[Tick. Tock. Tock. Tock.]

“A toast to recovery!” said Bruce Mane.

It was weird hearing his voice, but that was what I heard in the black. A group of ponies agreed in cheers and next thing I knew, I was raising my glass in a long dining room with large windows, green curtains, an oil painting of Bruce Mane over a fireplace mantle and a pair of crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. Butlers and maids were standing still by the walls, which had marble busts of stallions and mares, and the table that my host was at easily sat thirty ponies, all of which had a fancy dish of salads, wine, bread and cheese.

My back still hurt, as well as my hoof when I raised my glass, and my eyes were heavy, but I still managed a smile. Roseluck was next to me, wearing a simple green dress, and at the far end of a long table was Bruce Mane and Dr. Odji. They both had their glasses raised, and after we had our moment of saluting we all sipped our drinks in unison.

“You know, when I first met Time Turner in Ponyville, I saw a timid colt. Brilliant, but timid. But there was more to him than what others saw. I saw a little ember in his eyes that was waiting to turn into a flame. That little ember has since grown into an inferno. Nothing will keep him down. Nothing will stop him from achieving his goals, and for that, I salute him,” said Bruce Mane.

The crowd turned to Time Turner and I felt his jaw tighten and his body quiver. He only relaxed when Roseluck hugged him.

“Keep on working, Time, and I know you will live forever,” said Bruce.

Time Turner stiffened once more, and after a brief pause Bruce's demeanor relaxed and he smiled at the crowd.

“Well, now that the formalities are out of the way, let's enjoy the meal!” said Bruce.

The crowd murmured in agreement, and in seconds time the murmurs turned to words and the long dining room exploded into conversations and laughter. Roseluck gave my host a squeeze and was about to enjoy her food when Bruce leaned over to talk to her. Dr. Odji on the other hoof, just stared at me, sipping his drink with that stoic look of his.

“Tick tock, Dr. Turner,” said Dr. Odji, his voice in the atmosphere.

That was when I woke up, wheezing and aching, and I then froze, too horrified to breathe when I saw what was left of my own body. Sticky black and red scabs of burnt flesh had created a crust on my hoofs, and what wasn't covered in scabs was red flesh or barely covered in patches of fur. I didn't even want to look in a mirror. I also noticed that the brace on my hoof was broken and blackened, and a there was couple of pieces of wood with fabric poking out from underneath it, wrapped with wire. My hoof had a painful throb to it and when I shifted a sharp pain ran up it, bringing me to biting my lip and pressing my good hoof on top of it, hoping the pressure would do something to help with the pain.

I slumped down and stared at the wall ahead of me, trying to breathe normally, but couldn't. Mostly because of how angry I was at my situation.

I just could not get a break!

I tried to do something myself and I got lit on fire for it! I didn't even want to think about what the others were going to say or do when they caught up.

Baton would probably say: “Serves you right for losing Lilac.”

Wilhelm would probably plot another way to have me killed.

Aria... well, I told her Rose was back and I wanted her, so she probably thought I deserved this.

I don't... It just sucked. The whole thing sucked. Just the ridiculousness and the twisted nature of events brought me to shake and my eyes to burn.

The only good that I got out of this was the weight on my side. Rose was sleeping next to me, her head resting on my ribs and her PipBuck emitting a soft green glow.

I wanted to know how Rose was able to get out of the Stable with the suit and PipBuck, and I also wanted to know if she had any idea where Butter Bars took Artisan, but that was for another time. For now she had to sleep.

Plus, it was pleasant watching her sleep against me. I loved hearing her soft breath again. I loved seeing her again. I would even say that I loved her smell if she didn't smell like burnt fuel and wood. I hated that stench, and I was also actually getting mildly annoyed at how she was sleeping so well and barely touched by the flames while I was once again disfigured by the Wasteland.

Don't get me wrong, I was glad she was alright, but still... being burned alive is an unpleasant feeling and there was no way she could look at me the same way she did before.

Anyway, pushing the unfairness of it all aside, I cupped my watch in my hoof and frowned when I saw the scorch marks on it, adding to the collection of scratches and dings. I had to get a little creative to pop it open since I was down a hoof, but when I did I smiled when I heard the ticking and saw the seconds hoof moving smoothly. I shut it and looked around, realizing that I was in a familiar room.

The years have not been kind to Bruce Mane's dining hall -or whatever the place was. The tiles have long rotted and curled, with patches of sharp grass poking through. The busts were gone, the windows were mostly blown out, with some having boards and others left as gaping holes. The paint on the walls have faded and peeled with rot breaking down the brick, and up above wires dangled from the ceiling. No chandeliers were seen anywhere.

I looked straight ahead and saw what was left of Bruce Mane's oil painting, which was just a frame with patches of shredded canvas, and a lot of scorch marks.

I stared at the mantle. The black patches in it were like a gashes into another world, and my watch got louder the longer I stared at it, but I was scared to move. Not out of fear of something trying to grab me, which would not surprise me at the point I was in, but more for not wanting to wake up Rose. So, I remained still and stared at the mantle until my eyes closed.

It didn't feel very long when I opened them again, but I guess I was out longer than I thought since I smelled something good. Kind of like potatoes.

Not too far from me was Rose, and she was sitting in front of a small fire, stirring something in a pot she had hanging over the flame. Where she got the stuff, I don't know, but when she saw me staring at her she released the ladle from her mouth and walked over to me, offering a smile.

“Hey,” she said.

Excellent word choice for seeing your fiance again after a grueling Wasteland experience.

Rose sat down next to me and brushed what was left of my mane from my face. It hurt. Like tight skin being torn, and I guess she saw my discomfort since she pulled back immediately and looked at the floor.

“I'm... I'm sorry, Meris... I'm sorry for everything,” said Rose.

“What are you apologizing for?” I asked, my voice was gravely and I could barely hear myself.

“What happened to you. I tried to get you out of the exile, but they didn't listen. And when Artisan and I came to find you I... I got you hurt by that awful stallion.” Rose looked at me, eyes wet and lips trembling. “I had no idea the Wasteland would be this awful. The people, the beasts, the world itself! And now because of me you're... you're...”

She gulped and looked away, covering her mouth with her hoof and her shoulders buckling with her quiet cries. I looked at her, wanting to speak, but couldn't. I saw the tears and the dried blood and mud corrupting her uniform, the faint scars covering her body, particularly one going over her right eye. Her mane and tail had lost their shine and were now a sweaty, dirty, tangled mess, and her hoofs were cracked like mine. She also lost a lot of weight, so her suit was hanging off of her rather than closely hugging her figure.

“Rose...” I said.

Rose sniffled and looked at me.

“What did Butter Bars do to you?” I asked.

Rose shook her head. “N-Nothing.”

I brushed her mane away from her face, my shoulder aching from such a simple move, and I held her cheek with my hoof.

“What did he do?” I asked again.

“Nothing! I-I mean, when his soldiers found me and Artisan at that Mane Enterprise place he had Artisan taken away to a place called Republic 61 and-and there was this really dirty, skinny old stallion who wanted me for a ritual but Butter Bars wanted to keep me. Then I-I told him about you coming to get me and he kept me locked up in a room in his mansion until he captured you and that unicorn you were traveling with.”

“Lilac... Do you know where they took her?”

Rose shook her head. “All I heard was him talking about how somepony named Waltz was waiting for her. I'm sorry, Meris! I shouldn't have... I didn't know what to do! I still don't know what to do. All I can do is cook potatoes and mess things up!”

I shushed her and hugged her as tight as I could with my functioning hoof, and she wrapped me in a tight embrace, but I was unable to tell her that the hug hurt. I missed her too much to let a little pain ruin the moment, anyway. As we hugged in silence, I closed my eyes and rested against the crook of her neck, unable to tell if it was her or me that was shaking. Her tears trickled against what was left of my mane, and we stayed like that for a few minutes until something caught my attention. It was a bang. Followed by hoofsteps.

Me and Rose both tensed and she whimpered while I gently shushed her and moved her behind me.

The steps got closer and I grabbed a wooden plank. My heart was racing, my mouth dried, and I was shaking as I held the wooden plank in my hoof. I kept my eyes on the doorway, fighting to keep myself steady as the steps got louder.

And I was about to throw the plank at the pony that rounded the corner. Only it wasn't a pony. It was a donkey.

It was Burst Fire.

He saw me and he immediately smiled and waved down the hall.

“Hey, guys! I found him! He issssohhhholllllly shit. You're gonna need some cream for that,” said Burst Fire.

I didn't say anything and Rose poked her head over my shoulder as the others came in. Baton, Stocker, Aria, Wilhelm, the whole gang was there and I couldn't tell if they were relieved or pissed. Well, Aria actually looked relieved to see me alive, but quickly became horrified at my state. As for the others, I couldn't tell.

“Meris, put that down before you hurt yourself,” said Baton.

The group entered the area and Aria went right to the cooking area while Wilhelm and Baton approached me. Stocker stayed behind to keep an eye on the hall while Burst Fire peered outside, making a comment about the weather being good for walking.

“I told you I would help you and yet you still ran off,” said Wilhelm.

“What the hell were you thinking? And where is Lilac? And who's this?” said Baton.

“They have Artisan at 61, and they are probably taking Lilac there, too,” I said. “And this is Rose... My fiance.”

Rose meekly raised her hoof and flashed an equally nervous smile, and Aria gave her a stink eye, which I'm sure Rose noticed because her smile was gone as soon as Aria made that face.

“Well, that's just great!” said Baton, not making any attempt to say hello like the uncivilized bastard he was. “You go and run off without us even though we said we would help you and you get yourself burned to Hell and Lilac captured. But that's all right! 61 is only at the edge of Equestria and is a fortress city and has a shit ton of Ms. Gold's soldiers there! Did I miss anything?”

“You left out the part where they are still fighting mutants and zombies,” said Stocker.

“And there are also robots and bandits,” added Burst Fire.

“Security check points, too,” said Wilhelm.

“The surrounding area is also a megalopolis of decay and broken dreams,” said Stocker.

“Also diseases and weird shit,” said Burst Fire.

“I'm talking about what genius did, not what is around Sixty One,” said Baton flatly.

“All of his equipment has been confiscated by a hostile party and his hoof is broken,” said Wilhelm.

“Well fuck! You won the bad luck lottery didn't ya?” said Baton, glaring at me.

I stared at Baton, frowning deeply, but with a loss of words, and Rose was pale at this point, but I gently nudged her towards the cooking area and had to assure her it would be all right. When she did leave my side a few seconds later, Baton was shaking his head and going to the hallway to trade places with Stocker.

It was by that time that Aria was stirring something over a new flame, which amazed me since it hadn't been long and there was no way magic was involved. Also, whatever was in the pot was already bubbling and smelling like vegetables, and Rose inched over to Aria to try to initiate a conversation.

“Hi, I'm Rose Petal,” she said, holding out her hoof.

Aria didn't say anything to her, and Rose dropped her hoof while looking at me with a mix of confusion and hurt. I just shrugged. I didn't know what to say about Aria's attitude.

“You're going to make some cream for him, right?” asked Burst Fire.

Aria nodded.

“Cool... Well, I'm bored. I'm going to go on the roof. Anybody want to join?” asked Burst Fire.

“Since you're on the roof you might as well be our eyes outside,” said Wilhelm. “As for me. I'm going to search this building.”

Burst Fire saluted and galloped away, and right as Wilhelm was about to leave Rose quietly called out to him with an “excuse me”, bringing his eyes to her.

“I don't think you'll find anything here. It is all just... this,” said Rose.

Wilhelm looked at her in total silence and no blinking, and she shrunk in her spot. After she did that he walked away without a word. We all watched him until he exited into the hallway, and when his steps were gone Rose looked around, though I wasn't sure why. There really was nothing going on.

“He seems... different,” said Rose.

“You'll get used to it now that you're part of the group,” said Stocker.

Baton scoffed.

“You'll get used to him, too,” I said.

“Don't you start,” said Baton.

There was a tense moment of silence after that, and during this heavy period Stocker looked between me and Rose a couple of times before focusing on Rose.

“You're lucky to have him,” said Stocker.

Rose nodded and smiled at me, but it was definitely forced. I could see the disgust in her eyes past that pity. But who could blame her? I was hideous.

“I know,” said Rose. “I just... I just wish he wasn't hurt so much.”

“He'll be fine,” said Stocker with a wave of his hoof, adding with a smile at me: “Won't you, Exile?”

I just stared at him, and after a brief moment of awkward silence he sighed and laid down next to me.

“Listen, I know you're in a lot of pain right now, and you kind of pissed off Baton and father by running off and getting Lilac captured and yourself nearly burned alive, but for what its worth I would have done the same thing if I was you.”

I nodded, but was caught off guard when Stocker pulled me in for a hug, bringing out a sharp yelp from me as my burned body was dragged across the floor, yanking out some scabs and jerking my broken hoof.

“Careful!” snapped Aria over Rose's horrified gasp.

“He'll live. He's a damn cockroach. You can't kill him for anything,” said Baton.

“Hang in there! You're a tough cookie and a little fire never hurt a cookie!” said Stocker.

Rose galloped to us and raised her hoof for what I thought was going to be a slap, but she meekly tapped Stocker instead.

“Um, can you please not hurt my fiance, anymore?” said Rose.

I noticed Aria's figure sulk with that, and Stocker released me and sat up, clearing his throat.

“Apologies, I was only trying to offer some comfort to him. We go back many weeks,” said Stocker.

“Really? How did you two meet?” asked Rose.

“I slaughtered a bunch of Sadists in front of him and then tried hooking him up with my sister.”

Stocker pointed at Aria and Rose looked at her, but she did not look back. As for me... I could only hide my face in my hoofs and sink into the floor when I felt Rose's eyes on me.

“Oh... Did they... Did they hit it off?” asked Rose.

“Kinda. But I will say that your fiance needs to work on his flirting,” said Stocker. “It's very weak.”

“Yeah, that sounds like him,” said Rose after a pause. Maybe a little heavy in the tone.

“Stocker... why?” I hissed

“She asked,” said Stocker.

Suddenly, there was a click and a whir and the fireplace split apart, revealing an elevator covered in bullet holes, blood splatter and a couple of skeletons. It brought Rose to gag and hide behind me, me wishing I had a gun, Aria backpedaling away from her cooking, and Stocker leaped up with his rocket trained on the elevator. Baton joined seconds later, his hoofs sliding across the floor and his massive body staggering to a stop.

“Where did that come from?” said Baton.

“I have no idea. It just came up,” said Stocker.

“Hey, what's going on down there?” said Burst Fire.

We looked up and saw him looking down at us from a hole in the roof.

“Did you touch anything?” asked Baton.

“I moved some bricks and kicked a can. Why?” said Burst Fire.

“Because there is a weird elevator that just came up for no reason!”

“There was a hidden room near the entrance,” said Wilhelm suddenly, his voice echoing as he entered the dining area. “In that room was a button and I pushed it and now we have this.”

Wilhelm pointed at the elevator and Baton shook his head, but kept his weapon trained on the elevator as if expecting an invisible monster to come out.

“What the hell is with everypony pushing mysterious buttons?” said Baton.

“This elevator will take us to an underground facility that is crucial for our mission. It may even help us get your friends back,” said Wilhelm. “Now, everybody on.”

We looked at the elevator, and then at Wilhelm, and then Burst Fire came around the corner, panting.

“Oh, good. I wasn't left behind,” said Burst Fire.

“I'm glad you made it. Get on the elevator,” said Wilhelm.

“You mean that elevator?” asked Burst Fire, pointing at that elevator.

“How will going below help us get Artisan and Lilac back?” I asked.

“In the emergency broadcast, you-” Wilhehm pointed at Rose “-said that your friend touched an orb and it put him in a comatose state. That was a memory orb. Whatever he saw in that orb Sweet Berry and Ms. Gold will want to know. I am certain that we can find clues to what he saw down there.”

“And Lilac?” asked Baton.

“Waltz won't let Lilac out of his sight and where Butter Bars is, he will be close by, and I can guarantee you that what is down there will interest Butter Bars.”

Baton furrowed his brows, and Rose took a step back, her hoof slightly raised.

“Aren't there stairs we can take?” asked Rose anxiously.

“Yes,” said Wilhelm.

“Then why don't we take the stairs and forget about the elevator?” snapped Baton.

After what happened last time we went into an elevator, I couldn't blame Baton for being snappy. But then Wilhelm said this:

“The passage you want is irradiated to fatal levels. We'll die before we make it through.”

So, elevator it was.

When we reached the bottom, the elevator jerked and a metallic thud echoed down the rocky tunnel. The lights also flickered, rapidly flashing our shadows against the wall. Wilhelm and Stocker were the first to leave. I hobbled close behind and Rose kept by my side while Aria, Burst Fire and Baton were the last to leave, with Baton being the very last. As soon as Baton stepped off the elevator the doors slid shut and a pleasant ding bounced off the walls.

More lights flicked on, and that was when we saw it.

A carpet of bullet casings, broken skeletons, old blood on the walls and floor and ripped clothing, from civilians Sunday best, to (formerly) white lab attire with faded Mane Enterprise logos stitched on them, and the blue and yellow collared Stable-Tec jumpsuits plus old armor and ruined weapons. We also heard groaning, growling and snapping, and I had the brilliant idea to look over the edge of our walkway, which thankfully still had a railing. A rusted, bent, cracked in spots railing, but still a railing.

What was down below was another matter entirely.

There was a set of stairs carved into the rock and at the bottom was a glowing rainbow pool of thick goo, a broken metal shell of something in the middle, and a hole in the ceiling. In the pool were equine figures with wiry muscles, rotting skin, pale eyes and thin strands of mane walking in circles mindlessly. In the middle of them was a larger one, but not only was it larger, but it was also glowing. Its skin was glowing, its eyes were like green bulbs, and rainbow colors fluctuated underneath the pockets of ripped skin.

I quickly stepped back and nudged Rose away from the edge, but that only provoked the others into looking over, and Baton immediately scampered back and craned his head up, inhaling and exhaling heavily.

“Why zombies?” muttered Baton.

We stood far away from the edge and carefully walked through the corpses. It was difficult trying to avoid all the bones and rotted relics of the past, and sometimes we did accidentally step on a bone or something, but other than that we made it to our destination without trouble.

Or, mostly no trouble.

When we reached our destination my ears perked and my whole body went stiff. In front of us, covered in blood splatter, scratches, and scorch marks was a Stable door with a big “64” painted on it. In front of it was a console with a dead guard next it whose skull had been obliterated. It was also surrounded by more skeletons that have been completely broken from shattered ribs, to snapped spines and busted skulls, and there was also bullet casings and a broken baton. All in all, it did not look like anypony had been able to open the Stable in a long time, which led me to thinking that if Wilhelm was right then Butter Bars and Waltz would not be far behind us with Lilac and Artisan. But if he was wrong then we just wasted a lot of time.

After taking a moment, Wilhelm nudged the skeleton away from the console, wiped the dust off the screen and turned to Rose.

“Give me your Pip-Buck,” he said.

Rose's eyes flicked between me and him, and after some hesitation she slowly approached him with me by her side and held out her Pip-Buck hoof. Wilhelm pulled out a jack from his pack, attached it to her Pip-Buck and then connected it to the console. Her screen immediately lit up and numbers, letters and other symbols scrolled across it, line by line.

Seeing this, Wilhelm looked at Stocker and tilted his head towards the stairs.

“Engel, do not let those things get up the stairs,” said Wilhelm.

Stocker nodded, went to the railing and motioned Baton and Burst Fire to join him. Burst Fire was quick to take a position and used the railing to support his rifle, whereas Baton... Not so much. He still went, but he wasn't very enthusiastic about it and I could see him shaking.

“What about me?” I asked.

“You are in no condition to fight,” said Stocker. “Stay with Aria.”

I reluctantly went to Aria, feeling just a bit useless since the guys were ready to rain Hell on the ghouls below, Rose was helping Wilhelm unlock the Stable door (even if she was just standing there while he typed on her Pip-Buck), and Aria was on stand-by with her medical supplies. I was the only one who had nothing to do.

“So...” I began awkwardly to Aria. “Do you have a gun I can borrow?”

Aria held out her hoof to me, which had a pistol in the holster she had strapped to her hoof, and after I took it she got in front of me and said: “Stay behind me, please. You can't fight with a broken hoof.”

Yeah, that was great. I had to stay behind Aria, too. What a great moment in my life.

Several minutes later, there was a click, followed by a loud BANG! and a ring of swirling yellow lights suddenly turned on as an alarm shrieked (BeeeEEEeeeP! BeeeEEEeeeP! BeeeEEEeeeP!). The Stable door then hissed and metal screeched as it slid backwards, showering the rocks with sparks, and Wilhelm quickly unplugged the Pip-Buck from the console and put his jack back in his pack.

And that was when the raspy screaming and shooting started.

The muzzle flashes from the weapons were like balls of fire, and when the Stable door was all the way back, it slid out of sight and shook the tunnel with a resounding BANG!

“Oh, shit! The glowing one is coming up the stairs!” said Burst Fire.

“Fuck!” said Baton.

He pulled away from his spot and slid by Stocker's side, raining down a stream of hot lead that tore apart the wall and spread sparks and broken rock everywhere. Burst Fire and Stocker also began shooting at the glowing ghoul, but it soaked up those bullets like a sponge, uncaring of the holes punched in it or the trail of glowing blood it left behind. It got up the stairs and I saw a horn on its head spewing out rainbow sludge, and it screamed at us, its flesh ripping when it opened its mouth. Its horn released a burst of a green wave and Rose's Pip-Buck clicked rapidly. Then the glowing ghoul shot a beam at Stocker's chest, blowing him right off his feet and right into Baton. The two rolled over each other, and Wilhelm, Burst Fire and Aria unloaded everything we could on that thing, but it just. Would. Not. DIE!

Despite all the bullets going into it, it still rammed Wilhelm into the rock wall and began stomping on him, but he shoved it off, rolled it on its back and returned the treatment. Only for him to be blasted off and nearly fall off the edge into the pool of radiation below.

The glowing ghoul whipped towards Rose, and she shrieked, that thing roared and I emptied my clip into its back. Squirts of green blood flew out and it now galloped towards me, horn charging, maw wide open from its screaming, and Aria pushed me out of the way just in time for that thing to leap on her and sink its teeth into her.

Aria collapsed on the ground, screaming and sobbing as the teeth sunk deeper into the nape of her neck. Blood poured out, Aria tried standing and tried bucking it off, but her quivering legs gave out and it kept its hold on her, despite everyone shooting at it. I wanted to shoot, too, but I was out of ammo for that pistol.

Then, just like that, one loud gunshot and the top of its head exploded, splattering the wall with glowing bones, brain and blood. The headless ghoul went limp on top of Aria and I immediately limped to her side and got that thing off of her. Aria was laying in a pool of blood of red and glowing green, and she pale, shaking, and she looked at me with watery eyes as I pressed my hoof against her wound. My hoof was quickly soaked in her blood and I felt the meaty flaps of her torn flesh push down on the gaping hole in her collar.

“Aria, look at me. You're going to be fine,” I said.

She looked away from me and I grabbed her hoof with my damaged one, despite the pain, and that brought her eyes back to me.

“You'll be okay,” I told her. “Just look at me. Keep your eyes on me.”

Wilhelm was by my side at that point and ordered me to keep pressure on the wound while he dug into Aria's medical supplies.

“Engel, Baton, watch the stairs! Burst Fire, guard the mare!” ordered Wilhelm.

Burst Fire ran over to Rose. She was crying by the door, holding her head with her hoofs and rocking back and forth.

Baton went over to the stairs and peeked into the pit, but Stocker remained by us.

“Father, I'm-”

“GUARD THE STAIRS!” interrupted Wilhelm.

Stocker swallowed, then sulked away, and I looked at Aria again. Her eyes were closed and her hoof was limp.

“No! No no no no! Keep your eyes open! Keep your eyes open, please!” I cried, chest heavy and throat tight.

Aria's eyes fluttered open and I smiled at her with tears wetting my eyes.

“There we go. You're all right. You're all right,” I said. “You'll be fine, Aria. I promise. You'll be fine just stay with me. Please, stay with me.”

Wilhelm shoved my hoof out of the way and began wrapping her wound with a bandage, but I kept my hold on her hoof, stroking it and swallowing cold lumps in my throat.

“I'm sorry, I'll make this up to you. I promise,” I said.

Aria's eyes closed again and she went limp. Her whole neck was wrapped in an entire bandage roll that was dripping blood, and Wilhelm pushed me back and slipped her on his back.

“Engel, up front! Baton, keep guard on the stairs!” said Wilhelm.

Stocker nodded and went to the Stable entrance, scanning the area. It was completely empty and we carefully followed behind him. When we were all inside our steps bounced off the metal walls, prints were left in the heavy layer of dust and dim lights barely illuminated the cold gray walls.

I didn't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't all the dust.

Ponies, perhaps?

Or robots?

Or an army of clones or a guy gone insane by puppets?

Anything but nothingness.

Really, the only thing of interest was a yellow line on the floor, plus a crudely painted message with an arrow pointed towards the door.

KEEP DOOR CLOSED FOUREVER!

The message was upside down so it was for whoever would be coming out of the only door in the Stable entrance, which was a simple metal door. There was a large speaker on the ceiling, and a security booth that was completely empty as well as an observation deck with consoles on it, but no skeletons or any signs of a struggle. There wasn't even any paper. It was just... silence. Dead silence.

I gulped and we inched closer inside, but when Stocker crossed the yellow line the speaker made a loud crackle, followed by an ear raping screech and a pop, and a voice came on.

“GOOOOOOOOOOOD EVENING, EVERYPONY, AND WELCOME TO STABLE 64!” said a cheerful stallion over the intercom with the volume so loud it shook the dust off the walls and us. “IF YOU ARE INSIDE THIS STABLE THEN YOU HAVE BEEN SELECTED TO PARTAKE IN A FUN GAME WHERE EVERYPONY IS A WINNER!”

We all swore and tried holding our ears. Aria was still passed out, though.

“PLEASE MAKE YOUR WAY TO THE ATRIUM FOR SNACKS AND DRINKS-”

BLAM!

Burst Fire's rifle was smoking and that speaker erupted into a ball of sparks and flame, but the voice was still heard from beyond the metal door.

“-And remember, with the power of teamwork and friendship, no future will be gloomy! Disclaimer: StableTecandManeEnterprisearenotresponsibleforanylossoflifeorpropertyorsanitycertainbodilyandormentalharmmayormaynothappentoyouduringthisexperiment,” concluded the voice.

The hallway door slid opened when we approached it, but a bunch of chairs spilled out towards Stocker's feet, and all of us briefly lost brain function from the confusion. We quickly resumed walking, sweeping the area as we went, but nothing happened. The wall was painted with more crude messages warning the inhabitants to stay away from the door, but there were no living ponies, no mutants, no corpses, just dust, dust and more dust. There were cameras hanging limp from the ceiling and the only lights active were red emergency lights and faint lights from underneath the doors. One of the rooms we passed had an observation window, but it was an actual living quarter with a living room, a small kitchen, a small bathroom and a stand with a radio on it. All of which was covered in dust.

“You know, I think my ear is bleeding,” said Burst Fire. He poked his hoof against his ear and inspected it. “Nope. It just hurts a lot.”

We ignored him.

Wilhelm went to the next room, which was completely identical with layout and the observation window and the third room he inspected was exactly the same as the other two.

“Where is everypony?” asked Rose.

“I have no idea,” I said, looking at a message written on the hallway wall that said Buttercup's Super Club Tearitory. That was the second example of bad spelling within a short distance, coupled that with the lack of bodies and it really gave me an uncomfortable shiver up my messed up spine.

Baton glanced above the door of one of the rooms, and then took a step back and looked down both sides of the hall at the rest of the doors. “All these got a Mane Enterprise logo over them. Where did the Stable-Tec ponies sleep? And the civilians?”

I hobbled down the hallway some more and stopped in front of a map outlined by a square of dim lights. It was a map of Stable 64, and from what I could see we were in the Mane Enterprise Wing, and next to it was the Stable-Tec Wing. Then there was large circular area that was roughly three miles in radius. That was a lot bigger than the atrium at my Stable. Probably larger than any atrium, actually.

Around it were various other wings that were connected to each other by giant rings of hallways. Each section was labeled as medical, observation, residential, food, entrance, and so on. The Overmare's office was also close to the clinic and the lower level was just blank with no clear way in. The only label it had was “Authorized Personnel Only”.

“Hey, Wilhelm, there is a clinic nearby,” I said, tapping the medical block on the map.

Wilhelm took one look at where I was pointing, looked at the map, and then quickly went in the direction needed.

He didn't even thank me.

The clinic door slid open and triggered the lights to flicker on. It was just about spotless, save for a garbage can overflowing with a lot of empty sleeping potion bottles. There were other empty wrappers lying around, too. Some were for bandages, others were broken stimpacks, and others were empty containers of random medicine. That said, Wilhelm gently placed Aria on an empty cot and went right towards the cabinet, breaking locks off and throwing aside stuff that was useless to him. It was quickly gathered by Baton, though. As for Aria, she was still breathing, but it was labored and she was limp. I sat down next to her and held her hoof again, letting Wilhelm rummage through the clinic, and Rose sat next to me.

“Will she be all right?” asked Rose.

“I hope so,” I said.

Wilhelm came back, pushed me aside and tilted Aria's head so he could pour the only healing potions he could find down her throat. She immediately began coughing and sputtering, and then her eyes shot open as she jerked up and wheezed for air, only for Wilhelm to snatch her in a hug that nearly suffocated her. Aria winced and awkwardly pawed at him, trying to find a good spot to hold him as he sniffled and rubbed her mane.

“I'm sorry,” said Wilhelm.

Aria found her grip and returned the hug, resting her chin on his shoulder and closing her eyes.

“I forgive you,” said Aria quietly.

She was still trembling and pale, but she managed to offer me a weak smile.

“I guess we're even,” said Aria.

It took me a second to realize what she was referring to, but when it clicked I smiled and stepped forward, but Wilhelm put his hoof against my chest, stopping me from going any closer. Stocker came up to her a couple of seconds later and she was sandwiched in a hug between her father and brother.

Rose got a little smile and leaned against me, and despite me being pushed back I smiled, too. It was good to see Aria alive. It was good not to lose a friend. Though, when I looked at Rose something was off about her. That smile wasn't... right. She was smiling, but it was hollow. She wasn't smiling because Aria was alive. She was smiling because she was trained to do it during certain events. Events where we were expected to be happy. Events like Aria surviving.

My smile dropped as I looked at Rose, and she looked at me, still holding her smile, but I could see the the wet haze in her eyes. There was a poison. A rot. And it was spreading to me.

“Hey, Meris,” said Aria.

“Yeah?” I said, looking at her.

“Who's Honey?”

So, long story short, Aria said she heard me call her Honey when she was bleeding in my hoofs. I didn't know what she was talking about, but Wilhelm backed her up. As did Stocker... And Baton... And Burst Fire... Rose said nothing about it. I was sure they were lying because I know what I say and I never said “Honey”, but they insisted I did. We didn't stay on the issue long, though. We had work to do and our mission was now to find the Overmare's Office. (My personal mission was to find more aid so I wouldn't have to hobble everywhere. Spoiler: I failed.)

It wasn't long before we found the Office since it was literally a few blocks down. As we were going down the hall we found more of Buttercup's Super Club Tearitory painted on the walls, as well as broken furniture and scorch marks and scratches on the wall. Dried blood also stained the floors and walls and in front of the Overmare's Office was a list of names written in marker with a basic sun and RIP painted over them. Lunar Candy, Flawless Gem, Arctic Trail, Shining Star, so on. There was nearly two dozen names on that list. All looked like they were written by kids.

“I don't like this,” said Baton. “I don't like this at all.”

“Same. This place ain't right,” said Burst Fire.

“I thought Stables were supposed to have ponies in them,” said Rose. “How can a Stable be empty?”

Wilhelm quietly opened the door to the Overmare's Office, and that was when the ticking returned.

It was faint. Just enough to get my ear twitching.

Tick-tock. Tick-tock. Tick-tock.

My hoofs moved on their own to follow the noise, which just happened to be where Wilhelm was going. It annoyed me, but it would annoy me more to not figure out where the noise was coming from. So off I went, up the stairs leading to the Office.

It looked like it had been used before everypony disappeared. On the floor was crumpled paper, dirty dishes, doodles in crayon of a happy family and a house on a hill with a dog, and a teddy bear. The shelves in the office were completely empty, the couch had a sleeping bag on it and the desk had a plaque that was covered with a paper that had Buttercup Sundae written on it in crayon.

Wilhelm was already inspecting a computer when I entered the office. That damn ticking was also getting louder the closer I got to the computer. My steps became heavier and slower, and my chest was really tight by the time I reached the desk. I lifted the paper off the plaque and saw S.G. Glimmer written in faded gold letters, and I let the paper cover it again as I looked at Wilhelm.

That ticking and tocking was really loud at that point, and Wilhelm had activated the computer, bathing his face in a green glow. He then got out the fancy stuff from his pack, plugged it in and began typing away.

Several minutes later the group was all in the office looking for something to do and Wilhelm successfully got into the system. We spent a few more minutes watching him go through files, which, when he found what he needed he packed his stuff and left in a hurry with Aria and Stocker. Rose and I exchanged looks, and after we had a silent agreement we both went to the terminal and I opened up the logs.

STABLE 64- Log-01-A
Greetings, Starlight G. Glimmer!
Seeing as you have been a long loyal member of the Macintosh Branch of Stable-Tec while serving as Ministry Mare of Education, you were naturally selected by Stable-Tec to partake in a grand experiment. Since you are reading this, it is safe to say that civilization has had an inconvenient setback. But chin up, sport! You have with you the next generation of citizens who are students of the Whooves Institute. It is your duty observe them grow with the help of very special guests from Mane Enterprise, which includes Dr. Time Turner Whooves. The files of all selected for this Stable are already on file, as well as instructions for operating this Stable. (SPOILER: It is just like the simulation, but different in certain areas.)
Unfortunately, the parents of the students as well as any and all adults not on the roster will be barred from entering Stable 64, so if they are not on the roster do not let them in. If they have somehow entered, please have your security team escort them out. Preferably without violence.
During the Stable 64 experiment, you and Stable-Tec employees are restricted to observations and maintenance, while Mane Enterprise will handle the stock. This is very important!
If you have any questions, comments, or concerns please feel free to contact our help desk at 1-800-111-1111. Ext 1111-11.
Have a fantastic day!
Reg. Dir. M. Puff

STABLE 64- Log-01-B
I just made a horrible error. There was a commotion outside and the guards were trying to hold back a very angry crowd and I panicked and I closed the door too early and now it is just me and these kids! Everypony else is still outside! Parents, security, Stable-Tec, everypony! I searched through the files and there is no way to open the door until the timer runs out. The kids are crying. I don't know what to do. The help desk is not working! I'm not even the Overmare! I'm just the secretary!
But I got to try something. Anything. These kids need me.
-Cobblestone P. Twirlypath

STABLE 64- Log-01-C
I managed to calm the kids down. It took me forever to find sleeping bags, but there was enough for all of them. I put them to sleep in the only area that wasn't locked, which was unfortunately the atrium. Fortunately it is actually kind of cool. It is a large field with trees, a lake, and its simulating the night sky with those weird night bugs that are always buzzing but we can never find.
While they are asleep I'm going to explore this Stable and see what else I can find and do here.
-Cobblestone P. Twirlypath

JORNAL DAY 1
I accadentaly deleted some stuff on this thing. I hope it wasn't anything important, because if it was then Mr. Cobblestone is gonna be mad. Where is he anyway? He put us to bed and its been a whole day since we last saw him. Sinseerly Buttercup PS-Im only writing this becus somepony has to do it and I saw him doing it after the big door closed.

JORNAL DAY 2
Its been four days now and Mr. Cobblestone is still not here! What is taking him so long? Sinseerly Buttercup

JORNAL DAY 3
This is dumb! Where is Mr. Cobblestone? Where are the teechers? Where are our parents?Sinseerly Buttercup

JORNAL DAY 4
Coco said he heard banging on the big door. I got the biggest baddest colts I could find and we made a bunch of weapons and sheelds out of chairs and stuff we found lieing around and went to the door. There really was banging and screaming! We all ran back and locked the hallway door. I fourbid everypony from opening the hall door. Nopony goes out that hallway door! Nopony! Sinseerly Buttercup

JORNAL DAY 5
We're getting way beyond super hungry and Mr. Cobblestone still isn't here. We don't know how to cook and the kitchen has a bunch of seeds and boxes and cans of food and stuff. We planted the seeds and put water on them but nothing happened! This is messed up. Sinseerly Buttercup

JORNAL DAY 6
WHERE IS EVERYPONY!

JORNAL DAY 7
We tried splitting the food we found evenly, but some of the bullies took more than what was fair. I told them not to do that, but they didn't listen and beat up a bunch of us. I wish I had my mom and dad here. I wish there was an adult here!

JORNAL DAY 8
I forgot to do this for a while. I tried putting some of the bullies in detention but it didn't work. And that jerk Boulder made a group which made Spring make a group which made Jelly Bean make a group which made me make a group! They also made names for their groups and were fighting each other, so I had to make a name for my group and fight back. We desided to go with Buttercup's Super Club and we had to fight off the other groups since we took over the kitchen and used a barricade of tables to keep them out. The kitchen also led to this room, which was conveenent. Now Buttercup's Super Club controls the food, but it didn't solve anything since the soil dried up and the water is smelling weird. My group wants me to have all the answers but I don't! I don't know what to do! I'm scared. Nopony is coming. I want my mom. I want my dad. I WANT OUT OF THIS PLACE!

JORNAL DAY 9
Everything is wrong. It has been weeks. Months maybe. The water is drying up and still smelling weird even after we boil away the nasty stuff, the plants are dying and the food we're growing is really thin. A lot of us died already, inclooding some of my friends. But Boulder also finally died. I killed him with a broken chair leg. I stabbed him in the throat when he led his group against Jelly Bean's group (Bean's Blitzer's and my Super Club became friends and that was awesome) and I'm glad I killed him. He deserved it and it got the rest of his group to back off since he was the biggest and baddest of them all. But I'm tired of killing. I already killed six and I hurt even more to protect my friends, but I got an idea and I know it will work. I just got to prepare it and get everypony in the atrium and convince Spring to let us use their intercom thingy.

That was the last of the logs, and I stepped back, eyes stuck on the words "killed six". These were just kids and they were killing each other in the Stable. What was Stable-Tec and Mane Enterprise even planning on doing with these kids if they hadn't been locked out by a sick twist of fate? Would the kids have been able to survive if Cobblestone hadn't disappeared? I don't know... But it left me empty and unaware of the world around me.

It actually took me a minute to realize that Rose and Burst Fire were gone. Baton was still with me, but he was looking at the crayon pictures, so I left him alone and went to look for the Atrium since something in my gut told me that that's where Rose would be.

When I finally entered the Atrium some minutes later I stopped cold. Everybody was standing still and staring at a field of dead grass, rotten trees, dusty dirt and an empty pond with dried mold on its bed, and at the edge of the field was a podium made out of metal crates with a banner above it. The banner had long since faded, but the words were still there written in paint.

In front of the podium was dozens upon dozens of small skeletons wearing small Stable jumpsuits, curled up or huddled together, and scattered all over the place were old cups. On the podium was another skeleton, same size, same suit, and behind the skeleton was a long table with a lot of empty punch bowls, some ladles and more cups.

“What the hell?” muttered Burst Fire.

I limped on to the field and rubbed my good hoof against the grass, kicking up dust and grass. Rose walked past me and whimpered as she poked one of the skeletons. She then collapsed and shook her head, tears flowing freely and shoulders buckling.

“Why... Why...?” sniffled Rose.

Baton walked up next to me casually inspecting parts of something he disassembled, but when he saw the field of the dead he stopped and dropped the junk. His shoulders an ears sunk and his eyes glazed over as he stared at the field. A few seconds later he released a heavy sigh, walked into the dead gras and started digging his hoofs into the dirt just a few steps away from Rose. Nobody said anything. We just watched him scrape and pull out thick clumps of dirt that crumbled moments later, soon shrouding his hoofs in dust. Rose was still quietly sniffing, and Aria went over to put her hoof on her shoulder while Wilhelm gave Baton a critical look.

“What are you doing?” asked Wilhelm.

“Burying them,” said Baton.

“We don't have time for that. We have work to do.”

Baton stopped digging and snapped to Wilhelm. “For fuck's sake, they're kids!” Before Wilhelm could say anything he went back to digging, but his motions were sharp and jagged and the dirt was flying in larger clumps as he spat out his words. “Just. Kids. They died. Alone! … They were left here alone... Nopony was here for them... But we're here just in time to see their corpses!”

Baton screamed and dug faster and faster. I had to shield my eyes from the dirt that flew towards me, and Rose and Aria stayed in their spots, watching Baton with growing tears while Stocker and Burst Fire looked down. Wilhelm and myself quietly watched him, too.

“I hate this fucking world!” cried Baton.

“Look, Baton, we can always come back. Those skeletons ain't going anywhere. Besides, we still have to save Lilac and that Artisan guy,” said Burst Fire. “And what about your people that Gold kidnapped? Remember them? They need you.”

“Lilac? If Waltz has her she's probably dead, too. Just like Scabbard. Just like my people. Just like everything else good in this world,” said Baton. “Your friend is probably dead, too, Meris. Everypony dies. Everything rots!”

Baton resumed digging, and we watched him in silence for a few minutes before Wilhelm started towards the atrium exit. One by one we looked at him, with the only noise being Baton's digging, and when Wilhelm was halfway to the door he stopped and looked at us from over his shoulder.

“Leave him,” ordered Wilhelm. “We have work to do.”

I frowned at Wilhelm, and then looked at Baton. He didn't look at us or say anything. He was robotic in his motions as he dug the grave. A moment later, Stocker sighed, gave Baton a sympathetic look and then nudged Aria forward. She walked, but kept her eyes on Baton as long as she could before walking ahead, and Stocker stopped next to me.

“Let him mourn,” said Stocker. “We can't find your friends by standing here, anyway.”

“Are we even going the right way?” I asked, unable to look away from Baton.

“We can only hope.” He put his hoof on my shoulder and gently guided me away from Baton. “Come.”

I sighed, nodded, and reluctantly moved on with Rose by my side.

I thought we would wander aimlessly in the tomb that was Stable 64, but Wilhelm knew exactly where to go. His steps, his turns, all of it was quick and precise. The halls all looked the same, despite arrows and labels saying we were in different areas, but with Wilhelm leading like he grew up in 64 we didn't get lost.

One of the areas we passed was a monitor room with dimly lit screens showing a 24/7 live recording of the Atrium from different vantage points, but with nopony there to observe, the recordings were just wasting data. Another area we passed was an armory with all the weapons, ammo and armor fully intact and covered in dust. For that, we loaded up on ammo, every weapon we could carry and armor. For me and Rose, we got to wear security barding, but in my case it was actually very uncomfortable wearing a metal padded vest on top of a crudely made robotic spine-brace thing. I also grabbed a combat shotgun (labeled as a Storm-52) and all the 20 round drums and 10 round magazines I could. It got heavy really quick on top of the other ammo and guns I snagged. I was practically crawling by the time I was finished and Rose had to snag a few from me to lighten the load.

Anyway, after we were done raiding the armory we passed a small eatery, grabbed all the food that hadn't expired and headed towards an “Authorized Personnel Only” door that was wide open and led to a dark cavern.

All of us stared at it, not really sure what to think about it. I really didn't like it. It was just a wide open door leading to pitch blackness and I really didn't want to go down there to find skeletons of more kids who poisoned themselves. But we ended up going, anyway, despite the sickly pressure building in me and probably everybody else. Rose nearly crawled after us.

But when Wilhelm took the first step into the dark, a weak light flicked on, revealing a long set of metal stairs and a conveyor belt system on the side with a control panel. There was also a skeleton at the bottom of the stairs next to a metal crate.

We carefully walked down the stairs, passing a streak of blood on a few of the steps, and ending at a dark red pool where the skeleton was. It adult sized skeleton. His skull was cracked wide open, his neck looked broken and there was a big blotch of dried blood was on the corner of a metal crate to go with the dried pool around him. Rose grimaced, but Burst Fire just shoved the skeleton out of the way, opened the crate, and pulled out a pack of... something. It looked like rotten mush, and the pack had two tips at the bottom: one red and one blue.

“Warning: Not for consumption,” said Burst Fire. He peeked inside. “This whole box has nothing but these packs.”

Stocker opened another metal crate that was nearby and found more of the same. I mirrored them and found even more, and then I looked down the length of the wall and saw dozens upon dozens of the same metal crates. If I had to guess, there were probably hundreds of those crates stacked from floor to ceiling and all the way down the chamber. It was also safe to say that they all had whatever those pouches were.

As we inspected a few more of the crates (proving my suspicion correct), Wilhelm plugged his pack into a computer next to a sealed door with black and yellow bars covering it entirely and solid steel rods blocking the door itself. It took him nearly ten minutes, but when he was done the door clicked, the interior locking mechanisms turned and the rods slid into the floor and ceiling. The door gradually opened, revealing a chamber of evenly lined large metallic tubes with observation windows, computers, thick wires attached to the ceiling, and extensions with IV ports. The only lights active were dim, red emergency lights.

It sent a shiver up my spine and I gently nudged Rose behind me while Burst Fire swallowed and took a step back.

“So, who's first?” asked Burst Fire.

“You?” suggested Stocker.

“Nope! I need range for my weapon. How about you?”

“I have heavy weapons. Those are not good for close quarters.”

Wilhelm grumbled to himself and went in, followed closely by Stocker and Aria, and then it was me, Rose, and finally Burst Fire.

The air was heavy and stale, and as we walked, we split up, but Rose stayed by my side. The stillness allowed me to hear every step and grumble of the group, and it also quickened my heart. Seeing all of the blank terminals and dim lights seemed unnatural, and I couldn't shake the feeling that we were being watched. The Atrium had a very tight network of cameras, so it seemed logical that this room would get the same treatment.

“Whoa. Hey, guys, look at this,” said Burst Fire, peeking into an observation window of one of the tubes. Fortunately he was near us.

Rose and I squeezed next to him to have a look at what he was seeing. There were dozens of tubes of shriveled, grayed somethings hanging in the device's dim chamber. Some have broken free of the IVs and wires holding them and were splattered on the floor. Needless to say, it was weird and disturbing at the same time.

“What is it?” I asked.

“No idea,” said Burst Fire.

“They're embryo tubes,” said Wilhelm. He was looking inside another container that was next to ours and feeling its shell. “Long expired.”

“What's an embryo?” asked Burst Fire.

“The first stages of life,” said Wilhelm. He went down the aisles, checking each dim container he passed. “All these devices are offline. These embryos are all dead.”

Rose covered her mouth with her hoof and I put my hoof on her shoulder as she looked at me with wet eyes and ears.

I'm not really sure what I was expecting when resumed walking down the aisles, but as I walked I note the Stable-Tec logo on the wall (Your Future Awaits!) and the Mane Enterprise logo stamped on the dead containers. I poked at a computer attached to one of the machine, but nothing happened, and I pressed my ear against it.

Nothing.

Dead silence.

It really was expired. Which brought me to wondering how that happened since Stables were designed with talismans that lasted centuries. What was so different about this Stable?

We walked some more and came across yet another sealed door that wasn't labeled, but it had a terminal on it. Just like the Overmare's Office there was a faint ticking and Wilhelm went straight for it like he had found the final door to a treasure room. I could of sworn I saw a small smile appear on his grizzled face.

There was a problem, though.

More ticking.

More.

Damn.

Ticking!

I really wanted to scream about that. Two tickings in one completely dead Stable! What the fuck was that even about!?

These tickings brought me nothing but near death experiences and I knew something messed up was going to happen as soon as Wilhelm unlocked the door.

Would it explode and blow off my hoof with shrapnel? Would I get sprayed with acid? A killer robot, maybe? Or maybe it was another freak of nature that will go berserk as soon as we open the door. Who the fuck knew?

I didn't.

And for that I stood behind Stocker. He was big. He had a big gun. He had big armor. He was a goat version of Baton. Only nicer.

“You okay?” asked Stocker.

“Just fine,” I said.

There was no way he believed me, but he didn't push the issue, and twenty minutes of Wilhelm muttering, swearing and punching the wall later and the door finally opened to...

Nothing.

I shouldn't have been surprised, but I was.

There was nothing there.

Sure the ticking was loud and there was a made (unused) bed, a filing cabinet, a desk with a computer, a projector hanging from the ceiling, and a station with all the tools a scientist could dream of. But it was still empty.

We cautiously filed in, and Wilhelm once again worked on hacking. It would have been boring if I had not been wondering if a turret would come out of the ceiling to kill us all, or if we would get sealed in the room and gassed. But all that worrying made time fly, and before I knew it, there was a click and the projector flicked to life, covering the wall with a grainy countdown.

The final number flickered away and lo and behold, there was Bruce Mane, sitting in an office with his pressed suit, a drink, and a painting of a sunny landscape behind him.

“Hello, Time Turner,” said Bruce with a smile; this got the group to exchange looks, but I kept my eye on the projection while Wilhelm kept working. “If you are seeing this, then you found your way to your new home at Stable 64 with Mr. W's assistance to complete Project Godmaker. Serum 1922 was a success, generously speaking, and now we can move on to the next phase of the Project where hopefully there won't be horrible mutations. I made sure that there would be plenty of stock for you to study and I got a good crew for you, so you will be fine. My investments are secured, the Ministry of Awesome's project will improve and you will be remembered in the scientific community for... well... Forever. Immortalized, basically. Everypony wins.”

Bruce's smile faded, and with a heavy sigh he looked down, rubbing his mane before looking back at the camera with the confidence in his eyes dying out.

“Look, I'll just cut to it. I know you must be angry,” continued Bruce, his demeanor now like a shattered vase. “Why wouldn't you be? I know I would be if I was in your horseshoes, with the sudden change in plans without your consent and not seeing Roseluck again, but there was no time. The truth is that the Ministry of Morale has given Shining Armor reason to believe that the Ministries of Peace and Transportation have been compromised. He is working with them to find the traitors and stop them from doing whatever it is they are planning. They already snagged Cartwheel and have done raids on Macintosh Transit, as well as other companies tied to him, but I don't think they will succeed. Call it a gut feeling, but I believe that our time has run out and in order for all that we have worked for to be preserved things must change and fast. That is where you come in.”

Wilhelm wormed his way past us and began hastily searching through the filing cabinet.

“You are the only one I can trust to finish Godmaker. Dr. Odji... I can't trust him, he has to go, but you?” said Bruce. “You have been with us from the start and always been the type to work towards the greater good, and now you can perform the greatest act of good for all of ponykind. You can defeat death. Just imagine, no more death, no more sorrow, no more fear. We can live forever. We can fix our mistakes. We can be better than we are now. We can... We can redeem ourselves.”

He looked down again and made a move to grab his drink, but stopped and pushed the cup away, and continued speaking without looking at the camera.

“You're a good pony, Time Turner. Better than most of us, and that is why this task falls to you. I know you will do the right thing. And don't worry about Roseluck. She will be safe with me in Stable 67 and you will be safe with Mr. W.” Bruce flashed a very forced smile. “Your office and Stable 64 is stocked with everything you need. Keep me posted on your work and good luck!”

The video ended abruptly, and I slowly looked at Wilhelm, who was rummaging through some files inside the filing cabinet, snagging folders that struck his fancy and put them in his metal pack, save for one that he kept in his mouth. As I watched him I began thinking about what I had seen of him. His insane healing, his inability to break his limbs, how he was able to work his way so easily through... well, everything especially this place. Plus his name. And the most damning of all, what Waltz said on his recording about Wilhelm's unknown origins.

“Are you Mr. W?” I asked.

The group looked at me, and I locked my eyes on Wilhelm as he shoved me out of the way to get to the computer again with the folder still in his mouth. The group then looked at Wilhelm, and he opened the folder on the desk, scanned the documents inside and typed something on the computer that made it beep and display a line of folders that I guess were previously not there.

“Are you Mr. W?” I asked again.

“Classified,” said Wilhelm as he opened up the first digital folder.

“So let's call that a yes,” said Burst Fire. “And is this Godmaker thing connected to the whole Remnant issue?”

“Classified,” said Wilhelm. He closed that folder and moved to the next one.

“I think it is safe to say that Godmaker is Remnant and that you are Mr. W, which if you are him then you already know everything about the Remnant, so... why go through all this trouble looking for it? You already know everything about it,” I said.

“I don't know everything about the Remnant. I don't know how to cure it,” said Wilhelm. He closed that folder and moved to the next one.

“Cure it?”

“Yes. That is what I said,” said Wilhelm. Another dead end for him.

“What is it, exactly? The Remnant, I mean,” asked Rose.

“Classified.”

“What isn't classified?” I said.

“Everything that I don't want classified,” said Wilhelm.

He selected another folder, and his face got a little glow to it and he leaned closer to the screen, his eyes sliding left to right along each line. He then punched in a command at the very bottom and we all jumped when we heard a distant thud, followed by screeching of metal.

Wilhelm packed up his gear in a hurry. “Let's go! There is more to this Stable. A tunnel that leads to another facility that is also connected to Mane Enterprise, which has more information on the Remnant.”

We followed him out of the office, through the room of containers, and entered an area that I hadn't seen yet. Apparently a portion of the wall was a door, and the door led to a long, wide hallway with swirling red lights briefly illuminating the gray walls.

“Engel, with me. Aria and whoever you are, in the center with Exile. Burst Fire stay in the back,” ordered Wilhelm.

We went into the formation Wilhelm ordered and traveled into the darkness after he flicked a light on his suit. The walls suddenly seemed closer together now that we were in them. Maybe it was the lack of light, or maybe it was because we all bunched closer together out of instinct. Whatever it was, it was suffocating, and I had trouble seeing any defining features on the new walls. They were just solid slabs of gray as far as I could tell.

The further we went, the heavier air became, and probably around the five minute mark of traveling we all slowed down to barely moving when the ground shook with metallic clangs and a stampede of hoofs. Then a set of lights flashed on in front of us, effectively freezing us and prompting all of us to raise our weapons.

“Not one step closer!” boomed something with a heavy, scratchy voice.

With the help of the lights we were able to see who we encountered and all of our eyes, even Wilhelm's, grew at the sight of the thing that stood before us. Gears and pistons grinded and hissed and a loud, metallic thump shook the cavern with each step this thing took. Its hoofs were encased in giant slabs of metal and the gears and pistons we heard. Metal ribs hugged his armored body, a trio of canisters were on its back that connected to its breathing mask, its tail was nonexistant, and its head was encased in a thick helmet with tusks and a horn. Thick slabs of metal also covered its shoulders, hips and upper limbs, which the shoulder pads had bizarre decorations of skeletal alicorns wielding scythes and wearing cloaks. Lastly hanging around its neck was a metal pendant of a pony skull with a gear as its left eye socket.

Behind it was a group of six Stable ponies with security barding and battle saddles with something on their backs that looked similar to my back brace, only they had syringes on them instead of whatever the hell was on mine. They were all earth ponies, too.

“Nopony has opened this door since Judgement Day! Who are you?” said the big armored pony.

“Explorers,” said Wilhelm carefully. “Where are we?”

“Explorers, you say? Well, explorers, you have just entered Stable 65.”