"I can't believe you're going to go ahead with this!" Water Wings cried earlier that Tuesday morning as he stood with Strong Hooves upon the hill overlooking their settlement.
"And you can say this after seeing Princess Twilight's press conference?" Strong asked.
"I think we need to wait until the dust settles from that."
"Why? I've done as you asked. I waited until I heard the official explanation. Your fears were not realized."
Water raised an eyebrow. "My fears?"
Strong turned towards his friend. "You feared that pony magic might be responsible for the incident at Village Center. As it is not, we can continue."
"But--!"
"And I'll further point out that it is now more imperative considering what we heard," said Strong.
Water sighed. "All right, now you've lost me."
"Understand the implications of what the Princess said: a human was behind the incident."
"I was as surprised as you were, but it's not quite what she said. She said someone rehumanized did this."
"There is little difference in my mind," Strong said.
"Maybe there should be!" said Water. "You've heard as much as I have concerning the rehumanized getting weird powers. I'm not sure whoever did this is one hundred percent human."
Strong frowned. "You are really splitting hairs."
"I'll split any damn hair I need to if it means preventing us from doing something foolish."
"This is the bottom line, Water," Strong said. "Humans are augmenting their arsenal against us."
"Huh?"
"Using the power of government and technology against us is apparently not enough. Now they seek to have their own mages as well, mages I sincerely doubt they will limit like they do us."
Water frowned. "You have no evidence of that. I don't think Twilight would've said what she did if this was some sort of secret project to breed human magic users!"
"Don't be a fool," Strong snapped. "Do you seriously believe Twilight can know everything? The government can and is keeping secrets from her."
"Even if that's the case, what's that got to do with anything? What's your point in going through with this operation?"
"In using this human mage against ponies, humans have effectively fired the first shot," Strong said. "We need to move forward with this operation to show we will not be intimidated."
"I think we need to wait and find out what's really going on," said Water. "This could have a completely different explanation."
"Even if that's true, we've had this operation planned before the Pony Council came into being. Humans have attempted to act with violence towards us and were foiled. We need to take action now and show how we can achieve success without violence."
Water considered before he asked, "Why is that so important to you?"
"It should be obvious," said Strong. "We represent something better. It's not about the land. We can still find uncontested land that we can adapt for our use. It's about us having control over our destiny. It's about showing how one can push back against oppression without resorting to the tactics of the oppressors."
Water ran a hoof through his mane. He had hoped to put this off a few more days, at least until Rainy had a chance to get some information out of Bright Future. Now he felt things were still spiraling out of his control.
"As I said yesterday, you don't have to participate if you object that strongly," said Strong in a lower voice.
Water shook his head. "No, I'll do it. You'll need every pony you can get if you want to pull this off without any being getting hurt."
Strong smiled. "Thank you. I know this has been tough for you."
"You don't know the half of it," Water muttered.
"We'll need to have a lengthy talk at some point about your misgivings. It concerns me that we've come to loggerheads more often than not in recent weeks. I value your input, but I feel your judgment has been clouded lately."
Water knew there was some truth to Strong's assessment, but likely not in the way the earth pony was thinking. Water felt his clouded judgment may have gotten him involved in an organization whose ends may still match his at their core, but whose means clashed with his own personal ethics.
"Yeah, we'll talk," Water said in a lower voice. "After we get this operation done."
Silence had reigned at the table during dinner the night before and refused to abdicate during breakfast that morning. Tom exchanged uneasy glances with both his wife and daughter, the latter having eaten only half of what was on her plate before she only picked at it.
Molly poked some of the vegetables around with a fore hoof, then lifted the hoof to her face. She stared at it for a few long moments before lowering it. Her wings hung loosely at her sides.
Tom had tried to prompt Molly into talking about the counseling session the afternoon before, but received only sullen silence in return. When he looked at Molly and her disheveled feathers, it occurred to him only then that she had not used her wings even once since coming back from the Rehumanization Center.
Had this been just a handful of days ago, he would have seen this as a triumph. All he could see now was a very sad little girl.
Tom pushed his own plate aside and said, "Molly, we need to talk."
Theresa looked up, then glanced at Molly. Molly kept her listless gaze on her plate. "I don't want to," she said in a low monotone.
"I think we have to."
Molly's gaze snapped to his, and her wings twitched. "Why?"
"The counselor gave you a lot to think about, didn't she?"
Molly hesitated, her ears flattening slightly. She glanced at Theresa.
"You should answer your father, honey," Theresa said, though her voice quavered slightly.
Tom was aware his wife had been affected by something the counselor had said, but she had refused to talk about it. Tom had not wanted to press her, but he couldn't let Molly keep covering up her own feelings.
"I don't know what I'm supposed to think," Molly said in a sharp voice. "Or what I'm supposed to do."
"What is you want to do?" Tom asked.
Molly didn't respond with words. Her wings partially unfolded and quivered, as if reflecting her own doubts.
"You want to practice with your wings?"
Molly clamped her wings to her sides. "But I'm not supposed to, right?! I'm not supposed to have them in the first place!"
Tom struggled with his own wants as he contemplated his answer. He had to tell himself that he needed to focus on the Molly of the present, and not some idealized version of her. "It's what you have now, though."
Molly appeared to consider, though her eyes betrayed confusion. "But if I keep using them, I'll just keep wanting them, and that's supposed to be wrong."
"It's not wrong," Theresa said firmly.
"Theresa--" Tom began.
"No, hear me out, please," Theresa said in a softer voice. "Molly, it's not about what's supposed to be right or wrong, but what you think is right or wrong."
"I don't understand," said Molly.
"Doctor Collins made it clear to me that this is your decision. You have to decide what's right."
"But how am I supposed to do that when she makes me feel like I'm already wrong?"
"She's not," Tom said. "She just wants you to remember what you were like while you were human, so you can better make the choice."
Molly lowered her gaze. "I can remember more stuff now," she said in a softer voice.
"And how do you feel about it?"
"I don't know. It's just sorta there. I don't know what I'm supposed to do with them."
Memories flooded back to Tom as well as he looked at his daughter with glistening, sympathetic eyes. Molly had always been a sensitive girl whose feelings could be hurt easily. Theresa's words from the week before echoed in his head, how Molly had never been happier since she transformed.
If Molly did rehumanize, would all those struggles with her feelings and self esteem come back as well? Would she go back to having to watch what situations she got herself into so she could avoid being hurt? She used to draw on support from her best friend Gina, but she was likely to remain a pony considering her whole family was as well. Not to mention they would be separated by several hundred miles if Tom's family did resettle in Grand Junction.
Tom was unsure what to do. Anything he said might be construed as nudging Molly towards rehumanizing.
Theresa filled the void as she said, "Don't push yourself too hard, honey. There's no rush at all."
Tom gave her a surprised look. This was the same person who just the day before had presented him with an ultimatum about heading home if Molly didn't rehumanize immediately. He wondered now exactly what was going through her head. Had the counseling session affected her as profoundly as it had Molly?
"Your mother is right," Tom said. "There's no rush. And until you decide, you're a pegasus right now. If that means doing pegasus things, then go ahead."
Molly's wings unfolded further. "Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure. It's really the only way for you to decide. You need to see both sides of the story."
Molly slowly smiled. "Thanks, Dad."
"Yes, thank you," Theresa said in a heartfelt voice.
Tom remembered when Molly was on the way. He had fretted so much over whether he would be a good father that he had sought counseling. He thought since then he had proven himself a good father; now he felt like he was having to learn all over again.
Water lingered at the settlement until he spotted Mary's car heading past the human-recognized borders of Grand Junction. He waited a few more moments until he was sure they were clear before he dove towards the arranged meeting area just out of sight of prying human eyes from the city.
Below, a few dozen ponies from across the tribes had gathered in a loose circle around Strong Hooves, who looked up at Water's approach. Water flew down and landed next to Strong. "Perkins family is away. Should be at the Rehumanization Center by the time we reach the target."
Several ponies sneered at the mention of the Center, but Strong merely nodded. "I want to thank you again that you chose to participate in this operation despite the misgivings you expressed earlier."
Water nodded and kept his thoughts to himself. He was doing this more out of obligation to the safety of his fellow ponies rather than any higher ideal. He knew himself too well; he would be wracked with guilt had he not gone and something had happened.
"You're a bit late, though," said Strong, though a smile played on his lips.
"I paid the Perkins family a visit and stuck around until they left," said Water. "Little Molly is just so much of a joy to be around, even if she was a little sad this morning."
Morning Glow frowned. "Probably because she's having to go off to that infernal Rehumanization Center again. I wish you had found a way to stop them from trying to ruin their daughter."
"Hey, lay off, Glowy, it's not my decision to make. I'm just the messenger."
Morning snorted. "We should've turned out that human."
"That's quite enough," said Strong. "Your objections were heard and noted."
"And then ignored."
"I made it clear that sacrifices needed to be made. You of all ponies should know that from your previous association with Sunset Blessing."
"Yes, and her insistence on bowing to humans is what soured me on her," said Morning. "For all her preaching about seeing 'God's gift' spread to the rest of humanity, she had a funny way of showing it."
"It served its purpose at the time," said Strong. "I agree that we have moved past that. We cannot wait for humans to give us what is our right simply out of the goodness of their hearts."
Water settled on his haunches and folded his wings to his sides as he sensed the start of a speech. Strong tended to give an inspirational speech right before operations like this. Listening to them had convinced Water to join the movement despite some of his lingering misgivings about Strong. It helped that Strong had tempered some of his fervor with practicality, at least until recently.
"In the actions we take today, we are not merely trying to provide more space for our burgeoning population," Strong began as he slowly paced before the gathered ponies. "We are sending a crucial message: we will not be ignored, nor will we be intimidated into giving up our cause. This is but one more step towards the realization of our ultimate goal in seeing a world as one species with one vision."
The assembled ponies stomped their hooves in approval, and Water followed suit, though he still had his lingering doubts. He wondered about the stories he had heard about ponies getting along better with humans in other parts of the country. Strong and his cronies tended to downplay such stories as ponies sucking up to humans to be spared harassment, or humans sucking up to ponies for magical favors.
"I want to emphasize to you all that it is important we do not lose sight of the bigger message," said Strong. "That we do not stoop to the tactics used by humans. We will not achieve our ends by sacrificing who and what we are. We are not to commit acts of violence. We can use our abilities to achieve our goals without resorting to barbaric conflict."
This part Water could get behind fully, and he stomped his hooves almost as enthusiastically as the others. Strong's approach to the Shimmerist cause was better than any other potential leader of the group, which was why Water hoped Strong was not about to throw it all away in his insistence on colluding with Prince Blueblood.
"At the same time, however, we will not cower," said Strong. "If attacked, we will defend, but we will use no more force than is applied to us. Ponies do not seek vengeance. Ponies do not act in hate. Humans cannot be shown a better way if all they see is a reflection of themselves. They must see in us something that they desire, that they must have, and that will bring about our ultimate goal and ensure peace and plenty for all."
Water was admittedly not as staunch an advocate of having the rest of humanity convert. He was more concerned with improving the lot of ponies in general. While he saw the benefits of a transformed humanity, he figured any sort of "revelation" that would lead to that end goal was so far into the future that he would be long since dead and gone before it could be realized.
Nevertheless, he joined with the others as they vented their ardent approval. Some of Strong's speech had become pretty standard by then, and the words didn't vary much from speech to speech. His thoughts drifted back to his conversation with Rainy and the doubts he had expressed. Did he need more than just a rousing speech to keep him on track?
Strong smiled and let the applause continue for a few moments before waving a hoof for silence. "We will now commence. Aerial lookout, take position."
Water unfolded his wings and leapt into the air with a dozen other pegasi. Every time he took to the skies, he was reminded how much better he felt as a pony. As a human, he had never had true control of his life or his career. Despite having a degree in agricultural irrigation, so much of his success had been at the fickle wiles of the weather and the water tables. Now he could make it rain anytime he wanted.
"Form up and head out!" declared the wingleader.
Water glided into position and made note of his wingponies. They nodded to him in return, and he lowered his goggles. He felt a small twist in his gut. Strong's speech had not fired him up as much as it usually did. He would have to maintain his focus through sheer will.
With luck, this would be an easy win.
The trip to the house was shorter than Tom had anticipated, which put the neighborhood closer to pony lands than he would have liked. Their potential home was more in Fruita rather than Grand Junction, which meant having to deal with roads that had odd names like J-and-two-tenths. At first he had thought it had been something the ponies had concocted before they left this part of town, but Mary had assured him that humans were solely responsible for this bit of weirdness.
"Oh, is that the Monument?" Molly asked as she exited the car, pointing to a large craggy rise in the distance.
Tom looked over and smiled. He had not been told that the houses here had that sort of view. If he could swing this, it would be a steal. "Yes, it is, honey. You can see it every day from here. We could visit a lot more often."
Molly gazed at the Monument with longing as she hovered. Tom could guess what was running through Molly's mind, which was confirmed when his daughter glanced at him and immediately landed, folding her wings to her sides, her expression clouded.
"It's fine, Molly," Tom said. "You don't have to stop on my account."
"I wasn't thinking about that," Molly said in a flat voice. She looked off into the distance and shook her head.
"You can tell us, honey," said Theresa.
Molly sighed and unfolded her wings again. "It's all this open sky. I can't ignore it."
"You don't have to," Tom said.
"But it just makes me want to keep my wings."
"I know."
"And then I have all these other memories of stuff I did as a human, and it just gets confusing."
Tom dropped to one knee before his daughter. "I'm sorry it's confusing for you. You have to give it time, like we said back at the house."
Molly looked back towards the Monument. "And it's okay to keep doing pegasus stuff?"
"Yes, because it would be silly for me to tell you not to."
Molly slowly nodded and flexed her wings a few times.
"You don't have to stop being yourself," said Tom.
"I just don't know what myself is supposed to be anymore," Molly said softly.
"It's a beautiful person named Molly."
Molly's eyes glistened as they stared into Tom's.
"You can't pretend your body doesn't exist, and neither can anyone else," said Tom.
Molly hesitated, then flapped her wings and hovered before him.
Tom noticed Molly's wings were not a complete blur when they moved, as if the effort were easing. He knew adults could hover with a very leisurely flap of their wings, so much so that they would never stay in the air if magic had not played a role.
Tom managed a small smile. "Feel better?"
"A little," said Molly in a less distressed voice. "Thanks, Dad."
"Thank you, Tom," Theresa said with a soft smile.
Before Tom could think of a reply, Mary called out from the car. "Need me to stick around? It's a short enough trip you can just call me. I get a decent signal back in the pony village."
"We'll call you, Mary, thank you," said Tom. "I don't know how long we'll be here."
Theresa glanced around as Mary drove off. "There are quite a number of humans here today."
As Tom looked down the street, he understood why the realtor had been so adamant that he show up that morning. Every house on the block was for sale, and at least two dozen prospective homeowners milled about, intermixed with realtors in business suits.
Molly stopped hovering and peered down the block. "Is this whole neighborhood going to be human?"
"Yes, that's the idea," said Tom gently.
"But it's not very far from the pony community," said Theresa. "It took us no more than fifteen minutes to get here." She glanced at Tom. "That is ... I mean, if you decided to stay a pony--"
"Can we stop talking about that for now?" Molly asked in an annoyed voice.
"Honey--"
"No, Theresa, it's okay," said Tom. "We need to look at that house anyway."
Theresa nodded. "Which one is it?"
Tom glanced at the numbers on the mailboxes, but he might not have bothered. A man in a suit waved to him from the end of the driveway of the only house that did not have someone actively looking at it. Tom waved back. "This one. Let's go."
"Wait, Tom!" Theresa said, nudging the back of his leg with a fore-hoof before pointing off to the side. "Over there."
"What?"
"That man over there is armed."
Tom saw a man in uniform standing near the curb, his hands folded behind him. At his hip was a holster and a handgun.
"I'm sure it's fine," said Tom.
He heard a clop of fumbling hooves and looked at his daughter just as she was righting herself. She hovered again, then tried to steer herself forward in actual flight. She shuddered, dipped sharply right, and fell to her hooves.
"Molly, stay close," Theresa called out.
"I'm okay, Mom, I just need a little more practice."
"Please, do as I say. You can practice later."
Molly sighed and folded her wings as she trotted over and muttered, "Wish everypony would make up their minds."
Tom turned to his wife. "Theresa, it's fine."
"If it were fine, there wouldn't be armed men here," Theresa declared as she draped a fore-leg protectively around Molly's barrel.
"He's just a security guard or something," said Tom. "They're likely expecting a lot of people and want to make sure order is maintained."
Theresa frowned, and Tom knew what kind of response she might make had she not been trying to restrain herself: that they wouldn't have to worry about this sort of thing in a pony community.
"Please, let's go," Tom said.
Theresa slowly withdrew her foreleg and nodded.
Tom had to keep his pace slow so as not to outrun the rest of his family. As they approached the house, the guard by the curb turned towards them and gave then a wary look. The realtor also glanced curiously at Theresa and Molly, but maintained his smile and extended his hand when Tom approached. "Tom Perkins? I'm Rick."
Tom smiled and shook the man's hand. "Nice to put a face to the name."
"Indeed," said Rick as he gave a firm shake in return. He glanced at the two ponies. "Your family, I take it?"
"Yes," said Tom. "My wife Theresa and daughter Molly."
Rick nodded and crouched slightly, offering the palm of his hand. Theresa hesitated, but touched her fore-hoof to it. He smiled at Molly and waved before straightening up. "Ah, I do need to tell you that the house is not pony-enabled. We were expecting this to be a human community."
"Understood," said Tom. "I'm reasonably handy and can take care of that."
"Yes, of course. Just letting you and your family know that you can expect few other ponies around here, if any."
Tom glanced around. A few of the humans looking at the other houses now looked at them, some merely curious but others outright hostile.
"I'm not sure I like this neighborhood," Molly murmured as she stepped closer to her mother.
"Don't be put off by a few stares, honey," said Tom, though he was feeling wary himself.
"I've scheduled no one else this morning for this viewing," said Rick. "I'd really like for you to at least take a look at it, as I feel I've given you some special attention."
"We'll look at it," said Tom. "Let's go."
Rick smiled. "Follow me, please."
Tom took the lead and listened to his family following behind him as their hooves clopped against the concrete driveway. He took one last glance at their would-be neighbors and saw most had looked away, but a few were talking with their realtors and occasionally pointing in his direction.
He wanted to tell himself that this would be of no consequence if Molly rehumanized, but what of Theresa? He certainly didn't want her feeling like an outcast. In that case, a divorce might be a mercy.
He pushed those unsettling thoughts aside as he headed into the house.
At the order of the aerial recon wing's lead pegasus – a blue-furred and red-haired stallion named Sky Streak -- Water angled down and stretched his wings to catch the thermal as the target came into view ahead. They had opted for a high approach so as to appear distant and nonthreatening. Now they glided down to quickly lose altitude before swerving to the side.
"Keep the formation loose, everypony!" Sky called out. "Don't make this look obvious."
Water alternately flew and glided as he felt the shifting winds with the change in altitude. They were to make a low pass at a shallow angle parallel to the neighborhood to avoid detection as much as possible.
"Stay sharp, we get only one pass," Sky said.
Water had already directed his eyes towards the street. He spotted at least two humans in uniform, and now a third came into view. Yet as he was about to shift his gaze down the street, movement below caught his attention. Flying over a road always brought the danger that the police or state patrol had spotted them. Just a quick glance was needed, and he could get back to assessing the neighborhood.
What he saw, however, made him stare.
"The hell?" Water murmured. "That looks like Mary's car."
"Water Wings, pay attention!"
Water's head snapped up. "Sorry, I--"
"We need every pair of eyes," Sky said. "What the hell are you doing?"
"There was a car driving by, and I had to check it out."
"Was it law enforcement?"
"No, but--"
"I don't want to hear it," Sky said. "Get your eyes on that neighborhood now."
Water frowned and returned his gaze to the street, but they were almost to the end. He wanted to buck himself. It couldn't possibly have been Mary's car despite the striking similarity, and now his report would be useless.
They dove sharply to the side and towards the ground, coming to a landing in an empty field on the other side of a low hill. Sky snapped his wings to his sides and barked, "Report!"
"Six guards with handguns," said one. "Spread out along the street more or less evenly, standing near the curb."
"I concur," said the next. "Though two looked like they were going to patrol a short distance."
"I saw only five, but at my height, a utility pole blocked my view for a few moments," said the third. "But the ones I did see, yeah, handguns and curbside."
"I saw six," said the fourth. "But I also caught sight of a guy who looked familiar."
"Oh?" said Sky.
"He looked like the human who pulled a rifle on a pony a week ago."
Sky nodded and turned to Water. "And what about you? I seem to remember you were there when that incident happened."
"Uh, yeah, I was," Water said.
"Can you confirm the sighting?"
"No, I can't, I'm sorry."
Sky frowned. "That was a critical bit of information we lost because you weren't paying attention. I'm a little surprised at you. You're generally better than that."
"But I saw Mary's car!" Water cried. "Or at least I thought I did."
"And what significance is this?"
"She was supposed to be driving the human and his family to the Rehumanization Center. Why would she be here instead?"
"What difference does it make?" Sky said. "We have a job to do."
"If that family is here, I don't want little Molly getting hurt," said Water.
"Our job is to make sure no pony or human is hurt."
The pegasus who reported the rifle-bearing human stepped forward. "Should we try for another pass to see if more of us can see that guy? Maybe we can find his car and see if we spot a weapon in it."
Sky considered but shook his head. "We can't risk it. Strong Hooves emphasized the need for the element of surprise. It's the only way our unicorns will get those weapons away from the humans in one go. We'll just have to stay alert." He turned away and unfolded his wings. "Form up for flight to rendezvous point. Keep tight and keep low."
As Water took position along with the others, he cast a worried glance in the direction of the neighborhood past the hill. All his misgivings were surging back into his mind, and he doubted any stirring speeches by Strong could quell them.
Despite the home having been built about twenty years prior, it looked almost brand new. The fact that all the furniture from the previous occupants save for the kitchen appliances had been removed likely helped foster that sense. The emptiness tended to give the idea it had more space than it really did, so Tom tried to picture it filled with furniture in his mind's eye.
Yet even the smallest room dwarfed Theresa and Molly, and they craned their necks to see everything. The cathedral ceiling of the living room seemed cavernous. Theresa looked up with an uncertain expression on her face.
"Anything I can answer for you, ma'am?" Rick asked.
"Oh, um, no," said Theresa in a subdued voice. "Just thinking how rather large this place seems."
Molly fluttered her wings and smiled faintly. "I kinda like it, actually."
"I'd just as soon not have you practice flying indoors. Wouldn't you much rather be outside for that?"
Molly's tail swished. "It doesn't feel safe outside. I didn't like the looks the other humans were giving us."
"Ah, if it helps any, young lady," said Rick. "The security guards are not temporary. They'll be here even after all the houses are sold. We want this to be a safe neighborhood for everyone."
"Are you expecting so much disorder that you need guards all the time?" Theresa asked.
"Theresa, please," Tom said with a sigh.
"It's a legitimate question, especially if you want us to live here."
Rick hesitated before he replied, "The post-ETS world is still a volatile one. They're here to protect against any potential threats until things settle down."
Tom had to hand it to his realtor; he had managed to answer the question as delicately as possible. Rick could not come out and say that they were here to protect humans against the Shimmerist ponies in mixed company.
"You said you wanted to live someplace where you could feel safe," said Tom.
"Humans armed with guns was not what I had in mind," said Theresa.
"I know, but--"
"The fact that they feel it's needed at all is not exactly a comfort."
Tom realized his wife had a point, but he didn't want to admit his misgivings until after they had assessed the house. "But what do you think of the place so far?"
Theresa looked around. "It's okay, I guess, but we're still going to have to do a lot of changes to adapt it."
Tom heard the flat tone in his wife's voice. She was doing her best not to admit that she might not be living here if Molly rehumanized. "I knew that going into it. I can handle it."
"It's just the fact that we have to adapt it at all." Theresa sighed. "Sorry. I'll go look at the kitchen."
"Molly, go along with her, please," said Tom. "I'd like to talk to Rick."
Molly nodded and trotted after her mother.
Tom waited until they were out of the room before turning to the realtor. "I have to admit, having armed guards around is not exactly a selling point with me, either."
"I understand, but it's the reality of the situation," said Rick. He glanced past Tom. "And I have to honest with you, Tom. This neighborhood was planned with humans in mind, not ponies."
"They're my family," Tom protested.
"I know that, and I have absolutely nothing against ponies myself. I'm just making you aware of the situation."
"In other words, those guards might have to protect us from our neighbors, right?"
"As I said, they're here to protect against all threats," said Rick.
"Can't you at least do some sort of screening on prospective buyers?" Tom knew the answer, but he had to vent some of his frustration.
"That would go against fair housing laws," said Rick. "We cannot discriminate against buyers in any way whatsoever."
Tom ran a hand through his hair. "How long do we have to make a decision on this place?"
"By close of business today."
Tom stared. "Today?"
"And the earlier the better. I'd much rather you make a decision before walking out the door."
"I'm not sure we can decide that fast."
"I'm sorry, but these homes are very popular," said Rick. "The only reason I don't have another half dozen buyers lined up to look at this place today is because of the special favor I'm doing for your company. I can stretch that only so far."
Tom's mind raced. "What if I bought the house and decided to turn around and sell it right away?"
"You'll be forced to sell at a twenty-five percent loss for the first five years of ownership," said Rick.
Tom frowned. "The hell?"
"Legislation that was passed recently in Colorado regarding housing in Reclaimed Lands. It's to prevent people from scooping up houses on the cheap and immediately selling them at inflated prices."
"That can't be remotely constitutional."
"There are several court cases pending, but until they're resolved or an injunction is issued, it's the law right now."
Tom wanted to protest that Molly might take several more counseling sessions at the Rehumanization Center to convince her to undergo the procedure, but he didn't want to share personal matters with his realtor.
He had little chance to respond anyway, as Theresa and Molly trotted out the kitchen. "So what do you think?" Tom asked.
"It's a bit bigger than Evie's place, I'll grant that," said Theresa. "And the fridge is a side-by-side model, so I could open both compartments without a boost."
Rick smiled. "And the appliances are fairly new. Only a year old, according to the previous owner."
"Can we look at the upstairs now?" Tom asked.
"I want to see what my room looks like," said Molly. "I liked the one at Aunt Evie's place."
"We can make it look anyway you want, honey," said Theresa.
"But mostly I want to know if the windows are big enough."
"Big enough? For what?"
"To be able to fly through!" Molly said, smiling. She glanced at Tom and her smile faded. "I mean ... if I don't, you know ..."
"Don't worry about that now," said Tom. "It can be made to look however you want regardless of what you do."
Theresa's ears suddenly pricked, and Molly wore a confused look.
Rick stepped over to the stairs. "If you folks would follow me, we can--"
"What's going on outside?" Theresa said.
Strong Hooves and his contingent of unicorns and earth ponies crawled through the dead grasses in an empty field just east of the neighborhood. He had chosen this approach to ensure that the morning sun would be in the humans' eyes and slow their reaction were one of the guards to spot a unicorn before they could complete their task.
"Stop here," Strong said in a low voice just short of the edge of the field. "Morning Glow, give me an assessment."
Morning nodded as her horn glowed. She raised a mask to her face that had been painted with colored patterns which matched the stalks of grass around her. She lifted her head and peered through the holes cut for her eyes. "Looks just like the pegasi reported. We'll have to spread out more to get all the guards in sight."
"What about the human they said to look out for?"
Morning's eyes flitted from side to side before she lowered her head. "No sign of him from here."
"All right," said Strong. "We'll just have to stay sharp and be on the lookout for him. Are all the other ponies in position yet?"
Morning consulted the cell phone she had strapped to a fore-hoof. Strong had insisted that a few ponies in the community retain their mobile accounts, paid for by donations from humans sympathetic to the cause of seeing more of humanity transformed. "Still waiting for the text to come in. Should be soon."
Strong turned to the others. "Unicorns, spread out along the edge of the neighborhood. Signal when you're in position and have your targets in sight."
Grass rustled and leaves crunched as several of his contingent crawled away.
Morning's phone buzzed. "Sky reports the pegasi are in position," said Morning.
"Excellent." Strong heard the phone buzz again. "And that must be the second ground contingent."
"Actually, no, it's Sky again." Morning frowned as she read the text. "Water Wings is apparently insisting that you know the human Tom and his family might be here."
Strong raised an eyebrow. "They were supposed to be going to the Rehumanization Center."
"Water claims he saw Mary's car."
Strong waved a hoof. "Her model of car is very common. He's likely mistaken. Even if the human's family were here, what consequence would that be to us?"
Morning nodded. "Agreed. It was likely the human's idea to come to this land-grab anyway. He didn't strike me as much different from most here."
"Odd that his family went along with it."
"Theresa seems to be holding onto the idea that they can be a mixed-species family," Morning said with some disdain.
"You know I have no issue with that," said Strong.
"Yes, but only when the humans in the family see past their folly of remaining human. Tom is nothing like that, not when he's here to rehumanize his daughter."
"A procedure the little filly doesn't want, I'm given to understand," said Strong. "Patience, dear sister. I always hold out hope that even the most staunch anti-pony human will come around, Mr. Perkins included."
Morning's phone buzzed. "The other contingent is in position. Just waiting for the signal from Long Distance."
Strong considered himself fortunate to have among his cohorts a unicorn whose natural talent was sending signals via magic to other unicorns. The signals could not carry a lot of information, just short bursts of magical energy, but it was very useful for coordinating larger or separated groups of ponies.
Morning's horn gave off a weak flash of light. "That's the signal. Starting countdown. Five. Four." She lifted her head. "Target sighted. Three. Two. One."
"Go!" Strong said.
As one, Morning Glow and eight other unicorns rose from the grasses and dormant underbrush. Six locked their gazes and then their magic on the holsters of the six armed guards. Five handguns were deftly lifted from their holsters and shot into the air even as the guard's hands flew to a now empty space.
One of the guards had turned at the last second, and the unicorn assigned to him was slower in locking his magic on the gun. The guard had managed to get his hand on the grip and was starting to draw it out. One of the three unicorns specifically assigned as backup lent her aid, and the gun was wrenched from the human's grip.
"All guns away!" Morning cried.
As a cry of alarm rose from the guards and the humans who had witnessed the incident, the unicorns lifted their pilfered firearms high into the air, releasing their hold a split second before pegasi swooped by to collect them in their forelegs.
"All guns acquired!" Morning said.
Strong stood, as did the other ponies with him. "All ponies, with me. Unicorns, watch for any more weapons and confiscate them on sight. Signal the second contingent to close on the houses from the rear. Morning, the megaphone, please."
Morning glanced to the side and reached for the megaphone that lie in the grasses, levitating it before Strong's muzzle as they cantered forward. She clicked it on with a nudge of magic.
Strong's voice boomed forth: "We claim this land for our settlement and kindly request all humans leave peacefully. We have no personal quarrel with you, and we will not use force if we are not met with force!"
"What the hell?" Tom muttered as Strong's proclamation reached his ears.
"What's going on?" Molly asked.
Theresa wrapped a foreleg around her. "Stay close, honey," she said in a quavering voice. She looked up at Tom and Rick. "What is going on?"
"Everyone stay here," said Rick. "I'll check."
"Are you sure you should?" Tom asked. "What if this is some sort of terrorist attack?"
"Terrorists generally don't act that ... nice in their announcements." Rick glanced at Tom's family. "And the fact that he used the word 'human' is telling."
Tom frowned. "You're not saying this is some sort of pony attack?"
"Pony attack?" Molly said in confusion. "That makes no sense!"
"That's ridiculous!" Theresa said. "Ponies would never attack anyone! They--"
A sudden noise from the dining room interrupted her words. Tom whirled around just as the door to the back deck crashed open, the inside latch and handle still glowing with unicorn magic. A unicorn mare and two earth pony stallions rushed inside.
"Sorry, folks, house viewing is over," said the lead stallion with a smirk as he trotted forward. "This place is no longer for ... um ..."
He glanced at Theresa and Molly, who looked on with wide eyes.
The stallion's ears flattened. "Uh, I wasn't expecting--"
Tom marched up to him. "What the hell are you talking about?!"
The other two ponies rushed to the stallion's side, glaring at Tom. The stallion recovered and focused on Tom as well. "This place is no longer for sale. We own it now."
"You can't just march in here and take whatever you want!" Tom shouted.
"Tom, please!" Theresa cried.
"We're taking what we believe to be fair," said the stallion. "Nopony consulted us about reverting this to human habitation when we had specific claims on it."
Tom realized that spouting off was not going to accomplish anything, but his stress had reached the breaking point. "Ponies have most of the land across four states, and now you want more just handed to you without having to pay a dime for it? How the hell can you consider that even remotely fair?!"
Theresa's ears swiveled and twitched, and she glanced nervously towards the window, where Rick now stood with most of his body tucked behind the wall next to it. As he peered cautiously out the window, several humans started shouting obscenities at the ponies. Molly's ears flattened as she cringed and huddled closer to her mother.
"I don't have any personal quarrel with you, human," said the stallion. He glanced at Theresa and Molly. "Is this your family?"
Tom stepped between them and the earth pony. "Yes, and you'd best not come any closer."
"I was going to offer to show them safely outside."
"But not us poor saps of humans, we're not deserving of the same respect."
"Tom!" Theresa said in an urgent voice. "Don't antagonize him!"
Tom was sure he heard a note of fear in his wife's voice. Was she genuinely frightened for herself and Molly, or did she still cling to the notion that ponies could do no wrong when it came to their fellow ponies?
"We're not here to hurt any beings," the unicorn mare declared. "We planned this specifically to avoid that."
"And what if you encounter people who refuse to leave?" Tom said.
"Tom, I'd just as soon we leave now," Theresa said.
"I'd advise the same thing," said Rick. "This is not the time to make a point. I'm sure the county sheriff will be here soon when word gets back to him. Until then, I think it's best we leave."
Tom stood for a moment longer, fuming at the home-crashing ponies, his hands clenched into fists. The fact that they weren't making any threatening moves despite their wary looks was almost as maddening as the situation itself. At least if they had accosted him, he'd have some excuse to fight back and vent his anger.
He took a deep breath and forced his hands to unclench. He was not normally a violent man, and he was not going to let this push him over the edge. The ponies actually seemed to relax a bit themselves, as if they truly had been afraid of a physical altercation.
"Let's leave, now," Theresa said in a low and firm voice.
"We will," Tom said as he turned away from the other ponies. "But not until I look to make sure it's safe."
"This is a non-violent operation," said the earth pony stallion. "There shouldn't be any reason to--"
Tom waved a dismissive hand without turning around and said in a cool voice, "You'll forgive me it I don't take your word for it."
As he stepped towards the front door, he still heard cursing and arguing, but otherwise things seemed reasonably calm. Through the window, he caught a glimpse of one of the security guards having a pointed argument with some earth ponies and a large, hovering pegasus whom he recognized as Water Wings. Tom relaxed somewhat. Water had at least been friendly towards him when his family had first arrived in town.
The unicorn suddenly gasped. "Wait! Stop!"
Tom had his hand on the doorknob. He gave the unicorn an annoyed look. "What?"
"Something's going on outside!" said the unicorn, a distressed look on her face. Her companions appeared tense, their ears swiveling. "You better stay in here until the danger's passed!"
Tom looked outside again. The argument between the ponies and the human had ended. He heard some shouting in the distance, but he couldn't make out what was being said. It was likely just another argument.
"Tom, maybe you should listen to her," Theresa said in a frightened voice. "Her horn flashed just before she warned you."
Tom's grip on the doorknob tightened until his knuckles turned white. He was tired of ponies dictating his actions. For all he knew, this was some sort of plan to delay them from getting to the Rehumanization Center. He had no illusions about its popularity among the ponies of Grand Junction, and by then they all likely knew about Tom's purpose in coming here.
He had just turned the knob and started to open the door when he heard the first gunshot.
He was about to pull back when he heard -- and then felt -- the second gunshot.
Strong was impressed with how smoothly the operation had gone. Other than a few scuffles, no serious violence had broken out. It had remained largely a war of words, and the humans were slowly capitulating as they retreated. Even some of the security guards were advising that the others clear out.
Water Wings flew over to him and landed with a sharp clop of his hooves. "Bad news. They've called for the county sheriff."
"I expected as much," said Strong.
"We can't be expected to disarm them. Maybe these rent-a-cops we were able to handle, but not seasoned, trained officers."
"I have no intention of doing so. When they arrive, I will state my case to them. If they still insist on forcing us to leave, we will do so."
Water frowned. "Doesn't that kind of make this whole thing moot?"
"On the contrary," said Strong. "It's the message that's important. It will show we are serious about claiming what we feel is our due and our dedication to non-violence. It's something humans have done throughout their own history."
Water sighed. "Yes, but even those protests sometimes erupted in violence when the opposition wasn't as dedicated to non-violence."
"I took the liberty of dispatching a pony to inform the local press of this situation," Strong explained. "By the time the sheriff arrives, the press will be here. It would not look good to attempt such violence with the public eye on them. I am very much aware there are humans in this town who sympathize with our plight."
"Well, yeah, with ponies in general maybe," Water said. "Shimmerists, not so much."
"More ponies would be like us were they in our situation. Ponies in places like Pony Hope can afford the luxury of being Harmonists because they don't face adversity every day. Witness Rainy Skies' doubts about her beliefs when she was here."
Water ran a hoof through his mane, looking distracted.
"Is something the matter?" Strong asked.
"Huh? Uh, no." Water lowered his hoof. "What about being arrested for what we did here?"
"Where no being was hurt, they will have to go through federal government channels, since we reside, officially, in Homestead land. In that time, I hope our message will resound enough that sympathizers among the humans will come to our aid."
Water was not so sure of that. Before he could comment, his ears pricked, and he turned his head towards where an argument between a security guard and two earth ponies had escalated to swearing and tribal epithets. He unfolded his wings. "I better go help calm things down over there."
"Yes, please do so," said Strong.
As Water flew off towards the altercation, Morning Glow approached. "Strong, are you sure the pegasus wing had seen that human who pulled the rifle on a pony?"
Strong turned towards her. "That's what they had said, though they admitted they weren't sure. Have you not spotted him?"
"Not yet. I was hoping to have Water Wings do a flyover and take a look. He was there when that incident happened."
"He was also in the recon wing," Strong said. "Had he seen the human, I'm sure he would have said something."
"I wouldn't be so concerned, but we found that human's car."
Strong frowned. "Where?"
Morning pointed a hoof towards a beat-up pickup truck parked on the street about four doors down. Several ponies were already scrutinizing it.
"We haven't found any weapons inside," Morning said.
"That's good."
"No, it isn't, because he always keeps it out in the open in the back seat when he's not using it. The fact that it's not there--"
Morning cut herself off when her horn suddenly flickered. Strong tensed as he recognized it as an emergency signal from Long Distance. Every unicorn around them went on alert, and several pegasi rocketed into the air, their gazes sweeping the neighborhood.
"Morning, keep the unicorns organized," Strong ordered. "Be ready the moment a threat appears."
"We may accidentally hurt a human if we have to act fast!"
"I realize that, but we can't take any chances."
Morning frowned. "Dammit, I knew we should've kept a closer look out for this sort of thing!"
"Please stop blaming yourself," said Strong. "This otherwise went off perfectly. We didn't expect--"
"Armed human!" came the cry from a pegasus overhead.
Morning whipped her gaze around just as a man dressed in faded jeans and a plaid shirt emerged from behind some trees at the edge of the street. He brandished his rifle towards the nearest ponies as he shouted, "You're not gonna run us out of here!"
Several humans gave exclamations of shock and panic, running from the scene as several ponies started to back away. Strong leaned close to his sister and whispered, "Wait until he's not pointing the gun at any pony or human before trying to disarm him. Don't risk an accidental shot."
Morning nodded slowly, her eyes narrowing on the human.
"Put the gun down, sir!" shouted one of the security guards.
"I'm not taking orders from some pussy who let a buncha fucking ponies disarm him!" the man yelled.
"The sheriff is on his way right now."
"Fuck the sheriff!" The man leveled the gun at the nearest pony. "If he had any balls, he woulda rounded up all these ponies and thrown 'em in jail by now. What the fuck am I paying him for outta my taxes?!"
"He's going to shoot," Morning said in a quavering voice.
"Wait," Strong said.
"The law is going to have something to say about this," said the guard.
"The law?" The man pointed the thumb of his free hand at himself. "What if I have something to say about it?" He raised the gun and waved it in the general direction of the other humans. "What if these people have something to say about it?"
"Wait," Strong said again.
But Morning didn't.
As soon as the gun started to turn away from the humans and towards some ponies, her horn blazed, and a similar glow surrounded the gun. Realizing what was happening, the man grasped the rifle barrel with his other hand. Morning yanked it towards the sky, and a blast sounded as the gun fired, causing several humans to scream and run.
Morning gritted her teeth and yanked with all her might.
The man shouted as his hand fell from the barrel, but his scream of pain from his broken trigger finger was drowned out by the second blast, the gun aimed low. Morning flinched but managed to pull the gun towards her and drop it to the ground, panting from the effort.
"Is anypony hurt?" Strong called out. "We're sorry we couldn't act sooner."
"Oh my God!" a human screamed.
Strong's head jerked towards the source of the cry, a woman with her eyes wide and her hands covering her mouth. Several other humans gave alarmed shouts and started running in the direction she was looking. Strong turned around, his stomach twisting and his ears drawing back at the scent of blood. His glistening eyes beheld the human he had berated for his notions of rehumanization as the man collapsed to the ground, his left calf a shattered mess of blood and exposed bone.
The impact of the bullet didn't feel like it was serious, like someone had simply run up to Tom and kicked him hard in the shin. Or perhaps bucked him, from the sheer force he felt. He even heard the screams from both people outside and his own family before the white-hot pain blasted through him like a blazing hot knife.
Yet he had felt pain before, like the time he accidentally had the staple gun reversed and blasted one into his finger. That had hurt like a bitch and bled like water pouring from a broken pipe, yet he was okay in the end and didn't even have to go to the emergency room.
He wanted to tell his family he was okay, but it took only one step to realize that he was far from it. His left leg collapsed from under him, and he fell hard to the sidewalk, blacking out on impact.