of getting a spear to the face, I groped around with my magic and managed to grab a second sword.

I brought the sword around just in time to block a spear slash to the head. Colonel jumped back, eyeing my new weapon. I climbed to my hooves, grinning at her.

Now I was on the attack. The second sword added a whole different dynamic to our fight. I was no longer forced to block two attacks at a time with a single weapon. I was pushing her back. It was fair now.

Why stop there? As we passed by the sword rack, I grabbed a third sword for my arsenal. It was hard to divide my magic three ways, and for a split second it faltered, but I recovered before Colonel could take advantage of the weakness.

She danced away from me, but I kept up the attack. Now she was scrambling to hold off my assault. I stopped aiming and started to just swing the three swords at her as fast as I could. It took all my focus just to stop them from hitting each other.

Then it happened. A sword broke through her defenses. She fell back, and within the second I had all three practice swords at her neck.

“My win!” I shouted. My heart was racing. Adrenaline filled my veins. My mind filled with images of my superiority.

She nodded approvingly. “Impressive, Dissero. But you seem to have forgotten the fundamentals again.”

I cocked my head. “What?” I asked. She gave me an evil little smile, and I saw her wing twitch. I looked down just in time to see one of the hard wooden tips of her spears hit me in an obscene place.

I yelped in pain and keeled over. She got up and dusted herself off, still smiling at me as I shuddered in the sand. “Be aware of your surroundings at all times.”

Despite the pain and embarrassment, the fight had still proven my worth to the recusants. Colonel declared that I was now capable of being useful to the clan, and then immediately put me to work.

It had been just a day since my martial breakthrough, and I was trekking through the mountains with most of the clan. We were all wearing barding or heavy clothes for protection. My barding was made of hardened leather, strapped around the legs and chest in separate pieces to maximize flexibility and movement, which recusants often relied on to survive. On my back I had three scabbards holding three arming swords. A pair of empty saddlebags bounced off my sides as I walked, ready to carry any loot back to the cave. My bandanna hung around my neck as always, with a backup knife strapped to my neck underneath.

At first I had cringed at the concept of wearing the skin of another creature, but Pyre convinced me that it was necessary.

“Why do I need this? How is this going to protect me?” I had asked. “I can cut right through this.”

“Trust me, Dissero. You can’t block or dodge everything. When you mess up, you’ll be thankful you had some extra padding to save your skin,” she had said. I tried not to think about it too much.

After a few hours of walking, we reached the bottom of the mountains. The wasteland I had first seen upon arriving in the Outer World stretched across the horizon before us. Navery looked up at the night sky briefly before taking the lead. The rest of us fell in behind her.

I walked between Pyre and Hunter, near the back of the group. Blight and Flintlock were in front of us, heads together as they argued over some chemical. Blitz and Colonel took up positions at our flanks, watching warily for any sign of life. Shatter followed quietly from behind. Blood had stayed to watch the cave, though I suspected that Colonel probably didn’t want her going out of control on the mission.

“So, where are we going?” I asked. Nobody had told me before we left. They had only said that we were going out on an “expedition,” and that I should be ready to fight.

“We have rivals, Dissero. There’s only room for one recusant clan around here, and we need to drive another one out. They came in a week ago and started fucking the place up, raiding every caravan that comes within ten miles. If they keep it up, the merchants will complain and before you know it there’ll be fucking mercs swarming all over the place,” Pyre explained.

“But don’t you guys raid caravans too?” I asked

“Yes, but not so much that we become a major nuisance. As long as only one caravan out of fifty goes missing, they won’t complain too much,” Pyre said.

I nodded, glancing up at the sky in the hopes of seeing the Omega. Nothing. “So why aren’t you flying?” I asked.

“Besides the fact that we have to take care of you? The sky is dangerous. You can be seen for miles around when you fly,” she said.

“So what’s the plan?”

“Colonel will tell you when we get there,” Hunter said.

We walked in silence for a few more hours, stopping only for a quick water break and a short conference between Colonel and Navery. After climbing to the top of a nondescript hill, Colonel called us to a stop.

She beckoned us closer, and we gathered around to listen.

“You all know what we’re here for,” she began. “This other clan cannot be allowed to continue as it is... but I would prefer to avoid a fight.

“Me and Blight will try and talk to their leaders. If they do not agree to leave, then we will be forced to kill them.”

I blinked. What? They wouldn’t... no. No, they wouldn’t kill a whole clan just like that.

“Pyre will wait on a nearby cloud for a signal from us,” Colonel said. “If they refuse, she’ll drop one of Flintlock’s flares. Then Hunter and Dissero are to kill the lookouts while we stall. They will have five minutes before I call for the rest of the clan to attack. Any questions?”

The recusants had no questions, and I didn’t give any voice to mine. We piled up our saddlebags and anything else we didn’t need to fight on the hill. Hunter pulled two cloaks out of his bags, colored in a dark brown and green pattern, and hoofed one to me. “You know how to be sneaky?” he asked.

I gulped. I was starting to get butterflies. “Don’t step on anything noisy and stay in dark corners, right?”

“Pretty much. Keep movement slow and minimal. Oh, and no magic. That horn of yours gets pretty bright,” he said.

“Then how am I supposed to... uh... deal with the lookouts?” I asked. I never really got a handle on the way earth ponies held things in their mouths. Or with their fetlocks. It was like... impossible.

He pulled a wire out of his bag. “Here,” he said, handing me the wire. “Sneak up behind them, and choke them with this. Once you start, don’t let up.”

Gingerly, I floated the wire into my upturned hooves. It suddenly occurred to me what the clan was asking me to do. I might have to kill someone.

An image of a bloody griffon flashed through my mind, and I barely managed to hold back the bile rising up my throat. I had never killed another person before. If Old Ironhide had been alive... would I have killed him?

I wasn’t sure.

Colonel and Blight trotted down the slope. The foreign clan was camped in a sinkhole in the middle of a shallow depression. A path leading down into the camp was guarded by a pair of watchers, armed with simple rifles and swords.

Hunter beckoned to me. “C’mon, let’s get in position,” he said. He led the way towards a patch of bushes near the sinkhole, raising the hood of the cloak. I saw Pyre fly up towards a nearby cloud as we crept forwards. The guards caught sight of Colonel and Blight and trained their rifles on them.

“We come to parley!” I heard Colonel shout. One of the guards yelled something down into the sinkhole, waited for a reply, and lowered his rifle. Another recusant trotted out to escort the diplomats inside.

Hunter and I reached the bushes, and we picked up the pace, making sure to keep our hooves on quiet surfaces. He beckoned me closer and pointed towards a small bush near one of the guards, and then to me. I nodded, pulling up my bandana and hood, and he disappeared into the darkness.

I crept forwards, placing my hooves with excruciating detail. I heard a twig snap behind me and froze. Nothing grabbed me, killed me, or shot at me, so I pressed onwards.

I positioned myself under the bush Hunter had pointed out. The guard closest to me was sighting down his scope at the stars as I settled into place less than three meters away. He looked bored.

The guard looked over to his buddy. “Hey, Pendulum. What time is it?” he asked.

Pendulum looked up at the stars and squinted momentarily. “1:43,” he said.

“Fuck, that’s it? Feels like it’s been hours.”

“Shut up and do your job. If you don’t pay attention we’ll both end up dead.”

“Hah! Yeah, right. What do you think of those recusants?”

“I’ve heard of ‘em. Stygian Clan. Leader is one of those ‘hide and survive’ fuckers. No balls, no gold, I like to say.”

“They’re just afraid we’ll cut into their trade routes. Greedy bastards.”

“Didn’t I just say to shut up?”

The guards lapsed back into silence. My snout itched, but I didn’t dare move a hoof to scratch it. A light drizzle began to fall, but the cloak kept me from getting too wet. I heard a loud exclamation from the sinkhole, but no flare fell from the clouds. Glancing upwards, I saw that the stars had moved halfway across the sky.What’s going on down there? It’s been hours, I thought. Did they manage to kill them before Blight could signal? For a moment I wavered between fear and relief. Maybe I won’t have to do this after all.

Then I saw it. A fizzling green light, falling from the clouds, shining briefly before sputtering out. The guards saw it, too.

“Hey, what was tha—” Pendulum’s voice suddenly cut off. Quiet scuffles and choking noises came from the shadows. The other guard drew his sword, backing towards me cautiously.

Here we go. I steeled myself. Don’t think about it. Just do it. Don’t let them down.

Despite myself, I didn’t move.

Go! Go go go! Shit! My body refused me. I looked down at the wire, between my hooves. Do it! The choking noise died down. Stop thinking! GO!

“Pendulum?” the guard called. “You alright?”

I rushed out of the bushes, heart racing, the wire between my hooves. The guard was peering towards the darkness where Pendulum had been just moments before when he heard me.

He tried to turn and raise his sword, but he was too late. I wrapped the wire around his neck and pulled hard. He gagged, rearing up, and managed to shake me off. I sprawled on my back. He fell to the dust, coughing.

I quickly recovered and leaped towards him. He rolled onto his back and raised his hooves to fend me off, but he was still fighting to breathe. I straddled him, pinning him on his back, put all my weight onto my forehooves, and pushed the wire into his neck. The guard flapped his wings frantically, scratching at my face.

His eyes stared into mine. I saw him realize that he was about to die. I saw him fill with regrets. Truths gone untold, dreams never accomplished, wrongs left unrighted, opportunities untaken. I saw him think back and realize hundreds of things he should’ve done better. I pushed down with the wire relentlessly as tears streamed down my face. I didn’t want to kill him. I wanted to let him live, but I couldn’t bring myself to stop. He started to weaken. His hooves fell into the dust. One moment he was staring straight at me, and then suddenly he wasn’t. I heard the last breath leave his body.

The life left his eyes, and his body went slack.

I fell over. I just killed someone. Fuck. I felt sick. The griffon flashed before my eyes. He’s dead. I stumbled to my hooves and into the bushes, retching. I was shaking. I couldn’t hear anything but the pounding of my heart. The rush of my blood. I was having trouble breathing. I started to hyperventilate. Fuck. I just killed someone. I couldn’t get his eyes out of my head! Dead. I couldn’t see anything else. I closed my eyes and curled up on the ground, but the terrifying image wouldn’t leave. Fuck! I heard Colonel call out, as if from far away, and the rest of the clan flying into battle.

Whimpering, I calmed down enough to notice Hunter standing over me. He looked worried.

“First time?” he asked softly.

“Yeah.”

He nodded grimly. “We’ll handle the rest.”

I just killed someone.

I looked back at the guard’s body warily. His eyes stared back at me. Those eyes. His mouth was open, as if still struggling for breath.

Murderer.

Crawling, I crept up to the body and tentatively reached out a hoof. I closed his eyes and mouth. Somehow he seemed less... I wasn’t sure. It felt right. I felt like I would shatter if I didn’t do it. I had to get out of their sight.

It didn’t help. Even closed, it felt like they were staring into my soul. Blaming me.

Murderer.

The festivities felt out of place.

The expedition had been a success. The clan leader had refused to move away, and we had killed them all without a single casualty. I had sat out most of the battle, curled up in the dirt, too disturbed to take part in it.

Now we were back at the cave. Although Colonel had disapproved of the foreign clan raiding so frequently, she had set no limits on what loot we brought back. The sinkhole had been full of booze, food, gear, and valuables. We didn’t have enough room in our saddlebags to carry even a third of it back.

Upon our return, Colonel had announced a gathering in the training sands. With the rest of the clan sitting in the sand, Colonel called me up to the top of an outcropping in the cave wall.

“You have learned our lessons well since your arrival, Equestrian. Tonight, you killed for the clan. You are now one of us. If you are ever in need of aid, the Stygian Clan will be there for you,” she had said.

Cheers and applause. A small, shameful feel of pride. I wasn’t sure if it was worth it. If I could go back, I would’ve asked to stay in the cave with Blood.

Now I sat on one of the pillows in the eating area, staring at nothing. The rest of the clan was celebrating the successful mission with booze and food. Blitz was engaged in a one-sided bragging contest with Shatter, Blight was explaining the intricacies of some poison or other to Blood and Faerie, and Hunter and Flintlock were in the midst of a drinking contest, with Navery watching silently. Colonel was nowhere to be seen.

Pyre trotted up to my side, holding a bottle in her feathers. “Having fun, sitting off to the side all alone?” she asked.

“I killed someone,” I said. Murderer.

She frowned. “Oh. First time?”

“Yeah.”

A few silent moments passed. She smiled. “Hey, cheer up and have a drink. Those recusants had some of the good stuff,” she said, holding out her bottle.

I grabbed it half-heartedly. “What was your first like?” I asked. I suddenly realized how personal my question was and rushed to take it back. “No, don’t answer that.”

She hesitated with her smile. “It’s alright. I... you get used to it.”

“Right.” I nodded and took a drink from the bottle. It burned on the way down, but the warmth that followed was surprisingly satisfying. “This stuff is pretty good.”

“Yeah, I think it’s some of that... what is it, Stalliongrad? From Equestria. Home sweet home, right?”

Despite myself, I managed a small smile. “Yeah... sure.”

Author's Notes:

Dissy kills for the first time. Now with a few changed words for added affect.

Really, that has got to be the best paragraph I've ever written.

Ch. 8: Wild Life

Five ponies gathered in a simple room, far above the ground.

They all faced the far wall, gazing somberly at the array of candles. They would have put up pictures, too, but they didn’t have any. Any pictures they may have had had been lost a long time ago, when they were enslaved by Robber Baron. They didn’t have any keepsakes to use, either. After their escape, everypony had just carried everything with them; they didn’t have enough stuff to really need to put it anywhere. So when Dissero had fallen off the Omega, almost a month back, he had taken all of his life’s possessions with him.

Instead, a simple sheet of paper was propped up on top of the shrine. Stormslider had written his name on it in her best writing. It was horribly inadequate. It was the best they could do.

Ember watched the ceremony with an almost detached attitude. What had the unicorn been to her? An employer. An escape. Yes, he had done much for her by taking her into his crew, and she had lived with him for years, but in the end he was just another boss. Not even a very good one at that. Although she did feel the loss, she wouldn’t exactly call it grief. He had always lacked backbone. With him gone, maybe the crew could now truly go somewhere.

One by one, they stepped up to say their last words. Silver Feather was first to approach the shrine. Tears flowed freely from his face, and his goggles hung limply around his neck instead of their usual spot in his mane. Even they were saddened by the loss. He bowed his head, whispering softly to the written name. His body shook, and it seemed to take all his strength to step away and rejoin the rest of the crew.

Stormslider didn’t cry. It wasn’t like her to show that much emotion. Nonetheless, her eyes reflected her sorrow. Phoenix Down could barely make the walk. She had bid everything on Dissero, following him out here into a strange and hostile world, abandoning all she knew, and now he was dead. Ember wasn’t sure if the gentle earth pony was troubled more by his death or by the prospect of having to live with four ponies she barely knew, in a world she had never seen.

It was Ember’s turn. She stepped somberly before the sad excuse for a shrine. No tears wet her eyes, but she still felt something for the dead. She had never really respected Dissero as a leader, but she had known that he always did his best. She bowed her head.

“Goodbye, Dissero,” she whispered. “Thanks for... everything.”

She took her place amongst the crew, and Cleaver stepped forward. He gave his last words, and then turned to face the rest of the crew. He filled the little room with his deep baritone as he sang a simple Stalliongrad funeral dirge. Nopony understood the words. None but him knew the thick language of Stalliongrad. Nonetheless, they felt them.

He finished, and the survivors dispersed quietly. Ember waited for the others to leave, silently listening to the words of the ship as it floated through the air. It sounded somewhat subdued. Even his ship, it would seem, mourned Dissero’s death.

Silver hung back, eyes fixed to the hard metal he stood upon. The floor was wet beneath his forehooves. He looked up and took a deep breath, glancing towards Ember.

“He can’t be dead,” he said.

Ember sighed patiently. She had been through this before. A part of her wanted to walk out on the pegasus, to go and talk with the engine, but she knew that he needed her right now. “We’ve searched for over a month, Silver, with no signs of him.”

“I know, but... I just feel like if he was dead I would... feel it.”

She cocked her head. Ponies never made any sense to her mind. “I think you’re definitely feeling something. Face reality, Silver. Dissero is dead, and we need to move on. You need to move on. If not for yourself, then for us. We need you to fly the ship.”

He stomped a hoof down, his good wing flapping angrily. “What about him?” he snapped. “We can’t give up on him! He could be out there, lost and afraid, and we’re going to just... move on?”

Ember stepped forward, coming nose to nose with the distraught pegasus. “What do you expect?” she shouted. “Do you think we can just spend the rest of our lives searching for a body, to get some fucking peace of mind?”

“He would have done it for us!” Silver replied, raising his voice to match hers. She didn’t need this yelling, she hated yelling. How she longed for the calm reason of machinery!

“He was a fool! A goddamn fool that led us into slavery, and then to this! We’re better off without him!”

Silver leaped on Ember, pinning her down, teeth bared. “How dare you!” he snarled. “After all he’s done for you! You would be dead if it wasn’t for him, and now you want to abandon him!”

“Silver, get the fuck off of me,” she said calmly. Her cool voice made a stark contrast to the fury within her. Pounce on her, will he? Lucky for him that she wouldn’t hit a grieving ally! A tense moment passed between the two.

Trembling, he backed off. The tears had returned to his eyes. Ember climbed to her hooves, listening to the sound of Silver’s hooves as he walked out of the room. He closed the door behind him.

Ember shook her head. She would have to get these ponies under control. Their grief would be the death of them. Her ears twitched as the engine hummed a little louder, at the rear of the ship. It was worried about the crew.

“Yes. I know,” she said, patting the wall affectionately.

She snuffed the candles on the way out.

I was exhausted.

Where am I?

I was starting to get tired of this thing with the unknown beds and the waking up and the lack of memory. Where was I? What would I face when I opened my eyes?

A massive headache, that’s what. Sweet Celestia, that hurts.

Focus. I ran through what I could remember from last night. There was the raid, and then the party, and then the drinking, and then… Oh. Oh no.

Drinking was bad. I had never been the type to hold my booze in well and Silver Feather wasn’t around to play wingpony anymore. I prayed that I hadn’t done anything I might regret, let out a hoarse moan, and rolled over.

I came snout-to-snout with Pyrestripe.

“Why hello, Dissero,” she purred.

Well, that was unexpected. I felt my cheeks warming as my pulse quickened. My eyes darted side to side in search of escape. I was in one of the recusant’s rooms, probably one of the mares, but I wasn’t sure which and was in no way capable of reasoning it out right now. A thousand thoughts raced through my mind and yet at the same time I found it impossible to think. I desperately grasped for something to say, and leaped for the first thing that came to mind.

“Uhm… good morning,” I croaked. I noticed her tail wrapped around one of my hind legs.

She smiled sweetly and slid out of the bed, offering an excellent view of her flanks as she stretched.

“You enjoy the party?” she asked.

“I’m… not… sure…” I managed to say. I was starting to have some trouble breathing. I didn’t know if I was pleased or ashamed, but I was certain that I wanted to remember what happened. I just felt so let down about it all, kind of like reading a great book, forgetting the whole plot, and missing out on all the juicy details.

“I know I did.” She licked her lips. “You Equestrian stallions are… so much more satisfying.”

“What happened, exactly?” I asked. A triumphant sense of satisfaction sparked within me as I stifled my stutters. I spotted an exit, but Pyre was standing in my way.

“Oh, you know. You got drunk. You really open up when you’re drunk, Dissy. A real party animal.” She giggled and looked away wistfully.

“Oh…” I rolled over again, too shy to look at her, and noticed Faerie sleeping next to me. I almost fell off the bed.

She raised her head groggily. “Wha… time for round six?” she asked.

Round six!? What the fuck! “Uhm… No, thanks I was... just…” I crawled out of the bed and stumbled for the doorway. Wow, the air was really thick in here. And dark. The ground started moving in a way I found to be disturbingly un-groundlike.

“I was… just leaving…” I said, having some difficulty figuring out which way was gravity.

Hunter appeared in the doorway. “Hey, Dissero, wanna go hunting?”

“Yes!” I exclaimed. I almost fell on him, and I took some time to steady myself. “I love hunting! Favorite thing ever,” I added enthusiastically.

He cocked his head, raising a brow. “Okay… well, come on then.”

He turned, and with a breathless farewell to the mares I shuffled after him. My knees were shaking, and I kept falling to the side, having to catch myself on the walls.

“Uh, you okay, buddy?” my savior asked as we emerged into the main cave.

“Yeah,” I said with the voice of someone who was completely not okay and was trying desperately hard not to look like a total wimp who can’t even handle waking up with two mares he hardly knows.

He grinned. “So, guess you had an exciting night, huh?”

I shook my head, wide-eyed and confused. “I… I don’t even know. I think I’m gonna… I dunno.” I moved to walk away, but he blocked my passage.

“Whoa, now. You promised me we’d go hunting,” he said, pushing me back. “And hunting we will go.”

I just want to lie down, really, I protested silently.

“Grab your stuff and meet me at the sandpit in ten minutes.”

“What do you know about guns?”

Hunter and I crouched in the undergrowth, hiding under the shade of one of the many trees that covered the Stygian clan’s home valley with green. We both wore our barding and weapons of choice, but Hunter had added a bow to his repertoire, as well as the gun which was lying before me now.

“Well, you point them at things, and shoot them, and it kills them. That’s about it,” I said. I had calmed considerably since my distressing morning, putting my mind into the intricate climb down the mountain. It felt good to be out in the woods. I hadn’t done anything like this for a long time.

He nodded. “More or less. Do you know how they work?”

“Not really. We have something like this back home. It uses a spell to propel the bullet.”

“Ah, magic. I hear you Equestrians are big on that, but you won’t find much of it over here. Anyways, our guns are somewhat different. When you pull the trigger, it lights a spark, creates an explosion in the barrel, and pushes the bullet out.”

I raised a brow skeptically. “That sounds dangerous. And dirty.”

“It is. You have to be careful you maintain good guns, and you shouldn’t try using any unfamiliar guns you happen to come across. They’ll blow up in your face.”

"Is the technology flawed?”

“Not exactly. It’s just… new, kinda. Most guns are just clobbered together wrecks made by amateurs. You’d be better off if you only took guns with this mark.” He pointed to the butt of the gun, and I picked out an emblem of a shining sun, with a single line through the middle.

“What does that mean?” I asked.

“Means its a good gun. One you can trust. Anyways, we best get going if we want to catch anything. Here.” He held the gun out, and I levitated it into a sheath strapped to my side.

With a flap of his wings, Hunter was in the trees. He leapt silently from branch to branch, using his wings to aid his travel, while I followed on the ground, body low and eyes scouring the forest.

After some time, Hunter landed next to me. “There’s a herd of deer in a clearing to the south. You creep up to the north edge, and I’ll fly around and drive them to you.”

I nodded, and soon I was trotting through the woods on my own. The walk to the clearing’s edge only took ten minutes, and soon I was hidden amongst the bushes. I pulled the gun out of its sheath, taking a moment to watch how the sunlight gleamed off the strange emblem, and set it down before me. I was ready to fire.

My ears twitched at the sound of thundering hooves. I squinted as a small herd of deer turned a corner, sprinting straight towards me.

With a glimmer of magic, I took aim.

I was so intent on the shot that at first I didn’t notice the hissing coming from the trees behind me. I turned around, curious, just in time to see something lunging for my face.

I threw myself away, rolling into the clearing and holding the gun out before me. From the corner of my eye I noticed the herd of deer turning away. Shit. The hunt was ruined.

“Hunter?” I called, eyeing the creature nervously. Ten more just like it emerged from the trees, spreading out to surround me. I began to take cautious steps backwards.

“Hunnnteeerrrrrr?” A little louder this time.

I almost couldn’t hear him over the wind. “Raptors! Run away!”

Good enough for me.

I fired the gun, flinching as it kicked back and struck me hard on the shoulder. The raptor's scream barely reached my ringing ears as I sheathed my gun, turned tail, and ran through the smoke left by the shot.

It took all of ten seconds for one of them to catch up and pounce on me.

I screamed as the talons dug into my sides, reflexively bucking the creature off of me. It fell off, tearing away my flesh with it. I drew one of my swords and impaled its neck before it could get back up.

My sides burned. I could barely walk with the pain. I turned around, drawing my other two swords, and tried to figure out how I was going to defend myself against nine of these ravenous Outer World beasts.

Hunter fell from the sky, cracking one’s spine with his landing and leaping onto another, knives bared. He rolled away from it, turning towards me for half a second.

“Go! I’ll distract them!”

I limped away as fast as I could, trying to ignore the searing sensation in my sides as I made for the trees. Upon reaching them I skidded to a stop and looked back, hoping Hunter could handle the beasts.

He was doing fine. But four of them had broken off and were heading straight for me. Time to run again!

I galloped through the forest, dodging trees and jumping over fallen logs, slowed by my attempts to keep weight off my injured leg. The soft sound of raptor claws tearing through the earth behind me spurred me on, but they were catching up. I couldn’t outrun them. My heart pounded as I searched frantically for a way out. I couldn’t climb trees. I couldn’t hide. I couldn’t fight. They would surround me and pounce all at once.

Unless I could find a way to funnel them to me, and take them on one at a time.

I angled my path towards the mountain closest to me. The raptors didn’t look like they were very good climbers; their claws may get grip, but their tiny forelegs wouldn’t be able to grab anything. I could climb up onto a ledge, and pick them off as they tried to follow..

Bursting out of the trees, I stopped before the mountain to briefly catch my breath. There was nothing to climb. The mountainside here was nothing but a sheer and steep cliff. I cursed under my breath.

I spied a cave, and made for that instead. They wouldn’t be able to surround me in there. It wasn’t what I had been hoping for, but it would do.

Stepping over a fallen sign and entering the cave, I turned around to face my attackers. I slid into a defensive crouch as I drew my blades, ready to fight to the death.

The raptors didn’t seem nearly as eager. The squawked in alarm and skidded to a stop at the treeline. They chattered to each other nervously, pacing side to side but refusing to come any closer.

I grinned. Smart little bastards. They were too afraid to attack me! Weren’t willing to take me on in a fair fight! I stepped forward, snarling.

“Well? Come at me, then!”

They quieted down, backing into the trees as they eyed me warily.

Wait… they’re not looking at me… Oh, fuck.

I glanced down at the sign. Beware of Baron. Slowly, I turned to face the inside of the cave, coming face to face with the largest and most terrifying mouth I had ever seen.

Rows upon rows of gleaming white teeth lined a massive wet hole at least twice my size. Saliva and disgusting green fluid dripped from the teeth on top, and formed into little puddles around the teeth on the bottom. The monster let out a breath, and the nauseous scent that emerged from the shaded depths made me gag. Then, it roared at me.

The sound alone was bad enough. It was the sound of imminent death. Even without the mighty wind that accompanied it, it still would have pushed me back onto my rump from fear alone. It was like being in the Breaks all over again, like the roar of a thousand thunder clouds. It engulfed my entire being. I felt a warm liquid pooling around my rear.

Saliva flew out of its mouth with the roar, and when I came to my senses I was covered in the sticky slick stuff. I would’ve thrown up right there if some wiser part of my mind hadn’t decided that there were more important matters at hoof.

The mouth reared back, and my eyes widened.

“HUNTER!” I leaped to the side as its mouth slammed into the ground where I had just been standing. I shrieked, backing up against the cave wall. I looked out through the exit and saw the raptors waiting patiently for dinner to be served. My heart sank.

The cheeky bastards had known the whole time!

The monster rose for another strike, and I turned my focus to survival. It lunged, and once again I rolled away with just a few inches to spare. I could feel the thing’s mouth as it flew past, and the shockwave as it hit the cave wall pushed me off my hooves. This was not the time to be thinking about the raptors.

As the monster struggled to recover from the miss, I was able to get a clear look at it for the first time. Some of it was underground, with what I was fighting now rising from a burrow in the middle of the cave, but from what I saw it was some kind of giant worm. Jumping up, I sprinted to its side and stabbed a sword through its armored sides.

No, wait. The sword broke.

Well, fuck.

Luckily, it didn’t seem to notice my attack. I ran back to the cave wall, preparing myself to dodge another strike. Just like before, it lunged straight at me, and I was able to jump away. The monster may have been strong, but it was hardly an innovative beast.

I dashed to its side, gritting my teeth through the pain of each step. This time I stuck the sword under one its massive scales, working it back and forth to try and loosen it. But I took too long, and the monster rose up and tried to smash me with its heavy body.

I leapt forwards, barely making it out. I pulled my tail out from under the great weight and moved away. If it lunged for me again, I could get back at the scale.

Predictably enough, it did. I was getting the hang of things. I managed to jump away at the right time to put plenty of space between me and its fearsome ring of teeth. I almost chuckled! I got this! As long as I didn’t let it tire me out or hit me, I could win.

I rushed back to the same scale, prying it up with the sword. The blade broke. I tossed the pieces aside and grabbed the scale with my hooves, pulling with both might and magic.

I felt something give, but I couldn’t pull it all the way off. Panting, I ran back to the cave wall to prepare for another strike.

Hunter grunted as he pulled his daggers out of the corpse of the last raptor.

He had killed five raptors. Excellent. Even if the deer had gotten away, he at least had these. He rolled his shoulders and cleaned his blades on some grass. Something was nagging at him. He cocked his head thoughtfully.

Weren’t there nine raptors at first?

He glanced around. There were definitely only five bodies, but he was certain there had been nine of them.

Off in the distance, faintly, he thought he heard someone calling his name.

His eyes widened. Where’s the Equestrian...? Damnit.

With a powerful flap of his wings, he was off. He simply would not allow that naive bastard to get himself killed. That wouldn’t be any good at all.

So the fight went on. Over and over, the monster lunged for me, stupidly smashing its head into the rock behind me, and I would rush up and do whatever I could to loosen the scale. The wound on my shoulder wasn’t helping. I felt myself slowing down. This is taking too long!

Again, the mouth smashed into the wall. Again, I ran up and tried to pull the scale off. I braced my hind legs against its body, pulling with all the power I could muster from both body and mind.

A crack echoed through the cave, and it finally broke away.

I fell back, landing hard on the rocky ground, and raised my last remaining sword. It plunged easily into the monster, slipping through the exposed skin like butter. The monster roared and reared up, seeming surprised that I had managed to hurt it.

The movement pulled the sword out of my reach, and I scrambled back for the cave wall. I waited for it to topple over. For it to bleed out, release a moan of agony and die.

It roared the roar of a beast that had been stabbed by a tiny little sword and was starting to get pissed at the little pony that simply refused to be eaten.

My heart sank. All that work for nothing. It reared up again, and I prepared myself for another dodge. My mind raced as I tried to figure out some kind of plan.

But it didn’t lunge this time. Instead, it spat. I was so surprised I almost forgot to dodge. Too slow. Some of the green spit landed on my flank as I jumped away. I yelped as it began to sizzle and burn. Now the thing is spitting acid!

It lunged again, and I just barely avoided getting chomped. The acid hurt one my good legs, and it wasn’t able to hold weight. I toppled over, trying to drag myself away, but something was holding my tail!

I screamed as I was lifted into the air. The monster hissed in delight, pleased that it had finally managed to capture the pesky little pony.

“HUNNNTTEEERRRRR!!”

Suddenly I was falling. I shrieked and closed my eyes, waiting for thousands of teeth to sink into my flesh.

“Oof!” My face slammed into the cave floor. I spent a few seconds lying there, dazed from the impact.

I looked up to see Hunter flying above me, daggers bared, brow furrowed, flashing a confident smile. “I see you found our resident baron!”

“Just kill it, for the love of Luna!”

The monster roared in fury, expressing great disappointment towards the tiny recusant that dared to interrupt its meal time.

With a flap of his wings, Hunter dove into its mouth. My heart stopped. That stallion is insane!

A few scales exploded off the monster’s side, and Hunter popped out, covered in blood and gore but otherwise unharmed. He took a breath and dove back in. The beast roared in pain.

Suddenly, it went quiet, moaned softly, keeled over, and died.

Tentatively, I climbed to my hooves and looked into its gaping maw. I squinted, trying to pick out details through the darkness.

Hunter flew out lazily, daggers bloodied and body coated in all colors of the gore rainbow. He landed next to me and slapped me on the back. I cringed as all sorts of inside parts were rubbed into my coat.

“Well, that was fun, wasn’t it?” he asked cheerily.

I looked over to him, mouth wide open, and managed to get out a grunt of resigned agreement.

“You must be tougher than I thought, to survive that long against one of these babies.”

I poked one of the monster’s teeth with a hoof. I drew back, hissing. The tooth was razor sharp, and coated with the burning acid.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t touch that if I were you. Baron teeth still make acid, even after death,” he said.

I shook my head in disbelief. “What is this thing?”

He chuckled. “It’s a baron wurm! It’s what you get when you leave the local wurm population untended. One of them rises to dominance, and pretty quickly grows into something like this.”

I pointed to the exit, where the raptors were lying dead. “What are those things?”

“Raptors. Pretty common in the Outer World. You can find them almost anywhere you can find prey.”

I nodded sagely, taking a few seconds to work it all out in my head. “This place is fucking insane…”

“Yeah, you could call it that. Too bad we missed out on the deer. Bad luck, with the raptors. But hey, we still caught something!” He gave the dead wurm an appreciative kick.

I sat down and sighed. I took a big breath, and then another one. I lay down on my back and looked up at the rocks above me. I had thought I was dead back there.

“Yeah. Sure.” The Outer World was definitely not the place for a pony like me.

Author's Notes:

Oh, Hunter. He just gets so forgetful sometimes.
But really, don't you hate it when you go hunting with someone that can't even kill a few raptors?

Ch. 9: Flight

“Blitz isn’t gonna believe this,” Hunter said, dragging the now-removed heart of the baron wurm behind him.

“Why not?” I asked. We jumped down a small drop, and I hissed as the impact made my shoulder flare up.

“He’s always kinda thought that you’re just some Equestrian wimp who’s gonna die his first day outside.” He stopped momentarily to look up and stretch.

“Well, I almost did.”

Hunter grinned. “Good thing, too. He and I had a bet over whether or not you’d survive the hunt. Thanks.”

“What?” I shook my head in disbelief. “I almost died back there!”

“Well, yeah,” he said. “But you didn’t, and I made some money. An even trade. Hey, we should go hunting more often!”

“No thanks.”

The recusant chuckled. “Don’t worry, buddy. I wouldn’t want to lose my bet!”

I sighed. This place is going to be the death of me. I took a second to reflect on the thought, and realized that I had never used that phrase before and actually meant it. Disturbing.

Somewhere in the distance, an eagle called. Hunter’s ears twitched, and he suddenly leaped off of the ground, flying up above the treetops and leaving the wurm heart on the leaves.

“What is it?” I asked, peering upwards.

“Never ignore an eagle’s call, Dissero.” He poked his head back under the leaves. “Griffons found us! Hurry up and get back to the cave. Try not to get killed!”

At that, he flew away, leaving me alone amongst the trees. I looked around nervously. So far everything I’d run into out here tried to kill me, and I was getting the creeping feeling that some new predator would leap out of the bushes, teeth bared.

I suddenly realized the full weight of Hunter's words. Griffons had found us!

I broke into a gallop, sides burning. My mind raced. I could stay away and avoid the battle, but then I’d probably get killed by some Outer World beast. I could join the battle and hope the Stygians would protect me, but then I’d have to fight the griffons. I wasn’t exactly the best fighter, and I only had one sword left!

By the time I clambered up over the edge of the small landing around the cave entrance, I had been running for an hour. My lungs burned and my body ached. I was, to summarize, not at all in fighting condition.

The scrape of swords and yells of the wounded rose up from the cave. I pulled a rope out of my saddlebags, tied it to the lone tree that grew nearby, grabbed hold, and peeked inside.

Most of the clan was gathered on one side of the cave, fending off the griffons as they dashed in and out in quick hit and run attacks. On a ledge halfway up the wall, Colonel was giving orders and brandishing a rifle, shooting at any griffons that exposed themselves as the clan fought around her. On the other side of the cave, Blitz and Shatter moved amongst the griffons, attacking any that broke from the group or dared to raise a gun.

One of the griffons passing through the sand pit saw my shadow and looked up. My eyes widened. Shit.

I scrambled backwards as the griffon flew out of the hole and landed before me. Rolling under his sweeping axe, I came up behind him and bucked hard. He recovered so fast that I barely had time to grab the rope before he shoved me into the hole.

I screamed as I fell, coming to an abrupt stop a couple meters above the sand pit. I shook my head and looked up just in time to see the griffon cut the rope.

“Oof!” I plopped into the sand. Rolling over, I tried to regain my bearings or get up, but the world didn’t want to stay still, and my shoulder wound burned from the landing. I idly noted the griffon standing above me, blade raised for the kill.

A dark blue blur slammed into him, knocking him aside. I crawled to my hooves, bracing myself on a nearby rock and gritting my teeth at the pain. Blitz was shouting something at me. I turned to see him wrestling with the griffon. “Go, Equestrian! Get somewhere safe! We’ll handle these bastards!”

I wasted no time, stumbling out of the sand pit and drawing my last remaining sword. Pitiful. I was barely able to fight one person with three weapons. What can I do with one?

“Stygians! Charge!” Colonel’s command rang through the cave, and the clan let out a fierce warcry as they galloped forth. A griffon reared up before me, deadly sharp steel claws worn on his talons, and I leaped to the side. I brandished my sword, but the griffon easily knocked it aside with his beak, charging forwards and wrapping his tail around my neck. He snarled at me and flapped his wings. I gagged as the tail tightened around my neck and pulled up.

Luckily for me, the griffon wasn’t used to fighting unicorns. I levitated my sword above my head and swung wildly, cutting the tail away. I fell down to the hard rock, trying to both gasp for breath and call for aid at the same time.

“My tail!” The griffon hissed in fury. Faerie flew by, wingblades dripping red, and suddenly there was blood spilling on me as the griffon plummeted from the sky, lifeless.

I gagged. What the fuck is happening!? Noise everywhere. The stomp of hooves, the flap of wings. Fire burns as smoke pours out the windows. I squinted as the sunlight shone into my eyes and the shadows danced around me. The sky fills with airships and smoke. I crawled to my hooves, barely noticing as the griffon raising his sword before me was knocked away by Flintlock. A massive tower collapses, crushing hundreds beneath it. I managed to pull my gun out of its sheath and pointed it at something, stuttering as I tried to get out a trigger word. Nothing happened. Thunder, lightning, wind in every direction. The world was a roar.

I felt something pull on my neck, and suddenly I was looking into Colonel’s eyes. “Pull yourself together, Equestrian! Get the fuck up!” She disappeared as abruptly as she arrived.

I shook my head, eyes wide, and looked up. Another griffon stood before me, a bloodied axe hanging over my head. The axe fell to cleave open my skull as I lay there, paralyzed with fear.

Then some instinct took over. My horn glowed, and the axe veered off course, stinging my cheek with a glancing blow instead of spilling my brains. My attacker recovered quickly, stepping back to narrow his eyes and figure out what had just swayed his blade. I heard a bang! above me, and I choked on gunsmoke as the griffon keeled over. I scrambled to my hooves as Colonel landed next to me, hastily shoving another bullet into her rifle’s breech. I looked to her for guidance.

“Just try not to get killed, for fuck’s sake,” she said.

I nodded like the innocent little Equestrian I was.

With a quick glance I saw the griffons flying away, chased by Blitz and Pyre. We were winning the battle. I noticed my heart pounding and the wall holding my weight for the first time. I almost lost it back there.

Colonel had a hoof on my shoulder. “You okay?”

“Y... yeah.”

She nodded, turning to face the rest of the clan. “Pack light, Stygians! We’re bugging out!” she shouted.

They didn’t need to be told twice. Within seconds, every member of the clan was in motion, flying through the caves, filling saddlebags, and throwing everything else into a big pile in the sand pit.

Colonel beckoned to me, and I fell in behind her. “Hunter! Blight!” she called. The two stallions were by our side in a blink.

“Blight, take Faerie, Flintlock, Pyrestripe, and Blood with you. I’ll lead the others. We’ll meet at the planned rendezvous. If I’m not there in two weeks, move on.”

The old recusant nodded curtly and broke off.

“What are we doing?” I asked tentatively. I wasn’t sure if I could take much more of this.

“We’re bugging out,” she replied. “The griffons found us, and our only hope of survival is to be somewhere else before they get back with something bigger than a scouting party.”

“You plan for this?” I had just assumed the clan was safe here. Still not used to the Outer World, I guess.

“Of course. The griffons are relentless, and frankly, I’m surprised it took them so long to find us. Usually, we can easily fly away on our wings and start over elsewhere. But as for you, Dissero...” She stopped to size me up briefly.

“Uhm,” I stammered, looking over my wingless sides self-consciously. An idle thought drifted through my head, and I dismissed it immediately for being stupid. That hadn’t been flying. That had been falling with extra grace!

She raised a hoof. “Do not worry, the clan leaves none behind. At least, we won’t completely abandon you. You won’t, unfortunately, be able to accompany us. You would slow us down too much, and I won’t endanger the rest of the clan for you.

“But Hunter here has volunteered his services. Come.”

We followed her to a high, table-like rock. She pulled a map out of a pocket in her barding and spread it out. After a cursory examination, she jabbed her hoof at the worn out image of a mountain range.

“We’re here,” she said. She traced a line west, towards the ocean, and stopped over a sketch of a city. “You’re going here.”

I scanned the map. The mountains we were in seemed to form a circle around some region to the east labeled as ‘The Bare Lands,’ where the map ended.

“After we leave, you and Hunter will wait here. When the griffons arrive, he will lead them away to the south, allowing you to travel safely,” she explained.

My eyes widened, and I looked over to Hunter. “Are you sure about that? What if they catch you?”

He shot a confident smile my way. “Don’t worry, I can handle myself. You can’t.”

I nodded quietly. “Thanks."

“We never abandon a clanmate,” Colonel said, pushing the map towards me. “You can keep the map. Any questions? Good. I must go lead my clan. In the meantime, I recommend you start packing. Hunter can help you with that.”

She trotted away, leaving Hunter and I alone together. Recusants were flying, galloping, and planning all over the cave, filling it with an atmosphere that was both calm and hurried. Hunter beckoned to me with a wing, leading the way to the large pile of supplies that was being made in the middle of the sand pit. Faerie, Navery and Flintlock were busily looting the cave and piling everything up, and Hunter and I began to sort through the pile and pick out everything I would need for the journey.

Within five minutes, the pile was complete and the clan was gathered around the sand pit. Hunter and Navery were clustered together off to the side.

“Be careful,” I heard her say.

“Only for you,” he replied. They embraced, and Hunter joined me at my side.

After a brief glance over her clan, Colonel looked down to us. “Fly safe, Hunter. Take care, Equestrian. If you manage to find us again, we’ll welcome you.”

Hunter nodded to his clanmates. “See you soon.”

“Thanks again,” I said.

The rest of the clan offered me brief farewells. As one, they flew up and out of sight.

Hunter stared after them a few seconds and then turned to me. “You got everything you need? Food, map, barding, swords, a bit of gold?” he asked.

“Yeah.” The butterflies were coming back.

He flew out of the hole, and I clambered up after him on a rope he let down. He cut the rope with a dagger, motioning for me to step back. I backed up against a nearby rock, and he tossed a match into the hole. He stepped back and shielded his face as a wave of heat rose up. I heard a brief sizzling, and then a huge explosion. A few smoking items landed at my feet.

Hunter turned to me and grinned. “Flintlock’s work. No doubt he’s proud.”

We were on a wide, gently sloped ledge. Above us was a steep rise up the mountain and below a similarly steep drop down into a forested valley. The ground was rocky, with sparse soil that allowed a few mountain bushes to grow. A lone tree grew right on the edge of the cliff, hanging out, and a few large boulders rested together where they had fallen, hugging the mountainside.

I carefully walked to the edge of the cliff and scanned the horizon nervously. I had the feeling that the griffons would be here any moment now.

“Hey, get out of the open!” Hunter said. “They’ve got eagle eyes, for fucks sake. They can draw your lifemark before you even see their shadows.”

“Oh, right.” I stepped back and, after a short search for a decent hiding spot, tucked myself away in a small hole under the fallen boulders.

“Good. Now they’ll see me first, and I’ll be able to lead them away before they see you,” he said. “Oh, by the way, I’ve got a little something for you to help you with the walk.” He reached into his saddlebags with a wing, rummaged through it, and pulled out a small, metallic object. He held it out to me.

“A harmonica?” I asked. I grabbed the instrument with my magic and held it before my eyes, watching the way the sunlight reflected off its shiny surface.

“Those things are great. Whenever you’re out in the wilderness alone, at night time, with your imagination creeping up on you from every direction, a little bit of music does a lot to drive it away.”

“I can’t take this.” I held it back out for him. “You’ve already done too much for me.”

He pushed it away. “No worries, Navery got me eight of the things awhile back. Something about one for every key or whatever. I won’t miss it.”

Reluctantly, I levitated it into my own saddlebags. Honestly, I had hoped he wouldn’t take it back. I probably wouldn’t be able to sleep at nights, alone out in the strange and hostile Outer World, without something to calm my mind.

“Thanks again, Hunter.”

He grinned. “Yeah, sure. Now I probably better stop talking to you before the griffons see me staring at these rocks and figure out you’re here.”

I nodded, and he turned away from me. He flew up and perched on the top branch of the tree, looking out into the distance.

Within a minute, an eagle’s call sounded from somewhere further down the valley. Hunter’s ears twitched, and he surreptitiously tilted his head towards my hiding spot.

“That’ll be them,” he hissed, barely moving his lips. “Once they get close enough to see, I’ll fly away. Wait until you can’t see them anymore, and then wait an hour more. Don’t worry about me. I’m confident I’ll live for our paths to cross again.”

I offered no response, and he expected none. He knew I could hear him. My heart was starting to beat faster. What if something went wrong? What if they caught him before he could get far, and came back to search the cave? What if they ignored him and came straight for me? What if I left too early, and all his effort was for naught?

Stop being so fucking selfish. His life is in danger too.

Hunter saw something outside of my view, and flared his wings. He leapt off the tree branch and flapped hard, rising up and circling lazily. I heard another eagle call, and he flew out of sight.

I heard wings beating the air, and tucked myself further into my hiding place, pushing my tail up against the rough stone. Ten minutes passed, and the first griffon came into view. My heart was pounding. More griffons followed, until there was a whole flock of at least forty flying past. I was sweating. Some of the griffons were scanning the mountainsides lazily, and I tried to push myself further back, but there was no more room. I felt something give, and heard some pebbles falling as my weight shifted the balance of the rocks.

Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck.

I froze. None of the griffons seemed to notice. I closed my eyes, thanking Celestia I had a brown coat that blended well with the shadows. I dared not move, waiting for the sound of the wings to leave.

After what seemed like an eternity, the deadly sound drifted away. I strained my ears to ensure no noise escaped them. Nothing. I fought the instinct to run right away, to dart out of the rocks and break for the mountain path as fast as possible before the danger returned. The silence was more terrifying than the sound. Everything I heard made me jump. I was shaking. I watched the sun travel across the sky, counting the passage of time.

I heard a pair of wings.

Terrible things drifted through my mind.

The scratch of talons on rock.

I drew a knife. Slowly, quietly.

I saw something land in front of me, and lunged outwards, tackling it and fiercely stabbing it over and over, eyes shut tight from fear. Any moment now, greedy talons would reach out and grab me, competing for the right to tear me to pieces.

Nothing happened.

I opened my eyes, and saw the hawk bleeding out beneath my hooves.

I released a shaky breath of relief and looked around. No griffons. I rolled onto my back, dropped the knife, and began to chuckle. It grew into a hysterical laugh. It felt magnificent, but I knew that now was not the time to relax. I picked myself up, cleaned the knife, sheathed it, and started for the mountain path.

Panting, I stopped to rest in the shade of a scrawny tree. I put up a hoof to support myself on the cold stone beside me and looked up. The sun had almost set, and I was running out of energy. I had been climbing down the mountain for at least two hours now, and had lost count of how many times I’d wished for a pair of wings to carry me down on a gentle wind. No wonder the clan had hid up here. It was fucking impossible just to climb down, let alone climb up. I had managed to descend the mountain before, when I joined in on the raid of the other recusants, but I hadn’t been laden with long-distance traveling supplies, and had been allowed more frequent rests. Now, I couldn’t afford a stop. I had to get to the concealing safety of the trees at the foot of the mountain by sunset, in case the griffons returned.

I shook myself and levitated a canteen to my lips. Thank Celestia the cave is only halfway up the mountain.

Pushing off the mountain, I continued the descent. I was at a relatively easy point right now: a series of switchbacks that led to the final stretch of the path. A small part of me smiled knowing that I was almost there, but the rest of me was too tired to join in. I took a moment to watch the snow fall. The hike went on.

For the first time, I allowed myself to think about what just happened. Big mistake.

What hopes does a pony like myself have out here? In this hellhole? To think, that I had been so confident after I almost beat Colonel in a spar! She had probably been going easy on me, anyways... I doubt I could really defeat her, even with three blades. Now I realize how weak I really am...

My time in the foundries had been easy. Had been nothing. A bit of manual labor! Levitating coal for the furnace! Technically not even manual... to think I’d felt tough from the experience. Toughened, maybe. But nothing compared to the Outer World. Everywhere I went, someone else had to save me. Fuck, my whole life, I needed someone to save me. Silver ever since I was a colt. My crew back in Harmony City. The Stygians, ever since I arrived. Poor old Dissero can’t do shit for his life.

A pair of eyes.

Lost in my thoughts, I almost forgot to watch my hooves. I suddenly found my forehooves skidding down the cliff before me. Eyes wide, I scrambled back onto the path, shaking my head. I’m not giving up yet. Continuing down the mountainside, I searched for a more practical endeavor to occupy my mind. It didn’t take me long to find one.

Now what?

It wasn’t a question I had really needed to answer until now. Back in Equestria, I had a routine I could follow. In Harmony City, the Baron dictated my daily activities. When I escaped, I knew that I always had to be pushing forward, running away from the Baron and searching for land. While I was with the clan, I set myself to learning how to defend myself and repaying them for saving my life. Although I did still have a concrete goal right now, getting to the city alive, I had no idea what I would do when I got there. Where I would go. What I would find.

I still had to find my crew. I wonder how they’re doing? I hope they’re okay. If there was anything I had learned since my arrival, it was that the Outer World was a dangerous place. It changed ponies. It had changed me.

I felt kind of bad that I hadn’t thought about them for so long. Have they given up on me already? It had been at least a month since my fall. How long could I honestly expect them to look for me? They had their lives they had to get on with. They had to survive too. Maybe they had given up, and found their own way back to Equestria. Or maybe they were hundreds of miles away by now. Or maybe they had found a new life in this place already.

Or maybe they’re dead.

The wind picked up, and some of the falling snow blew into my face. I pulled my bandanna up as the biting wind and damp seeped into my fur. My barding did nothing against the weather, which seemed just right for a lost and lonely unicorn. I shivered.

A slip, and I lost my balance, falling right on my face. I had to stop with the deep contemplation for now and focus on the task at hoof. It was too wet, cold, and slippery for me to be climbing down a mountain with half of my head somewhere else.

I came to the end of the last switchback. All that was left now was to climb down one last snowy descent, and I would be off the mountain and into the safety of the trees. Then I could find somewhere to spend the night and rest. The climb was physically exhausting; the wet and cold had sucked my stamina, and the constant threat of griffons was mentally draining. Even though I knew that Hunter had led them away and I was probably safe, my body didn’t seem to want to believe it. Every little noise made my heart skip a beat.

I tentatively placed a hoof on a loose looking rock and tested it. It seemed secure enough. I placed my full weight on it as I went to take another step, and it suddenly gave out beneath me.

The rock tumbled away, and I fell face first into the snow. Again.

My momentum carried me forward against my will, and I began to roll. I picked up speed, hit a pile of snow, and felt myself launched into the air.

I curled up into a ball to protect myself, but I landed on more snow instead of the hard stone I had been expecting. I rolled all the way down the slope, hitting hundreds of little rocks and hard things on the way down, until I finally slammed into a tree.

I screamed in pain, clutching my side. For a few moments I lay there, holding myself. It felt like I had broken a rib. Or maybe two. Or three. At least I was alive. Hunter’s efforts wouldn’t be in vain. Or at least, they wouldn’t yet.

It felt like every inch of my body was covered in bruises, cuts, and scrapes. I had to get up, had to move on, find shelter! I knew my scream would attract predators. Raptors. You can find ‘em wherever there’s prey...

Fuck, that tumble hurt. I felt the sun beginning to set, the warm light drifting away from my coat. It was getting dark. Got to move.

Finally, the pain faded enough that I could open my eyes. I lifted my head, hissing in pain from the movement, and looked around blearily.

My head fell into the snow.

The sound of a basketball bouncing down the sidewalk. My tormentors arrive to bother me once more.

“Hey, Sissy, what’s up?” They laugh at me. Mocking.

I look away. Tired of the ridicule. Father won’t help. He’s out on his ship. I don’t even contemplate running to Mother. They already think I’m weak enough as it is.

“Oy, look at me when I talk to ya!” The larger one approaches. I close my eyes and send a prayer to Celestia. Why doesn’t she ever help? I hear them getting ready to throw the basketball at me, and brace myself. The impact never comes.

“Hey, leave him alone!”

A savior? A pegasus colt with a striking silver mane runs up and tackles one of the earth pony foals. With a fierce growl and hard kick, he sends them on their way.

I look up tentatively. “Why did you help me?”

“I don’t like seeing other ponies get picked on. Just isn’t right!” he offers a hoof and helps me up, flapping his tiny wings.

“What’s your name?”

“Silver Feather.”

I woke with a start. My eyes darted side to side. My heart slowed to a regular pace. My body felt like it had just rolled down a mountain.

I tentatively raised a hoof to block the bright light of the rising sun as it shone in my eyes, and was rewarded with a stab of pain.

“Aaagh, fuck!”

I clutched my side. I’d have to be more careful.

Delicately, I climbed to my hooves. I needed shelter. Somewhere I could spend a night without fear of what hunts in the night. Or even what hunts in the day. I stumbled along, holding my chest with a hoof.

Following the mountain, I came across a shallow cave, half-buried in snow, and wormed my way inside. The dim glow of my horn didn’t reveal anything particularly murderous. Good enough for me. I sat back against the cave wall and levitated my saddlebags off, thankful that I didn’t actually have to move to grab them.

“Let’s see what we’ve got then,” I said. Opening the bags, I rummaged through them in search of medical supplies. Map... harmonica... canteen... rope... ah, there we go.

I pulled out a small flask, holding it closer to better read the label. ‘Healing Draught: Accelerates regeneration for a day.’ Just what I needed. Pulling out the cork, I briefly contemplated the wisdom of drinking a health potion made by a poisoner before downing it all in one gulp.

Hrm. Tastes like... like...

It occurred to me that I had no idea what the hell that tasted like. There was simply no taste I could relate it to. It was kinda like... yeah. Like that. Hard to put into words, really. I looked down to the empty flask and considered drinking another, to get another taste. Idiot. This isn’t Equestria Cooks. Survival is more important!

Good point, brain. You’re a fine companion.

“Urhk!” I grabbed my stomach and keeled over, dropping the flask to shatter on the cave floor. I was overcome with the sickening sensation of things moving around inside of me. Things that should stay still. It wasn’t a fast movement, either. It was a slow one. It was like all of my bones were getting into a race with each other, but were playing to lose. My bones are a bunch of jerks.

I wheezed and coughed, lying on the hard rock as my body rearranged itself. Time slipped away. There was nothing but the strange half-pain that occupied my mind. My thoughts drifted, and then altogether stopped. The world escaped my notice, and the seconds passed away.

Stormslider looked over her work, and allowed herself a slight smile. Silver will love this, she thought.

Of all the crew, Silver had taken Dissero’s death the hardest. An understandable notion, considering their friendship. The others had gotten some semblance of normalcy back in their lives. They were moving on. Silver, however, still sat idly in the cockpit, listening to whatever orders he was given, occasionally making an unenthusiastic joke while looking out into the distance sadly.

Storm knew that Ember had been trying to cheer him up, but she wasn’t going about it right. The fiery engineer had more or less assumed command, being both the loudest of the five and the only with any idea about what they should do. She ran the ship with an iron hoof, trotting up and down halls, pushing ponies with forceful suggestions. Ember saw Silver’s depression as an obstacle. A prime pilot running at half efficiency, as Storm would put it.

The cloudgineer picked up her most recent creation and slung it around her shoulder, making for her door. She knew Silver well. They had known eachother a long time, ever since playing against each other in a cloudball game back at the Academy. He was a good pony.

She walked out into the main room, where Cleaver and Ember were busily sorting through some stack of papers or other. She wasn’t sure what they were up to, but she hazarded a guess that it was probably one of Ember’s plans to make themselves at home in this land. She seemed set on becoming a permanent resident of the Outer World.

Flying onto the navigation level and trotting into the cockpit, Storm was treated with the sight of Silver Feather, goggles around his neck, leaning on a wall coated with gauges as he stared out into the sky.

“Hey,” Storm said. “I want to show you something.”

Silver’s ears twitched. “I’m busy.”

“It’s cool.” She held her work out before her and shook it enticingly. If she could just get him to turn around...

He sighed and turned to face her. His eyes widened, and he almost broke out into one of his trademark grins. “What is that?” he asked.

“I made it for you. Come up to the deck and I’ll show you,” she said, pleased with his reaction.

Once they were on deck, Stormslider went into more detail. “It’s a lightning gun,” she said. “I’ve been fiddling with the rune guns since we escaped, and it turns out that the runes accept all kinds of magic, not just unicorn.”

Silver cocked his head, taking the gun up in his hooves. “How does it work?”

“It’s just like kicking a thundercloud. You pull this lever here, with a wing or a hoof, and the pressurized thunderclouds inside will zap whatever you’re aiming at. I designed the barrel to direct the thunder forwards. At close ranges it’ll even daze anything in front of you.”

He grinned, balancing the barrel on a nearby railing as he stood on his hind legs. With a magnificent flash and a thunderous rumble, lightning arced out of the gun, annihilating an unlucky cloud.

“Sweet!” he exclaimed. “Thanks, Storm.”

She smiled. “No problem.”

“Hey, you two!” Ember called from the cockpit ladder. “We’re having a meeting!”

Storm looked to Silver. The two pegasi shared a brief but warm embrace before walking down to the navigation room. The large table in the middle, previously broken by an intruding cannonball, had since been fixed with some glue and nails they’d bought from the locals. Cleaver and Nix were sitting beside it, with Ember standing confidently at the front of the room.

“Now, then,” she began. “If we’re going to be staying in the Outer World, we need to find a way to make gold.”

“Why?” Silver asked.

“Because, we don’t know the plants that grow out here. We have no supplies. I’m tired of eating meat and doing what we can to stay afloat with dried paint and scrapped drywall. We need a job of some kind, to support ourselves. The ship isn’t even repaired yet!”

She spread some papers out upon the table. “Normally, we would make money from trade, but this world is different from Equestria. We don’t know the routes, goods, customers, or land. Splitting up isn’t an option. Together, there’s not much we can do for money.”

“What are you proposing?” Storm asked cautiously.

“I say we become mercenaries. You all saw when we went into that town. There were jobs everywhere. Jobs of every kind. We could capture criminals, escort caravans, anything we can get! What do you say?”

Suddenly, I was back.

Sunlight was filtering into the cave. Looking up, I was disturbed to find the sun was lower in the sky than it had been before. Did I just go back in time?

I pulled myself up and came to a more reasonable conclusion: I must have been out for at least a day. I stretched gingerly, feeling my body as I moved. The aches were still there, but the thousand sharp pains had faded into dull throbs. I felt along my sides. It hurt to touch them, but not nearly as bad as before. I could walk now. It seemed that the potion had at least put my bones back in place, though I didn’t think they were mended all the way yet. It would do.

I nosed through my saddlebags and pulled out a roll of bandages. Unbuckling my barding, I carefully wrapped the material around my chest, tying it tight with my magic. As much as I would’ve liked to stay another night, I had places to go, and ponies to find.

I climbed over the snow piled up at the cave entrance, sliding down the other side and back into the trees. I had a long journey ahead of me, and it was already getting kind of hard to breathe with layers of bandage and barding constricting my lungs. I had already lost a day. Every second I was out here was another second that my crew might give up. Or that I might die. In all honesty, the latter was more probable.

With a sigh, I took the first step of the day.

I hate hills.

Panting, I crested yet another of the seemingly endless series of hills. I paused to wipe the sweat off my brow and take a drink from my canteen. Empty.

What kind of world is this, where the rain is hard enough to bother, but not to fill a pony's canteen? I held the container up to the sky, vainly hoping that the gentle rain which had plagued me for the last ten hours might fill it up. It didn’t. I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised, because that’s exactly what happened the last nine times I tried it.

I scanned the horizon. To my left was the river which I had been following ever since I got out of the forest. It ran from somewhere up in the mountains, west to the coast, and according to my map the city I was looking for was right on it. I had been walking all day now, stopping only to curse the rain and check my map.

Putting the canteen away, I walked down the other side of the hill, letting gravity do most of the work while I contemplated finding water. Sure, there was a river right next to me, but the recusants had warned me about the cleanliness of said river. Full of shit, they had said. Might get you drunk, too, they had said. I needed to find a lake. Or some puddle that was deep enough that it wasn’t all mud.

Suddenly, I had an idea. It was the kind of idea that made me feel proud to have come up with it, and at the same time somewhat ashamed that I hadn’t thought of it earlier. Taking out my canteen again, I held it up to the rain. But this time, I used my magic to direct the rain into it. Success! Now I just had to wait a bit and... there!

I took a drink before putting the canteen back. I was about to get back to walking when I heard a branch snap behind me. I whipped around, shaking my saddlebags off and drawing my three swords so fast that the pains in my chest flared up again.

An adorable little bunny stood before me, standing as high as he could in an effort to get his head above the tall grass.

I chuckled to myself, sliding my swords away. A bunny! How cute. Surely a loveable little bunny couldn’t be dangerous.

I levitated my bags back on and turned back, glancing towards the river to get my bearings, and started walking again. I smiled to myself at the concept of the bunny. Soft, light steps followed behind me.

I stopped, twisted my neck to look back. Two bunnies. Hrm.

Probably nothing.

On a whim, I looked back again a few minutes later. Ten bunnies. I cocked my head, narrowing my eyes. This was getting very suspicious. Deep inside me, my innate Equestrian innocence battled with the Outer World caution that had been slowly developing.

It’s just a bunny.

It’s ten bunnies. Suspicious bunnies.

But they’re bunnies! Adorable little bunnies! Who’s ever heard of dangerous bunnies?

This is the Outer World.

I drew my swords, sliding into a defensive stance as the ravenous bunnies bared their teeth, hissing. Twenty more bunnies rose from the grass behind them, showing sharp fangs and claws. My eyes widened. All at once, they pounced.

I waved my swords wildly, managing to kill a few in the air, but soon they were all on me. They crawled over my barding, gnawing and clawing at it in an attempt to get to the soft pony flesh underneath. It was like drowning. Drowning in adorable, ravenous, lovable, murderous bunnies.

Luckily I didn’t need my hooves to get them off. I closed my eyes and hunkered down, using my swords to swipe them off my sides in droves. When I got back up and looked around, tiny pieces of adorable bunny were scattered all around me. I let out an exasperated sigh and went to clean my blades when a little plume of earth suddenly shot up in front of me.

And out came a bunny.

Everywhere, bunnies were popping out of the ground, claws bared, hissing. There were dozens of the things. It’s bunny hell! I took a cautious step back, realized that now was not the time for cautious steps, turned tail and ran away as fast as I could.

But I didn’t hear them giving chase. I looked behind me and realized that they weren’t even chasing me. No, they were quite content eating the diced bunny I had left behind. The whole scene would be a lot less disturbing and a lot cuter if they weren’t cannibals, really.

I shook my head and continued my journey, muttering to myself.

“This place is fucking insane...”

Author's Notes:

Hunter is a prudent gambler.
Silver has a goddamn lightning gun.
And Dissy needs to watch his step before he kills himself.

Ch. 10: Employment

Robber Baron took a sip of wine. He closed his eyes, rolling the liquid around in his mouth, treating his senses to a drink that no other pony in Equestria could even afford to know about.

He turned to face the delegate sitting in his office and offered a calm smile. The deal was ready to be struck. The zebra shifted nervously in his seat, glancing down to the papers on the desk before him. Amongst his own people, no doubt he was the pinnacle of wealth. Here, he was just another rich zebra, in the office of a god.

“Is everything in order then?” the zebra asked.

Baron made a show of going through the papers, as if checking matters over one more time. He allowed his eyes to narrow ever so slightly, and laughed a little inside as he heard the zebra holding his breath.

Finally, he looked up and smiled again, reaching for a pen. “Yes, I believe it is, Mr. Laksmi. I’ll send out a few breakrunners to your fleet. As long as you honor your end of the agreement, I think we will both find great profit in our business.”

The zebra relaxed visibly as pen was put to paper. He rose, offering many bows and thanks, and was escorted out by one of Baron’s everpresent guards. Baron sat back, relishing the feel of negotiating a deal. He hadn’t had the opportunity to forge any new agreements in a long time, but the recent rebel uprising amongst his slaves had… opened up… a few slots for new trade partners. He frowned, briefly disheartened at the thought of the rebels, and leaned forwards. There were still more reports to be reviewed.

He disliked paperwork. It was boring stuff, and it always made him want to go and do something. To go supervise workers, chat up mercantile giants, strike deals, and plan expansion stratagems. But an uprising was just one of those things where the utmost care had to be taken. Not a single mistake could be allowed, and as such he had temporarily shouldered the burden of sorting through every single boring report that had been written that night. It was taking forever.

He glanced over some notes. The rebels had focused most of their efforts on being noticed. The explosions of the foundries and factories had been their first move. They had then moved on to collapsing Tower 17. An expensive loss, to be sure, but the tower could be rebuilt better. In a way, they had saved him money. Normally he’d have to pay to demolish an old skydock. The smoke and fire had, admittedly, caused a disturbance in the Outer City, and even his best interference runners had had difficulty keeping troublesome officials away. Despite their efforts. though, the rebellion had been for naught. Facilities were rebuilt, slaves were replaced, and eyes were turned.

With another sip of wine, he grabbed a pile of reports and walked out onto his balcony. Up here, high up on the central tower of Harmony City, he was above the ponies of Equestria, the trading giants of the Outer World, and even the clouds themselves. He could see everything from atop his tower. As much as he would have liked to enjoy the view, though, there was work to be done. He looked down to the paper in his hooves.

He skimmed it to see if it was of great importance, taking another sip of the wine. Halfway down the page, his eyes widened. He read through it again. He closed his eyes, counted to ten, and read it another time.

“Fffffuuuuuuuuuuucckk!”

He stormed back into his office and read the report a fourth time. Those damn rebels! Imbecile slaves! A dozen curses raged through his mind as he furiously pulled on a bell hanging nearby. A flustered orderly stumbled into the room, scrambling to stand before the Baron.

“Get me Apricot Seed, now!” he roared.

Within ten minutes, the unicorn stood before him. He was shaking, eyes down as a soft whimper escaped him.

“Apricot…” The Baron began softly. He took a few seconds to organize his thoughts. He didn’t want to seem like he was out of control. He had to make sure that his message was conveyed with crystal clear clarity.

“What, the fuck, were you thinking!?” He rose out of his seat, slamming his forehooves down upon the desk. Thankfully, it didn’t break. That wood was priceless.

Apricot flinched away from the outburst, stammering out a quick apology. “I’m s-sorry, sir—“

“Sorry!?” Baron shouted. “Sorry!? You get my prototype stolen and cost me three frigates, and you say you’re sorry? Oh, well I guess that makes everything better then, you stupid shit!”

“The r-rebels, sir—“

“Rebels!” He tossed his hooves up in frustration. “Fucking rebels! I give you, one, task! Are you truly so incredibly incompetent that you can’t stop four drunk slaves from stealing an airship?”

“The g-guards were asking for r-reinforcements at Tower—“

“Then you should have said no! Idiot!” he screamed. “Do you have any idea how expensive it will be to replace that ship?”

“I—“

“Shut up!” Baron cut him off with a raised hoof. He took a deep breath and looked down to his desk, shuffling papers about. “Someone is going to have to fix your mistake,” he muttered.

Apricot looked around nervously, shaking. He started to back away, eyes fixed on the ground, but Baron was not the type of pony to let failure of such magnitude go unpunished. A pair of guards stepped from the shadows, grabbing Apricot roughly.

“No!” he screamed.

Baron looked up casually. “Take him to the channel pits.”

“No! Please! I’m sorry! I’ll do anything! Please!”

With a signal from Baron, the guards delivered a harsh blow to Apricot’s head. He fell silent. Baron kept his eyes fixed on his papers as the unconscious unicorn was dragged from the room.

He let another sigh pass through his body, and lightly brushed the jewel hanging on his necklace. He looked over to the orderly standing silently by his desk. He’s one of the good ones. Always knows when I’ve things for him to do. Baron made a mental note to reward him for his service. Sometime later, though. Right now, there were more important matters at hoof.

“Get me Pen Knife and Ash Fall,” he said. “Put Order 94 into action. It’s time to bring civilization back to the Outer World.”

“There’s just one.”

Stormslider lowered the rune gun, pulling her eye from the simple scope that she had yesterday attached to it. She looked to Ember, who was standing behind her.

“Take him,” she said. “We can’t let him warn the others.”

Storm nodded, and slowly brought the sights back up. The crew was gathered behind some rocks on the edge of a shallow plateau, looking down on a cave below them. Storm and Ember were outfitted in zebra armor, tight fitting leather with bronze plating, modified to fit their forms. Silver Feather sat nearby, wearing an unzipped tan flight jacket with a small omega symbol drawn on the collar as he cradled his lightning gun. Cleaver stood tall near the rear, scanning the horizon and holding a heavy hammer in his teeth. Phoenix Down was shaking nervously as she sorted through a pack of primitive medical supplies.

Casually noting the long shadows cast by the sun setting behind her, Storm focused her scope upon the lone form guarding the outside of the cave. He was of some species she had never seen before. Some strange, half-striped variety of pegasus. But he was a pony nonetheless. And here I am, to take his life.

“Is this really necessary?” she asked. She had never killed before, and even she was having trouble containing her nerves behind her usual calm.

“We’re stuck here, Stormslider. This isn’t Equestria; you have to fight to survive in the Outer World. We took this job, and you have to do your part,” Ember replied.

No, Storm thought, you took this job. She had felt that something like this might be asked of her ever since Ember walked in brandishing a wanted poster.

“We don’t have to kill anyone. The poster said alive.” She moved her crosshairs off the half-pegasus’ head and down to the legs.

Ember sighed. “Yes, but I doubt his friends will step aside and let us tie him up, and nobody cares if they die. We can’t do this without killing someone. It would be too risky.”

Stormslider took a deep, shaky breath. She didn’t like this. Every part of her being was telling her to put the gun away. Say no. Step back. But she could see the logic of Ember’s claim. This wasn’t Equestria. This was a matter of survival. They needed gold, and right now, the gold rested upon somepony’s head.

Resolved to take the shot, she focused back on the scope and adjusted the gun’s position on the rock. The strange pegasus was asleep, dozing against the cave entrance outside. She narrowed her eyes, body tensing, but couldn’t bring herself to pull the trigger. She whipped her tail in frustration.

“Storm, what are you waiting for?” Ember asked. “We’re losing daylight.”

Cleaver put a patient hoof on her shoulder. “Do not rush her. She is not used to this life.”

Don’t think about it. Stormslider took a deep breath and pushed her conscious thought away. She cleared her mind. All body and no mind, she whispered to her gun.

“Ignus.”

She immediately regretted it, but found that she couldn’t pull the gun away. The same force which had stopped her from firing before now held her in place. She watched in terror as the gun charged, and the telltale glow of rune magic seeped out of the barrel.

Silently, the heavy slug was ejected from the gun. The world seemed to slow down, and she found herself unable to tear her eyes away. The target’s head exploded into a gory bouquet.

She fell back, barely reserving the conscious thought needed to grab the gun and stop it from toppling down the cliff. The gun had shot silently, but her ears were still ringing. It had given no kick, but she felt as if someone had just bucked her hard in the chest. She shook her head, breathing strained.

“Storm, get back in position! We need you to cover us,” Ember ordered. She peered at the bloodied cave entrance cautiously.

Cleaver pushed her away. “Calm yourself, Ember! It was her first kill.” Storm nodded to him thankfully. She had never heard him raise his voice like that before.

Finally, her usual calm demeanor restored itself. Calm, cool, collected. She recited the words to herself like a mantra, fighting to control her emotions. Emotion is a flaw in the mind of an engineer. It clouded judgment. It had to be contained.

A shout rang out from the direction of the cave, and Ember’s ears twitched as she searched for the source. She let out a curse and flicked her lighter on. “Fuck! They saw the body. Storm, stay up here. Rest of you with me.”

Silver stayed behind as the rest of the crew cantered away. Storm gave him a small, reassuring smile and climbed to her hooves. He nodded, turning to gallop after the others.

She numbly returned to her firing position and set up the rune gun, putting her eye to the scope. She had killed once. She wouldn’t lose control again. She would do what had to be done.

Silver Feather skidded to a stop next to Ember, Cleaver, and Nix, all huddled together behind a large rock in front of the cave.

“Here’s the plan,” Ember said. “Silver will start off with a few rounds from the lightning gun, and then Cleaver and I will charge in, doing our best to flush them out into the open for Storm. Phoenix, you back us up with your rune gun. Try not to kill us. And Silver, keep the lightning soft. We don’t want to accidentally kill the target.”

Nix nodded shakily, holding the rune gun tight to her chest. Silver slid his goggles down. He had no qualms over killing things. Not anymore. He would kill everyone in that cave if it came to it.

Ember waved him forward with a hoof. He sprinted out from behind the rock, rushing up to the side of the cave’s entrance. With the lightning gun strapped to his chest under his good wing, he peeked around the corner and pulled the trigger with a feather.

His pent-up grief came out in a furious scream that matched the heat of the lightning before him. One, two, three, four times he pulled the trigger. Four times thunder roared down the cave, leaving all inside with their ears ringing. Four times lightning illuminated the stunned shock on the faces of his victims as they were blinded and deafened all at once.

Ember and Cleaver wasted no time charging into the cave, and in his rage Silver almost forgot to stop shooting. Heart pounding, he watched as Ember pulled a mighty fireball from her lighter and cast it into the back of the cave. At the same time, Cleaver ran through everything before him, toppling those who opposed him with a single mighty swing from his hammer. The strange ponies broke easily, deafened and blinded, with a raging inferno behind them and the two Equestrians smashing through them. They screamed in panic and took wing, flying as fast as they could to get out of the restricting cave. A few stayed behind, determined to fight to the death, and were rewarded with a fiery holocaust from Ember’s horn.

Silver spotted the target as he rose out of the cave and prepared to take a shot at him. He knew that the lightning would probably kill him, but he hardly cared. He was relishing the release of the battle. He would get his revenge on this world.

He was too slow. Stormslider’s rune slug punched through the target’s wing, and he spiraled into the dust.

Silver turned his attention to the others fleeing from the site, a sick smile spreading across his face as he imagined shooting them out of the sky.

Suddenly, Nix slammed into him from the side, pinning him to the rock. “No!” she shouted. “Can’t you see that they’re running? Let them go!”

“Get off!” Silver struggled, surprised at her strength, but it didn’t take him long to realize the weight of what he had just done. Of what he had been about to do. Kill out of spite. In cold blood. He shook his goggles off and looked to the gentle earth pony.

“Thanks,” he said. He could barely believe himself. “I owe you one.”

Nix stared into his eyes, searching. She nodded, and gave him a weak little smile before backing off and returning to her rune gun, lying in the dust. She hadn’t fired a single shot.

Stormslider was the first to reach the target, and the rest of the crew was quick to follow. Nix held back shyly while the others circled the one-winged, half-striped pegasus lying in the dirt.

He coughed. “What’d I—What’d I ever do to you? Fucking Equestrians. You come to finish the j-job? Huh? Well get the fuck on with it!”

“What are you?” Stormslider asked. “Some kind of pegasus pony?’

He let out a strained chuckle. “Thank the—the hells I’m not. I’m a fucking recusant! And my kind are- are going to h-hunt you all down! I swear—I swear by my mother’s mark!” Blood was starting to pool in the dust below him, and Ember beckoned Nix forwards.

“Keep him alive. We don’t want to ruin the contract,” she ordered.

Nix approached slowly, her tail dragging through the dust. Dropping the medkit at her hooves, she rolled the recusant over to reveal the bloody stump on his side. The high caliber rune slug had torn right through the bone, shearing the wing off with a single strike.

Silver’s bad wing twitched sentimentally. He knew how it felt to be grounded.

“Here, bite down on this,” Nix said, holding a thick rag before the recusant. Confused, he eyed her nervously. Such kindness, in the aftermath of such ferocity? He spat on her hoof.

Nix frowned, but left the rag by his mouth. He cried out, glaring at the Equestrians around him furiously, as she poured cheap booze into the wound. Luckily, the bullet had passed through before the secondary shrapnel spell went off. Within a few minutes, Nix had cleaned, dressed, and bandaged the wound. Cleaver hogtied the recusant, and Ember levitated him behind the crew as they returned to where they had parked the Omega.

Silver fidgeted nervously as Ember released her magic, and the recusant fell to the ground with a deep thud.

Their employer, some kind of wingless, long-eared gargoyle, stepped forwards slowly and put a claw under the recusant’s chin.

“A pleassure to finally meet you, bandit,” the gargoyle hissed. He raised the recusant’s head to look him in the eyes, and a wicked smile spread across his face. The recusant glared at him and struggled vainly against his bonds.

Ember cleared her throat. “Our payment.”

The gargoyle looked up, seemingly displeased at the interruption to his gloating, but nodded appreciatively anyways. “Yess, of coursse,” he said. “Thiss pesst and hiss clan have cosst me greatly. Thank you for your help, Equesstrian. ‘Tis but a ssmall price to pay for ssuch a sservice.”

He pulled a bag of gold out from his cloak and tossed it to Ember, who caught it in her magic.

“A pleasure doing business with you,” she said. With a nod to the others, she turned to leave.

Nix hesitated, staying behind. “If I might ask, what will you do with him?”

The gargoyle grinned evilly. “Oh, I’ll think of ssomething.”

Finally.

I practically jumped for joy as I reached the bottom of what was, as far as I could tell, the last accursed hill I’d have to climb. The only thing that stopped me was the bleak path ahead.

Before me lay a wide, flat expanse that I could only describe as the definition of wasteland. The brown, dead earth was pockmarked with small, water-filled craters, and the river’s water turned dark and murky. The horizon was swallowed up by the thick fog hanging over the land. All I could see through it was the distant silhouettes of stunted, leafless trees.

I swallowed, trying not to imagine what creatures lived in this part of the Outer World.

I looked up. The sun was setting. I didn’t feel like trekking through that foggy wasteland at night, so I searched for a place to set up camp. There wasn’t really much to choose from. Amongst tall grass and a few small rocks, only one lonely tree dared to grow so close to the fog.

I dropped my saddlebags against the trunk and began to unpack, rolling a thick blanket onto the grass and constructing a simple firepit. Although I had trouble finding the wood needed for the fire, having only one tree to supply me, there were plenty of stones to keep what little flame I could muster from spreading.

The sun drifted below the horizon, leaving only my tiny fire to light the world. Pitiful. I doubted it would last through the night. I would have to try and sleep in the tree if I didn’t want to get eaten.

My stomach grumbled, and I returned to my bags for something to eat. Nothing left. I was all out.
I sighed. Left with no other choice, I got to grazing. I didn’t like Outer World grass very much. It was just as rough as the people that inhabited it, and it would cut me sometimes when I swallowed. Didn’t taste good, either. It was all dry, and lacked any real taste. It was a chore just to chew.

As I ripped a mouthful of grass out of the ground, I heard a noise coming out of the fog. I perked up, ears twitching, chewing quietly as I strained to place it. Nothing. Cautiously, I lowered my muzzle to take another bite.

I heard something running, somewhere in the dark. My head shot up. What in the name of love and tolerance…? I spent a good ten minutes listening to the soft crackle of the fire, searching the night.

With the sun now set, it was practically impossible to see anything. My fire did nothing but cast flighty, mysterious shadows over the ground. Everywhere I looked, the waving grass formed itself into deathly apparitions. The extra light I cast from my horn served only to amplify the effect. A gust of wind breezed past.

With a dismal little sputter, my fire went out.

A chill ran down my spine.

I trotted back to the tree, resisting the temptation to break into a gallop. Just noises, Dissero. Noises and wind. You’re not afraid of the dark anymore, remember?

I drew myself back against the tree, chewing quietly at what grass I could reach. My eyes darted side to side. My ears twitched. The unknown of the dark and silence was more terrifying than any Outer World beast that might actually inhabit it. My mind took every noise and imagined a demon of death and destruction.

Whenever you’re out in the wilderness alone, at night time, with your imagination creeping up on you from every direction, a little bit of music does a lot to drive it away.

I levitated the harmonica out of my bags, tentatively putting it to my lips. I trusted Hunter, but was having trouble convincing my body that playing music was a good idea right now. I sat there for at least thirty silent minutes, mouth upon the cool metal, working up the courage to do it.

Finally, I managed to push out a breath. A shaky note slid out. Nothing came to kill me.

Encouraged by my success, I played another note. Stronger this time. Then again. The noise cut through the night like a beacon of light. I paused. A little smile emerged.

I played the note as loud as I could, daring my nightmares to come for me. Suddenly, the shadows didn’t seem so scary. The harmonica filled the gloom like the talk of friends in a dark old house, and I felt my heart lifting.

I slid my mouth an inch and puffed experimentally. A higher note. I shimmied in the other direction. A lower note. I breathed in and discovered a whole new range of sound.

I took a deep breath and played freely. The music swelled out from within me, and my eyes widened as I noticed that I was playing a happy little jig. These things are easy to play! Pulling the harmonica away, I let loose a loud laugh. Scared of the night! Who had ever heard of such a thing?

A pack of wolves howled from somewhere within the fog. It took me all of a minute to levitate the bedroll up into the tree and climb up after it.

Still scared of wolves.

Holy shit, my back hurts.

I practically fell out of the tree, back aching from the awkward positioning and hard surface. My bedroll did its job decently when applied to the ground, but no matter how soft and comfy it might make a tree branch, soft and comfy still hurt when it was grinding up into your side.

I spent a few minutes just laying in the grass, eyes screwed up in agony at the pain in my back. It seemed I simply couldn’t touch a tree without spending the night next to it and waking up with extra pains.

My gaze drifted over the tree disdainfully, and I was presented with the disturbing sight of claw marks on the trunk.

Those hadn’t been there before...

Time to head out!

I packed my bedroll, made sure everything that belonged in my pack was there, and grabbed a mouthful of grass for the walk. I had a feeling that it might be hard finding something green in that wasteland.

With another glance at the river, I stepped into the omnipresent fog.

It didn’t take long for me to lose myself within it. After a minute of walking, the tree I had spent the night in was gone. The thick fog and lack of landmarks gave the impression of going nowhere. The silent void surrounding me made it easy to believe that I had simply fallen into limbo, cursed to wander endlessly until my bones faded away. The world stood still here.

I tried to look up and steal a glance at the sun, but even it couldn’t break through the heavy mist. The way that the sunlight dissipated through it all evenly, I couldn’t even hazard a guess as to where it might be. I was, essentially, in the middle of nowhere. If it wasn’t for the river, I would’ve lost my way and probably never gotten back out.

For hours I walked, with nothing but the quiet passage of the water to assure me that anything still existed at all. In the distance, I could see the dark shadows of strange shapes as I passed them by. Some of them looked like uprooted trees. The rest brought forth images of impaled bodies, skeletons, and broken machinery. It was all I could do to keep my eyes forwards.

I heard the gentle roar of waves ahead of me, and sped into a trot. I must almost be there. I could hardly wait to get out of this creepy place and amongst the living once more.

I broke into an all-out gallop. I really couldn’t wait.

Suddenly, my hooves were sinking into sand, and then splashing through water. I looked down, perturbed, to find foamy waves swirling around me. Returning my gaze forwards, I realized that I had reached the ocean.

Shit.

I backtracked, spreading my map out on the driest piece of land I could find. Even so, I could feel the paper starting to fall apart from the humidity.

According to the map, the city I was supposed to be heading to should be right here. On the mouth of this river. I looked closer, squinting to try and figure out the name of the city.

New...

I couldn’t tell what came after that.

What was wrong? Had I found the wrong river? That made no sense! There was only one river immediately southwest of the Stygian’s old cave! Had I made a wrong turn? I didn’t remember the river forking anywhere. I traced my path across the map ten times. It should be here!

I felt myself beginning to panic. What was I going to do? I had nothing to do! I had no food. I had no home. I had no idea where I was. The old map in my hooves only included a small region around New Whatever, and it didn’t even seem to know where the city was!

Okay. Think, Dissero. Think. You have the river...

I could use the river! Settlements need water. They grow next to rivers. I would just follow the river, eating the grass that grew next to it, and hopefully I’d find some town or village that wouldn’t want to kill me.

Without warning, a bear roared from somewhere in the fog. I crouched down instinctively. I had to get to a hiding spot.

The wolves were howling again. I ran for one of the shapes, half-obscured through the fog, and hid behind the upturned chariot that coalesced before me. One of the wheels was shattered, but the remainder was outfitted with deadly sharp blades.

It sounded like the bear and wolves were fighting. And the fight was getting closer. Hoping for a better look, I peeked through a hole in the chariot’s broken carriage. I was rewarded with the sight of the beasts fighting each other, their shapes blurred by the haze.

The smaller, more lithe shapes I took to be the wolves ran circles around the lumbering bear, sweeping in to nip at his paws before ducking away. He roared his fury at them, and one of the wolves leaped onto his back. The bear reared up and reached back, picking the wolf off of him, pinning it to the ground, and slicing into it with his claws. The wolf whined and fell silent.

Then, the bear did something I had never seen a bear do before. Remaining on its hind legs, it unsheathed what looked like some sort of weapon, brandishing it in its forepaws. It was hard to tell through the fog, but it looked like a giant axe.

The wolves were surprisingly uncoordinated, too. I had never known of any wolf pack that didn’t know how to work as a team. They knew how to distract the bear, but they didn’t know how to take advantage of it. They leaped for him as individuals, and he easily swatted them aside before ending them with a single slice from his axe.

Soon, the whole pack was dead or dying. From my vantage point behind the wrecked chariot, I watched through the mist as his blurred shadow sorted through the bodies. Deciding I would wait for him to finish his business before doing anything else, I carefully moved away from my peephole.

I stepped back, but didn’t feel anything behind me. Surprised by the lack of ground, I stumbled, falling into a pony-sized crater full of water with a deadly loud splash.

Shit!

I heard the bear stop. His heavy steps lumbered towards me.

I lay paralyzed with fear as his shadow fell upon the chariot.

Author's Notes:

Cliffhanger!
What will our horned hero do, when faced with the wrath of the mighty bear who may or may not be dragonborn?

For the record, he totally isn't dragonborn.

Ch. 11: Dreams of Nightmares Past

“You, behind the wreck!” the bear called. “Get out here!”

Did that bear just talk? I was so shocked that I almost forgot to get back to my hooves.

“Now!” he roared.

My heart skipped a beat, and I almost fell down again. I shook my head, desperately trying to dislodge some idea from my subconscious.

Bluff.

Yes, I could bluff him. He’d probably never seen a unicorn before. What would he do when faced with one?

“I won’t ask you again! Come out, coward!”

I took a deep breath, steeling myself for what was to come. Confidence. Confidence is the key to bluffing. I had to look confident. I had to look tough. Pulling my bandanna up and standing tall, I stepped out into the open.

“Yes?” I asked. I leaned against the chariot nonchalantly, praying that my poor terrified heart wouldn’t betray me.

The bear narrowed his eyes. “What are you doing here, unicorn?”

Well, there goes that plan. It took all my will to keep myself from falling over. As such, there wasn’t any leftover to maintain the cocky facade I’d put up.

“I c-could ask- I could ask y-you the same thing, b-bear.” I mentally kicked myself. Stuttering idiot. Get a grip!

The bear sat back and released a mighty, heart-stopping laugh. “Are you really trying to be threatening, pony?”

Okay, this isn’t working. I levitated my swords out of their sheaths, hoping some magic would scare him off. I was having trouble keeping my bladder under control. Hopefully both it and my magical focus would last long enough to keep my bluff going.

“Oh, put those toys away.” He waved me aside with a paw. “I’m not here to fight ponies. It’s beneath me.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” I challenged. How dare he condescend!

“It means that I could crush you in an instant. There would be no honor in it.”

I hesitated. He was probably right, but I didn’t want to look like I was taking orders from him. I had to at least make it look like we were negotiating something.

“How do I know you won’t kill me?” I asked.

“Other than the fact that you’re still alive?” He sighed. “Very well. I give you my word, as one amongst the Fallen.”

Okay. I figured that had to mean something, from the way he said it. It sounded like this bear put great emphasis on honor. Satisfied, I sheathed my swords.

“There’s a good little pony,” he said. “Now, what are you doing out here? This is hardly a safe place for you.”

“I’m, uh...” Tell him the truth? Risky. From what I knew, the Outer World wasn’t the sort of place where telling strangers about your business worked out well, and this bear could kill me in an instant. At the same time, he hardly sounded like he was looking out to get me. But then they almost never do, do they? I weighed my choices.

“I’m trying to find a city.” I couldn’t come up with an adequate lie anyways. Maybe he could help me out.

The bear cocked a brow. “And what city might you be searching for?”

“I’m not exactly sure,” I said. “The only name my map offers is ‘New’, but there’s nothing after that. Are there any cities around here with a ‘New’ in their names?”

He smiled, and I shifted uncomfortably. His fangs were really bothering me. “Yes, actually. I was just heading there now.” He glanced over to the wolves lying dead in the mist. “Though, I was forced to stop and deal with some unwelcome tails.”

I pulled my bandanna down. It was hard enough to breathe around here as it was, with all the thick air, and I was starting to suffocate a little under the material. “Where is it? My map said it was on the mouth of this river.”

He pointed his nose into the mist, in a direction that was distinctly not towards the mouth of the river, or even the river at all. “It’s north, a day or two’s walk. Your map is outdated.”

“What?” That didn’t make any sense. “Did the city, just, move?”

“No, pony. The city was burnt down.”

Oh. An awkward silence established itself over us as I looked around. In retrospect, it did seem pretty obvious. The dead land. The figures in the mist. The broken chariot. The noticeable lack of a city. Once again, I was reminded of the fact that I was no longer in Equestria. Over there, back across the Great Sea and on the inside of the Cloudwall, war was a word of history books and fiction. It was arrows and numbers on the surface of a board game. It was something of an age long past, before the Princesses had lead ponykind to peace and prosperity.

Out here, it was a broken chariot at your hooves, lifeless land for miles around, and a city completely wiped off the map. Suddenly, war became much, much more real.

“What happened?” I asked.

He shrugged. “Ask a historian. All I know is that there was a great battle here some time ago. The mist is even older. Some magic from centuries back that preserves the dead and stops things from growing.”

I found myself shrinking back towards the upturned chariot. This place was starting to scare me in ways much worse than simply ‘creepy’.

The bear pushed himself back to his paws heavily, sniffing the air. “Since we’re both going the same place, and you seem to lack a reliable map... Would you like to travel with me, pony?”

Thank Luna. Despite myself, I had been hoping he would let me join him. This fog was bad enough on its own; the history lesson didn’t do anything for the ambience. The bear turned to a nondescript direction and started walking with that slow, ponderous gait that bears have.

I had to trot to catch up with him. “So what’s your name?” I asked.

“They call me Exe.” He didn’t even spare me the courtesy of a sideways glance. I waited expectantly for him to ask what my name was, but it never came. I looked away awkwardly. Apparently bears aren’t big on names.

Another question came to my mind. I opened my mouth, but hesitated. I couldn’t really think of a polite way to ask it, and I didn’t want to offend this bear. Especially since he could stand on two legs and wield an axe. Luckily, he broached the subject for me.

“I suppose you’re wondering how I can talk?”

“Uhm- Well, no- Yes. I’ve never met a talking bear before,” I admitted. “How did you know I was thinking that?”

“Every Equestrian I’ve ever met gives me that same look. Apparently the bears in Equestria are just animals. In the Outer World, we’re above that.”

I nodded. So bears out here are sentient. Interesting. “What other races are there?”

“Goyles, griffons, zebra, recusants…” He growled. “Wolves.”

I had more questions, but he didn’t seem to want to talk anymore. I decided to focus on the path ahead of us instead.

The shapes in the fog were growing thicker. As we put distance between ourselves and the river, they almost became a solid wall of shadow, encircling us like a crowd of spectators as we walked. Strangely, we never seemed to actually reach them. Every time I thought one of them was getting close, it would just… dissipate. Occasionally, we passed some dilapidated war machine or an uprooted tree, but I never saw them in the mist as we approached. It was like the shadows were in another world. Some parallel universe. It was an eerie experience, and I perceived the mist to be pushing in on me. I felt as if I wasn’t supposed to be here. As if it didn’t want me to be here.

I felt something. An almost imperceptible tug on the tip of my horn. Then again, a second time. It pulled at me softly, yet consistently. Something was… calling to me. I turned my head, curious.

To my left, there was a break in the shadows. In the mist, surrounded by the mysterious remnants of a battle past, a single, perfectly round, pony-sized sphere rose from the ground. Suddenly, Exe’s voice rang through the silence.

“Pony!” he called. I jumped, startled, and looked back. I was surprised to find that I had started walking away from him, towards the shape. The tug on my horn grew stronger. I have to see what that shape is.

“There’s something over here,” I explained. “I’m going to see what it is.”

He narrowed his eyes and looked into the mist ahead of me. “There’s nothing there. Just the mist and its shadows.”

I looked back. The orb was closer. “Just give me a few minutes.”

I blinked, and suddenly I was standing right in front of the enigmatic orb, now half-buried in the ground. I ran a hoof over it. The surface was incredibly smooth. Some kind of… stone? I heard a noise behind me and started, glancing back. There was a bear there, with something in its paws. What is a bear doing following me?

“Are you done yet? You’ve been staring at nothing for an hour,” it said. It was chewing on something red.

I shook my head. Right. Exe. The tug on my horn was irresistible. It seemed to pull on the strings of my very soul. It cried out for me with the voice of great loss and sorrow. It needed me. I needed it. More than anything, I needed it.

I stepped closer and softly put my muzzle up to the cool stone, comforting it with my presence. I’m here, now. I felt my horn tingling. Suddenly, a spark of magic shot out of it, connecting with my horn and flowing into me with a stab of pain.

“Aagh!” I shrunk back, and the orb was gone. In its place was the form of a pony, carved from the same familiar mist that covered everything here. It was a pegasus. It was kneeling, head down, cradling something in its forehooves with its wings spread wide.

With a gust of wind, the mist blew away, and the spell was broken.

Exe was standing in front of me. “We’re leaving. Now.”

He bent down and grabbed my bandanna, dragging me behind him as he marched us away. I looked back to where the obelisk had been, mouth agape. Wait... obelisk? Where had that word come from? I got my hooves under me and pulled, breaking free from his grasp.

“Wait! What was that?” I asked.

The bear shot me a harsh glare. “I don’t know. I don’t care. Probably the curse on these mists. Now come on. The sun will be setting soon, and we must prepare a fire if we’re to spend the night here.”

Sitting in the lounge, looking out a window at the Outer World landscape as the gentle noise of the Omega’s engines played in the background, Phoenix Down let out a tired little sigh. She was beginning to regret leaving Harmony City.

No, she already did regret it.

She closed her eyes, lost in memory. The dull ache of another day’s dawn. The breathless reprieve at the sun’s setting. The terror of the first explosions. Her frenzied gallop to the foundry where Dissero worked. Relief that swelled within her when she realized he was alive. A cautious walk back to their rooms and her fear as Dissero broke into a violent rampage. The shock of his old friends showing up with an airship and a plan of escape. Her uncertainty when Dissero called her to join. The excitement of the chase and the heart-stopping terror of the Breaks.

That endless happiness that had overcome her when she saw the sky after a lifetime in the shadows.

The anxious search for land. Wondering at discovering a new world, at the idea of finally being free, long after even her dreams had given up on it.

And then the shock of watching, eyes wide, as Dissero fell off the ship.

She opened her eyes, feeling the tears starting to well up again, and fought to keep them inside. I won’t cry anymore. The others already thought she was weak and useless. She was always at the back, quivering in paralyzed horror as they did the real work. She would show them. I can be strong too. She would cry no more.

She raised a hoof and put it to the glass of the window. Was she really free, after all? For fear of her life, she couldn’t leave this ship or its crew any more than she could’ve left Harmony City. What had changed? Now she was in constant danger, lost in all the worst ways, and what had she gotten from it? A change of scenery, from the dark alleys of Harmony to the tight quarters of the Omega.

She didn’t even know these ponies. Sure, she had spoken with them some before, but it was always in passing, on the side. They were just acquaintances. Dissero was the only one she felt like she had actually known, and now he was dead.

No more tears.

She turned away from the window and looked back to the medkit at her hooves. She mustered up the energy to check its contents, organizing it, memorizing it. Bandages, dressings, disinfectant, airway adjunct, tweezers, butterfly strips... weird healing potion thing. She pulled the little vial out and held it before her eyes, swirling the dim red liquid about curiously. They didn’t have such a thing as a healing potion back in Equestria, and she still held some doubts about how helpful this drink could be for healing anything.

With a familiar dull thud and a gentle shake, the airship came to a stop. They had landed. The sound of hooves approached as the rest of the crew assembled in the lounge. With another sigh, she packed her medkit, slid it onto her back, tightened the straps, and turned to join the others.

“Okay, we’re just doing a simple find and retrieve job this time,” Ember said. “Think of it as a break. Some kind of parcel, lost in an airship crash. Shouldn’t be too hard, but everypony be ready for trouble anyways.”

Sounds of acknowledgement filled the room, followed by the sounds of last-minute preparations. Silver buckling his lightning gun to his chest, Storm checking her scope, Cleaver sliding his hammer’s hilt into his belt, Ember flicking her lighter experimentally.

Phoenix Down, flipping the soft leather cap of her medkit and trying to work up the courage to ask for a gun of her own.

“May I also have a rune gun?” she asked politely.

Ember cocked an eye at her. “You sure about that? So far you’ve never managed to shoot one towards the bad guys.”

Silver stepped forwards. “Hey, go ahead and give her the gun. She wants to help, and she needs to learn to fight anyways.”

Nix let out a sigh of relief as Ember shrugged and levitated a gun to her. She gave Silver a little smile, and he nodded in return.

“Is that all then?” Ember asked. “Let’s go.”

The five ponies trotted out of the lounge, down the central stairwell, and out the hatch in single file, emerging at the bottom of a hill. Cresting the top, they were treated to the remains of a crashed airship, lying in an open plain.

It looked like it had been smaller than the Omega, just a simple courier ship. It had largely shattered on impact, with the main body sliding forwards nose-down and various bits and pieces falling off as it went.

Without a word, Stormslider began to set up her rifle as the others approached the wreck. She would cover them if something went wrong. Entering the main body, the four Equestrians searched the site for the lost delivery they’d come for, overturning rubble and half-burnt furniture. It didn’t take them long.

“Found it!” Nix said. She held the little package up proudly. Not so useless after all!

Suddenly, a piece of wall near the front of the crashed ship was ripped away. All four ponies froze, eyes locked on the unwelcome intruders that stepped through. Nix’s knees began to shake.

A wolf and a bear, each festooned with sharp objects and armor, stood confidently at the helm of the wreck. The wolf was wearing multiple layers of hard leather pads, covering almost every part of his body. Steel claws protruded from his gloves, glinting in what light shone through the shattered ship’s chassis. The bear was completely consumed by his own armor, made of precisely worked steel plating with the scars of many past battles. A varied array of sword sheaths lined his back, each one holding a quality instrument of death. Blood-red glyphs were painted on to their armor, with matching tattoos engraved onto what parts of their bodies were visible. Their muscles looked unnaturally large, even under their heavy armor, and their eyes were actually glowing red.

A tense few moments passed. Nix took a nervous gulp. She looked to Ember expectantly.

“Who are you?” Ember asked, spreading her hooves aggressively. Silver and Cleaver followed suit, one sliding his goggles down while the other adjusted his posture to better reach his hammer.

The two warriors looked at each other. They looked at Ember. They looked at Nix. They focused in on the little box in her hooves, and their eyes narrowed.

“Give us the artifact!” the wolf commanded. Nix jumped in fear and lost her grip on the package. It clattered to the floor some distance behind her.

Cleaver stepped forward. “The object is ours. We were here first.”

They seemed somewhat taken aback at his denial, and exchanged glances. They looked back to the four ponies and seemed to simultaneously come to the same conclusion. They each took deep breaths.

All at once, the scene burst into violence.

The bear charged for Ember. She leapt back, drawing a stream of fire from her lighter and throwing up a line of flames before her. Silver stepped up to take her place, and when the bear burst through the blaze, he was met with the shock of lightning and roll of thunder. Amazingly, he kept on charging. Silver stumbled aside, just barely avoiding the attacker with a flap of his good wing. With only one target left, the bear angled himself for Cleaver.

With a mighty swing of his hammer and a loud clang!, Cleaver smacked him right on his steel-plated forehead. The bear flinched back, but didn’t collapse lifeless to the ground as expected. Instead, he rose up on his powerful hind legs, letting loose a fierce roar, and drew two long swords with his front paws. Cleaver, Silver, and Ember simply stared in amazement, broken out of their shock only be the bear’s renewed, two-legged attack.

Meanwhile, the wolf headed straight for Nix. Her eyes widened, and she leapt to the side, scrambling over a charred couch to avoid the deadly armored canine. It skidded past her, steel claws carving deep gouges into the wreck.

“Fall back! Get outside!” Ember called. Silver pulled Cleaver back from where he wrestled with the towering bear, and by the shine of Ember’s horn a wall of fire erupted all the way across the airship’s interior. Nix rushed to her hooves, picking the parcel up from where it had conveniently landed, and ran for the open air. She heard the thunder of the lightning gun behind her, but didn’t dare look back. She was too busy running for her life.

Stumbling to a stop in the grass outside, she looked back to see the terrifying image of the wolf sprinting straight for her, claws ready and eyes glaring with fury. She squeaked, dropping the rune gun in fear and falling to the ground. She closed her eyes, ready for the final blow.

It never came.

Opening her eyes, she saw the wolf picking itself up off the ground, a still glowing rune slug half-drilled into its unarmored head. The wolf howled in fury, glaring past Nix to where Storm was perched. In response to his challenge, another bullet soared right into the first one, pushing it even further in. They both detonated inside his brain. Amazingly, his skull managed to hold itself together, but it wasn’t enough to save his life. Blood and brain alike seeped out of his fractured skull, and he toppled over.

He let out a vengeful little snarl and reached out a paw to drag himself forwards, and then he died.

“Phoenix!”

Nix shook her head, rising out of her stunned reverie and up to her hooves. Silver was calling out to her from where he stood next to Cleaver, who was lying in a patch of blood stained grass, screaming... why was he screaming?

“Phoenix Down!”

She gasped and sprinted for his side, dropping her medkit next to him. There was an angry gash running across his chest, and he was starting to bleed out. His eye’s locked to hers.

“I was too slow,” he hissed, tense with pain. “Veles calls to me.”

“Hush! You’ll be okay!” Nix pushed down on the wound with a hoof. He cried out at the touch.

As she pulled dressings and gauze from her pack, Silver, Ember, and Storm fought to hold off the massive bear. His armor was ablaze from Ember’s inferno, and the thunder from Silver’s lightning gun became a constant roar as he fired shot after shot. Lightning crackled over his steel armor and still he stepped forwards, roaring a mix of pain and anger. Bullets from Stormslider’s gun veered by periodically, ricocheting off the bear’s curved helmet.

Cleaver was starting to fade away. He was losing too much blood. Nix pulled out an epipen and jabbed it into his coat. His vision cleared, and he blinked in confusion.

“Hold this in!” she commanded. His heavy hooves tightened around the syringe, holding it in place. She pulled out another dressing and slapped it on, but there wasn’t enough time! He would bleed out before she could cover the long cut, and she couldn’t put a tourniquet on his chest! What do I do? What do I do!? She wasn’t used to gashes! She was good with bullet wounds!

Desperate, she pulled the so-called healing potion from her medkit. How do I use this thing? She searched for instructions, but they were nowhere to be found. No time! She emptied the vial right onto Cleaver’s chest, trying to get it into the wound itself.

And the bleeding began to slow.

Nix hesitated, appalled at how well that worked. No time for that! She shook her head and returned to treating the big white stallion, covering the wound with dressings and securing it with several layers of gauze.

She let out a relieved sigh. She had saved him. He was unconscious, having blacked out from the bleeding, but she knew he would live. That red potion was miraculous, to speed up clotting like that so quickly. She would have to get more for her kit.

Her ears twitched. She hadn’t noticed it become quiet again. She looked over to the others. The bear was lying dead in the grass, still smoking, with little zaps of leftover electricity arcing across his armor. Blood pooled underneath his head, smoke wafting out of a wide bullet hole in his helmet. Ember, Storm, and Silver were standing around her and Cleaver, looking down expectantly.

“He’ll be okay,” Nix said. She let out a nervous little laugh. Silver joined in, followed by Ember. Stormslider allowed a grin to show on her face. Nix smiled. She had earned their respect, and saved a life. They weren’t just protecting her because she was weak anymore. Now, they did it because she was useful. She was part of the team. One of them.

With his usual poetic elegance, Silver managed to sum up the team's thoughts. “Well, that was somewhat harder than expected, wasn’t it?”

Wind. Wind and mist is everywhere. Everywhere is wind. There is nothing but wind. I am wind. I am everything yet nothing.

Reality begins to piece itself together. The wind slows to a mist and begins to thicken, to coalesce, as if piling up on top of itself. It forms shapes and brings out detail.

I suddenly find myself inside a small stone hovel. The roof is a simple construction of thatch, the floor only packed dirt. A dozen earth ponies of every age huddle together on one side of the room, eyeing the only door fearfully. I follow their gaze. Something is on the other side of the door.

The edges of reality seem… blurred. It is as if it will all fall to pieces, burst back into the storm of wind and mist at the slightest push.

The door slams open, and the earth ponies scream in fear. A single pegasus runs through, clothed in the uniform of a Royal Guard, and shuts the door behind him.

“Quiet!” he hisses. The screams fade away as the ponies calm themselves. A couple of foals cry softly in a corner.

“Be silent, and they may yet pass us over. I shall protect you.” The pegasus turns to face the door, kneeling. He pulls a hoof-sized pendant from his armor and caresses it somberly before placing it on the ground before him.

The room is quiet once more, and I take the opportunity to look out the hole in the hovel wall that serves as a window.

Smoke, fire, and screams.

For the first time I become aware of the sound of war just outside. Metal strikes metal. The dying call for aid and the living call for battle. The smell of burnt flesh reaches my nose and the smoke stings my eyes.

Heavy steps come to a stop outside the door. I hear a harsh command, spoken in some foreign language. The foals try to stifle their tears. An old mare begins to whisper a prayer.

The door is ripped off its hinges, revealing four angry gargoyles. Each one wears bloodstained armor and a wicked grin. They carry jagged weapons dripping blood, and equine heads roll from a sack dropped in the dirt behind them.

A few tense moments pass. A filly squeals and pushes herself back into her mother.

“Gather close!” the pegasus says, glaring at the intruders.

With a vicious warcry, the beasts charge forth. The pegasus cries out and stomps hard upon the pendant. A flash of light erupts from his breast, and when I look back, the ponies are surrounded by a perfectly round glass dome.
The gargoyles grunt in annoyance. One smashes his hammer down upon the glass, to no avail. With a visible shockwave, the dome absorbs the blow. The pegasus kneels within, cradling his glowing pendant as he whispers quietly.

“I am the servant of the Empire, the wings that shelter it from the storm, the blade that strikes down those who would harm it, the wind that carries its wishes to the edge of the world, the light that shines its emblem through the darkest nights…”

The gargoyles hiss in fury, beating upon the glass relentlessly. From outside a cry of fear rings out.

“The fort is lost! Flee! Abandon your post, lest you lose your lives! The fort is lost!”

Out the window, I see more armor-clad pegasi flying away, a flock of griffons giving swift chase. The chanting pegasus’ ears twitch, but he does not falter.

With a mighty blow from the largest gargoyle, a crack appears in the glass. The pegasus grunts, flinching, and raises his voice.

“Through the blackest hour and deepest storm I shall fight to defend the honor of the Empire. Against the mightiest demons of hell, I shall hold my line!”

The dome heals itself, but three more cracks have already formed. As each seals itself closed, five more are made. The pegasus is panting hard now, his eyes shut tight. With his wings, he draws two swords and places them at his sides. A colt looks up to his mother and cries.

“Make them go away, Mommy! Make them go away!” He speaks with the demanding tone of a foal who still thinks his mother can do anything.

The mother pulls her foal closer, weeping. “It’s okay, my child. Oh, I love you so much!”

The pegasus shivers. His ear twitches, and suddenly he is looking right at me. He knows it is hopeless. He had known since the instant he rushed in here and closed the door behind him.

“Though the others may have fled, let it be known that Thunder Shield held his line. Do not falter at your own, wielder.” His soft whisper rings clear in my mind, though the earth ponies show no sign of hearing it. I open my mouth to reply. To offer aid.

The glass shatters.

The earth ponies shriek in fear as the gargoyles rush in, bloodthirsty eyes shining with sadistic glee.

Thunder Shield rises to his hooves, grabbing the swords with his wings as he rushes forwards to meet them. One of them deflects his first blow, and he barely manages to block their counter before leaping back with a flap of his wings. The walls of the hovel box him in.

He slides under a hammer swing and comes up behind the gargoyles, shoving a sword into one’s back. The gargoyle collapses, and Thunder is forced to leave one sword behind as the others push the attack. He puts his back to the wall, his last remaining sword held out before him.

He’s breathing hard now, his eyes daring the gargoyles to come closer. One of them slashes down at him with a sword, and as he raises his sword to block the other rushes forward, running him through with cold steel.

Blood stains the wall of the hovel as the servant of the Empire falls to his knees, his eyes fixed to the ground with despair. He topples over, and with one last gasp, the life leaves his body.

The gargoyles turn to grin at the earth ponies, fresh blood dripping down their faces.

All at once, the world shatters, and I am the wind once more.

I rose from my bedroll so fast that it hurt my neck. I found myself searching frantically for my swords, thinking to help the defenseless ponies, but there was nothing I could do. It was too late for them.

I heard Exe drawing his axe, and turned to see him scanning the horizon. “What is it?” he asked.

I ran a hoof through my mane, embarrassed. Only foals are afraid of dreams. “Nothing,” I said. “Sorry.”

He grunted and put his axe away. “Well, since you insist on waking up early, we might as well get going.”

The mist was reaching the color that meant the sun was rising. I looked back, to where the obelisk had been. Somehow, without any frame of reference or landmarks to guide me, I knew exactly where it was. That place… that had been where Thunder Shield died. I felt it in my bones.

Luckily for me, bears ate more than just meat, so I was able to eat some bread from his pack. He, on the other hand, satisfied himself with large chunks of meat. I wondered what animal it came from. Despite over a month with the carnivorous recusants, I still felt awkward and nervous when others ate meat around me.

We packed our bags and doused the fire, making sure to save any wood that hadn’t been burnt overnight. There weren’t many trees in the mists, and we mostly used what firewood Exe had brought with him for the journey.

After a quick check of my saddlebags and one last glance to the site of the noble pegasus’ death, I followed Exe into the mist.

Author's Notes:

I just wanna say, I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. Real jazzy. We're finally getting into the meat of the Outer World.

I feel for Thunder Shield. He was such a bro.