Fallout: New Pegasus

by markhaox14

Shadows

{BEGIN DAY 4 LOG TRANSMISSION}

Day 4, July 27

0218 Hours

I opened my eyes widely, suddenly finding the urge to wake up. I wasn't tired anymore... and I slowly looked around a bit. I stood up, not really seeing much else to do in these quarters. I stepped out, noticing AJ was still deactivated. I shook my head in disappointment... she'd been down and out for a good while now... I hope it wasn't permanent...

I slipped out of the room eventually, looking around the den. It still had the dark spots here and there... but by now they had already dried. I located Willow, trotted to her, and tapped her shoulder. She looked at me with dreary eyes. "Hey... come on, go get some rest."

She shook her head. "No... I can do it the entire night... just let me."

...stubborn. "You're only fooling yourself thinking you can stay up when you can't."

She looked down a moment. Well, longer than a moment. For a second, I thought she fell asleep with her eyes open, and I shook her shoulder a bit. She gasped a bit, and nodded. "Alright. Good night, I guess..." She slowly trotted towards the quarters, and shut the door behind her.

I sat down quietly in the middle of the den, looking around a bit at the formations inside the cave itself. Maybe it was the nap I took earlier... but something about them unsettled me. I tried to shake it off, but that omen of doubt still haunted me.

...I didn't want to think too much about it, so I stood up, headed to the entrance, and stopped. "Oh right..." I used my wing to cover my snout as I stepped over the carcasses, feeling some fur here and there. After climbing over them, I swung the makeshift cover off the mouth to the cave. I looked around the outside... it seemed we were held inside the face of a mountain base. There were two trails leading to the cave, both leading to opposite directions. I tapped my Pip-Boy, checked out the World Map, and saw the position set us about southwest from Dodge.

I turned to the trail on my left. That's the one that would lead us to the city. The other one led us back to the 95. I nodded, and turned back to head inside. As I did, though, I heard a light scamper. I groaned... I was really hoping for this night to be peaceful, but obviously that wasn't gonna happen. I turned back to the trails, trying to locate the source of the sound.

Tick-tick-tick-tick-tick

...the right. I turned my attention to the trail heading south, and drew the rifle on my back, holding the trigger with my wing and the rail with my left hoof. Not only did it help me to keep balance much better than if I stood up on my hind legs... but it kinda felt nice to use a wing and hoof together. I waited for about twenty seconds... before I saw a hoof slam onto the trail. The hoof dragged a bit closer, becoming a foreleg, and as it continued to drag, it became a pony's top half. I watched slowly, not lowering my gun as I saw the pony drag further onto the trail, where I saw him fully... or more accurately... what was left of him.

I slung my weapon back, and rushed to him. While I recognized the rags and armor he wore as the Fiends'... whatever happened to him was obviously terrible. As I galloped closer to him, he stared at me in daze... maybe it was dismay... whatever it was, he put up no fight as I lifted him over my back, and strained as I slowly drudged back to the mouth. I set him down, and inspected him again. His left hind leg was missing, and the stump had long ceased bleeding... the dirt coating it was the cause.

"Shit, man... what the hell happened to you!?"

He grabbed his stump with his forelegs, staring at it. Droplets of sweat dripped from his mane onto the dry ground as he clamped onto it. He slowly turned back to me. "Th-th-those..." he muttered out.

I cocked an eyebrow. "What?"

As I waited for a response, that ticking sound came up again. I twitched my ears, and unslung my rifle. The Fiend shivered a bit, and reached at me with a hoof. "Y-you... put that rifle to my chest... and..."

I shook my head. "Shut the hell up..." I whispered harshly. I turned back to the south trail, until some sort of wire somehow twisted out from the trail's direction. I cocked an eyebrow in confusion... that small thing was moving itself somehow... but how?

I soon wished I hadn't asked myself that. That wire... extended until the thing it was attached to reared its ugly head... literally. "W-what...?" I barely muttered out, before that thing hissed, and immediately started a charge at me on its six legs. Without any thought or hesitation, I ducked just enough to avoid being pierced by its mandibles. It hit its head against the mountain face, and stepped back a bit, almost in confusion. I recognized what it was by then... a bloody, giant ant.

Tons of things tossed back and forth within my head... how the hell did ants become giant? How do you keep from getting eaten by one? Do they eat ponies? How do I kill it? Those thoughts weren't gonna be answered anytime soon as that thing turned back to face me. I turned to the Fiend immediately. "H-how do I stop it!?" It bounded for me again, and I instinctively jumped over it, hoping to fly out of harm's way... but then that damn reminder of being a one-winged cripple came to me once again as I landed atop of its midsection.

"P-pierce its... abdomen... that's where its heart is..." he strained out. Abdomen... abdomen... damn it, where the hell is the abdomen on a bug!? I fiddled with my Pip-Boy as quickly as I could, tapped my razor, and saw it reappear in the air. I struggled to catch it but that ant kept moving and spinning so much that it kept bouncing around on its back. I knew this rifle wasn't gonna help me, so I slung it back on my back as I tried to get hold of the blade. I reached my wing for it, and had it until the beast bounced again and made me drop it again.

I frantically reached both hooves for it now, and held onto it tightly. I used my wing to reveal the blade, and as I aimed it down onto the ant, I plunged the blade as hard as I could into it. As I felt it embed itself into the ant's... skin... I felt the blade rumble a bit. Other than the usual spinning and trying to get me off, the ant didn't really take much notice to me trying to kill it. I winced, and continued to thrust the blade through the ant's hard skin. Dammit, why wasn't it working!?

"The abdomen... is its... ass..." the Fiend replied. As the ant twitched its antennae, it turned to the Fiend on the ground, and scampered towards him. I heard that loud snapping of its mandibles, and finally one more before hearing a thump following it. I held the knife with both hooves once more, and stabbed the blade into what I thought was the ant's flank. The ant finally reacted greatly, standing up on its four hind legs. I continued to pierce the flank as I screamed in a mix of a war cry and a fear for my life.

The ant fell backwards onto the ground, slamming on top of me as it raised its legs into the air. I struggled to escape from its sheer mass, and soon I squirmed out, covered in dust. I stood up, turning back to the ant... all six of its legs were raised into the air, twitching a bit as it began to curl its head and what I now realized was the abdomen towards its midsection. I laughed in a mix of hysteria and relief... I... I killed that thing! Me, a small fry, killed that fucking great thing!

"Luna almighty! Hey, man, did you see that? Did you see...?" I turned back to where I left the Fiend, where I saw him bleeding even more from a huge gash in his chest. I galloped to him, knelt, and checked his pulse. After a few moments, it was pretty obvious he didn't make it. "Damn... not quick enough..."

I placed away my things in my Pip-Boy, and lifted his remains. I dragged them to the fork in the road from the cave, and set him there, lying on the ground where he wouldn't be disturbed. I turned back to the ant... something about it still terrified me. I trotted away from it, and back into the doorway to the cave. I entered, shutting the door behind me. I sighed in disappointment... sure, it wasn't my job to save ponies... but it'd be so much better if I could.

I trotted back to the middle of the den, and merely stared at the mouth of the cave... watching... waiting...

0600 Hours

My eyes couldn't blink... I couldn't even take my stare off the mouth to see anything else. For whoever has the same job in New Equestria, I feel sorry that they gotta do this everyday. I... I don't know... maybe I was still trying to take my mind off of the watch earlier...

I felt something grasp my shoulder, and I immediately reached my wing for my gun, aiming it behind me. I turned to see Willow, hoof on my shoulder, merely gazing at me with eyes of some kind of worry... or maybe it was pity... I don't know. I was too weary to ask. "Hey, First... come on... it's morning."

"H-huh?" I asked, almost in a drone of a voice. I think I felt my forelegs again, and I used them to rub my eyes. "Morning... right..." I felt myself stand up, almost as if I had just received the ability to stand after years of being crippled.

"What's up?" Willow asked.

I merely scoffed a bit, and gave... or at least tried to... a grin back. "N-nothing... slept well?"

"Actually yeah I did!" She turned back to the quarters. "Anyways... your super cool android friend's lights went on. She hasn't gotten up yet, but she will soon!"

I think that bit of info there made me open my eyes much more. "Her lights went on? Th-that's amazing! Wait... you mean the lights on her eyes, right?"

"Yep!"

"OK... that's good! She'll get up in a bit then." I placed away my weapon. "Oh, and uh... sorry about the whole... pointing the gun at you."

"Well it's OK as long as you didn't use it cause then you wouldn't be apologizing unless it was over my lifeless corpse, huh? Ooh, would you clasp it dramatically!?" Wow... she seemed to look at everything in a bright light... I personally didn't see how anypony could do something impossible.

"Er... I... guess? Anyways... let's wait for AJ to wake up, then get the hell out of... wait, that doesn't work here..."

Shining Willow smiled widely at me. "The hell out of Dodge and to Dodge?"

I sighed, a bit disappointed. "...yeah."

She merely grimaced a bit, biting her lower lip in a bit of restraint. "It would've been funnier if you said it."

"Eh... probably not." I heard the door swing open, and I turned to the quarters, grinning. "Oh, thank Luna you're alright, AJ."

She stood in the doorway a bit, cocking an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't I be? Something happen?"

"Yeah you... you don't remember?"

"Hmm... not really. I reckoned I just caught a nap. Are you OK?"

I thought about whether I should short her circuits in worry and tell the truth or just let her take a moment to relax. Wasn't a hard decision. "Nothin' wrong with me. Just saw you shut down, got me a bit worried."

AJ seemed to giggle a bit, her eyes changing from green to purple. "Oh, sugar cube... that's awful kind of you."

I turned back to Willow. "AJ's up and ready to go. Think you can lead us out of here and to Dodge?"

"Heck yeah I can!" She trots to the door to the cave, seemingly stepping over the bodies there without any hesitance... it worried me. Me and AJ simply followed her, carefully avoiding the bodies as we exited the cave. As soon as I did, the sunlight blurred my vision for a bit, before I placed on my glasses.

"Holy moly what is that!?" Willow asked, her voice raised. I turned, and already guessing what it was, clicked my tongue.

"Hmm... looks like that one thing you ran into..."

"I know, right?"

AJ stepped near the corpse of the giant insect. Her eyes glowed a bit, and she turned back to me. "Huh... this thing seemed to have a struggle awhile back. It's been covered in piercings."

I merely shrugged. "Yeah, but... as long as it's not alive anymore... we don't have to worry about it."

"Oh, definitely." Willow looks around a bit, before turning to the trail heading north. "If we go down this trail, we'll hit Dodge by noon."

"Sounds good. Let's get outta here."

1126 Hours

"You know... maybe it's the fact that AJ switched back online and we actually woke up alive today... but I feel really good about this!"

"See? Nothing to worry about! Come on!" We all trotted up the last ridge, before coming into view of the town. I marveled at it... it wasn't a large town, but seeing how relatively sound it remained over the years was something to behold. All the buildings were intact, the streets slightly cracked but hardly noticeable, and the fauna drifting slightly in the way of the breeze. This was it... this was paradise.

I turned to see how Willow would react, grinning without any care. She merely stared on intensely, her eyes darting rapidly across the town. "Uh... something up, Willow?"

She didn't answer for a second... "Uh... y-yeah... hang on a sec, First..." She let gravity take her as the dune slowly shifted with her hooves until she reached the proximity of the town.

I turned to AJ. "I don't get it... the town looks spotless!"

AJ nodded. "...exactly..." She hopped down the dune and let it carry her down as well. I shook my head... how could they worry at a time like this? We made it to Dodge... what's the deal now? I got it over with and just let myself follow them. As soon as I touched the streets, I immediately realized I was missing something for myself... horseshoes. The pavement burned a bit and it took a good amount of both time and hopping on my burnt hooves to get used to it.

As soon as I did, I turned to both Shining and AJ. Both had seemed to stop nearby so I trotted close. "So, uh... why are you two freaking out for?"

Both turned to me, dead serious. I really felt like I either screwed something up or I was missing out on something obvious... maybe both. "First Class... doesn't the place seem... awfully quiet?"

I twitched my ears a bit. Now that she mentioned it... it was quiet... too quiet. I looked around just to make sure. They were both right... everything seemed... empty. "Weird... hold on..." Being a courier has taught me a few things... how to tell directions, how to read maps and charts and make them, how to use navigation tools... but this one always stuck by me and made me realize a being a courier wasn't always a bad thing. I closed my eyes, raised my ears, and stayed absolutely still.

"Uh... First?"

"I'm concentrating! Shush!" I focused once more, and waited... waited... waited...

...la...

What...?

...la la la...

Is that... that's not... singing... is it?

...la la la... la... la la...

I lowered my ears, perplexed. I turned to the two, my confusion very clear to them. "...so... I heard, um... what I thought was singing... I think..."

"S-singing?"

"Uh, you might be hoping to get your ears checked-" She stopped suddenly as her ears pricked up as well. After a moment, her eyes flashed yellow. "We ain't alone in this town..."

Willow trembled a bit, and she began to head back to the dune, desperately trying to climb it as her hooves sank into it. "W-we gotta get outta here! Right... flipping... now!"

I turned to AJ. "All it is is singing. Sounds like from a little foal."

"Well, considering these folk aught not take too kindly to us, I reckon we better giddy on outta here..."

I chuckled a bit. "Come on, it's just some fillies singing some kind of... bedtime song or something. I'm sure they're probably just... I don't know, playing a game or something."

"Uh... First..."

"Yeah?"

"Y-you can ask them yourself..." she said slowly, pointing just behind me. I turned around, looking until I found what she wanted me to see. It was a filly... literally dressed to go outside with a bonnet, dress, horseshoes, and everything. She strolled around a corner and began to slowly head toward us, crooning the tune I heard earlier as she did. I really couldn't see her muzzle from under her hat, and even if the hat wasn't blocking me, the shadow from the brim would have done the same. As she walked, three more fillies followed behind her, dressed in almost identical garbs with the exception of the colors and sizes.

I turned to AJ, cocking an eyebrow. "Is Willow really gonna freak out over this?"

"I... I wouldn't be so sure that they're OK, First."

Before I had a chance to respond, I saw the fillies stop, just a few feet away from the two of us. They stood absolutely quietly yet sternly, not speaking a word or crooning their tune anymore. They kept their heads lowered enough to have their hats hide their faces. Maybe AJ was right... maybe they were affected by the Aura. But that didn't mean we could just leave them there... did it?

I trotted a bit towards them. "Um... hey... you don't need help... do you?"

They stood still momentarily, before one of them shook their head. "No... no help... but thank you very kindly, sir."

...well, they seemed polite. But still... I couldn't shake the feeling that something needed to be done to help them. "A-are you sure?"

The one in front nodded quickly. "Yes... quite sure... why would we need help?" She picked her head up slowly, her bonnet no more covering her face. As she lifted it up, I felt my eyes widen a bit. What I saw in the filly's face was a grin... no... a smile... bigger than any I've ever seen. She reveled the full set of teeth, pristine and clean. But that wasn't what frightened me most... when I tried to find her eyes, all I could see were empty sockets within her face. "We are quite happy now... quite happy."

These fillies probably were affected by the Aura... residue of huge stores of magic or magic blasts that can drift and cause these... grotesque changes... to almost any creature, ponies included. Most ponies I had seen affected by the Aura became these... zombie... looking things. Some still had consciousness, others actually were zombies by that point. But I hadn't ever seen anything like this...

I galloped closer to the fillies now, not sure what to think... pity? Sorrow? Whatever it was... it wanted to get them out of here. I placed my hooves on the filly in front. "Listen... I don't know what happened to you... but we gotta get outta-" she cut me off short... literally. I felt something slash against my cheek, and after a second I felt something warm slowly drip onto my face. I didn't bother to rub my cheek this time... I backed away, seeing what caused it... a rough piece of broken glass in the filly's hooves.

"Oh... my bad... it seems I've accidentally slit your cheek. I was aiming for the throat!" she announced cheerfully.

"You... what... what the fuck!?" I stood up on my hooves, and galloped back to AJ. "Why are they going and slashing up ponies for!?"

"Don't know... but I'd rather not find out..." She activated her plasma caster from her side, and aimed it at the first filly. As soon as she targeted the filly, she fired. The green ball of plasma hurtled in the air a moment, before landing a direct hit on the filly. She screamed in agony a moment, before being consumed by a veil of green and disintegrating into little more than a pile of green mush.

The other three fillies turned to the pile, their smiles wide but their forehead gestures and eye sockets showing... what I thought was something of mourning. They placed their hooves into the pile, lifted a bit of the green mush, and slowly smeared it across their dresses, staining them with a radiant glow. As soon as they did, they turned to the two of us. They began trembling a bit, their smiles slowly turning upside down... literally. The muscles and skin around the lips ripped apart, and slowly their once snow white teeth began to turn red, slowly dripping blood off of them. As their smiles turned into frowns, their eyes also began to slowly leak a darkened liquid, as if sobbing. The deformation was complete, and the once somewhat recognizable faces of youth were replaced with the shadows of the damned...

AAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEE!

All three fillies shrieked at once, a piercing sound that could shatter even the serenity of water. As they did, a multitude of doors opening and closing rang throughout the town, and as they did, much more of these smiling freaks began to emerge from their shelters. All of them began to chant many unnerving calls. "Does somebody need a helping hoof? I can offer four to really take your mind off of things... like your skull!"

"Want to borrow my sugar? Or how about my knife set? Better keep it inside your hide so it doesn't get rusty!"

"Or how about a nice round of the Game of Life... and Death! I have a feeling it's gonna be a long game this time!"

I looked all around this town... all of them were coming from the front. I turned to AJ. "Climb up the dune!" Without any hesitation, we both ran as fast as we could, struggling to get atop the dunes. But with the sand constantly shifting underneath us it was damn near impossible to do so. "Run! Fucking run!"

I didn't dare look back. I didn't want to. Those psychopaths were too damn happy and it was creeping me right the fuck out! How did those ponies end up like that... and how the hell did they do that with their faces!? We both drudged on and on... until we reached the top. I took a moment to catch my breath, completely exhausted. As we both looked at the bottom of the dune, we saw the entire town, just under a few dozen townsfolk, standing and merely looking back at us. "Oh, darn! I really wanted to show them my new lawn mower... it cuts deep!"

"Fuck you, you fucking psychopaths!" I shouted down to them. Not like it would help... but... I just needed to think of something other than Dodge right now...

I lifted my head upwards, still panting heavily. "I have no clue what they were..."

I merely glanced at her, and still breathing heavily, nodded in exasperation. "I... I don't wanna... wanna know..."

AJ turned back to Willow, waiting for us at the top of the dune. "Why didn't you warn us about them!?"

"I did! I told you we needed to leave right now!"

"If you knew about them then you must've seen 'em before. What are they? And how do you know about them?"

"They're... I call them Smiley's... don't know what else to call them. They're... initially happy. Like... unnaturally happy. But then they become these... hideous creatures when they recognize death among themselves. When they get like that... they alert the entire colony with that screech."

"So, just avoid them at all costs? Don't sound too hard to do."

"Y-yeah... it is... and it's going to get harder... and harder... oh, dear Luna..." I heard Willow begin to sniffle, before sobbing to herself.

I turned to her, breathing a bit easier now. "What's up, Willow?"

"Th-those... Smiley's... they're not natural. They come from real ponies like us... but... they've been changed by..."

"Aura?"

She shook her head. "N-no... by... Shadows."

I cocked my eyebrow. "Uh... shadows?"

"Yeah... they call themselves Descension. Back in the NLR, we simply called them Shadows because we knew nothing about them. We still know little about them. But... they're dangerous... merciless... and... just... just barbaric. I've only heard rumors on the group... but... I've ran into some of their... experiments... which include the Smiley's..."

"...dear Luna... if they actually turned everyone into Dodge into these Smilin' Smiths... that means... well... I don't know what it means."

"It means... we can't stay here. We need to keep on moving... and at this rate we're not gonna reach the closest town, Appleloosa, until tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? Hmm... what about shelter for the night?"

"Got it covered. On caravan runs I'd do, I'd stop at this old ranch. It's desolate, but it's fairly intact. Hopefully, we can run into some NLR troops... get them to avoid this town like the plague."

"That'd be a good idea. Those things down there can really pack a punch..." I just remembered the cut on my cheek, and I dabbed at it a bit with my wing.

"Don't do that, you might infect the wound. Hold on..." Rather than grab a stimpak as before, she reached for something within her... I soon recognized it to be what remained of a red bandana. She slowly but gently wiped my cheek with it, and pressed on it for a minute.

"This thing looks old, AJ... is it clean?"

"Cleaner than the whistle on a steam engine." She removed the cloth, and glanced at it a bit, almost as if seeing something deeper within it. "I wish I could remember where I got it originally, though..."

"You keep it with you as a good luck charm or something?"

"Yup. Makes me feel... I don't know... like I had some old life before Goodsprings."

She probably did... but I don't know anything about that. But I did promise to take her to her factory. Maybe there'd be something there.

I glanced back down at the townsfolk, now having given up their pursuit and slowly starting to leave back to their homes. Better than having them stay down there and wait for us. I turned back to Willow. "Anyway we can get back on the highway without going through town?"

"Yeah... just follow me." She led us along the dune, heading north until we left the proximity of the town.

1348 Hours

After traveling further along the highway, we stopped momentarily at a junction. While there wasn't a formal rest stop, there was a large piece of rubble from an old bridge that we took refuge under, providing a good amount of shade. The three of us each sat underneath it, drinking what water we had. "You said you went on caravan runs before... how many places have you been in Palomino?"

"Most if not all. While I haven't been to New Pegasus yet, that's not to say I didn't enjoy the other locales."

"So about Appleloosa... what's that town like."

"Well..." She was stopped as AJ cut her off.

"I can tell you 'bout Appleloosa! It's the greatest town in San Palomino! Both buffalo and ponies have lived there, and both help to care for an orchard just nearby!"

Willow turned to AJ, eyeing her incredulously. "What? What orchards? All I know that's by Appleloosa is a large mine! Filled with a bunch of... I think they're glowing mushrooms."

"I think you're mistaken, friend... Appleloosa is plenty bustlin' because of those trees."

"And I think you're the one mistaken... Appleloosa is a shantytown. I mean, don't get me wrong, the ponies there are great! But... their homes... are shit."

AJ merely glared at Willow. Her eyes flashed from green to red, and she stood up. She trotted over to Willow, lifted her from the sand, and clutched her hide. "Say somethin' else about Appleloosa... go ahead! Say it!" Willow merely whimpered a bit in her grasp, squirming to get free.

I stood up, turning sharply to AJ. "AJ, stop now! Put her down!"

Clearly reluctant to do so, she held Willow for a moment more, before pressing her muzzle against Willow's threateningly. "I catch you running your mouth again, and you're gonna have a problem..." She then dropped Willow onto the dirt, and sat back down.

Willow took the moment to back away from AJ and hide behind me. "Sh-she's... she's crazy, First..." she whimpered out.

I shook my head. "Willow... whatever you do, don't say anything relating to Appleloosa. I don't want AJ to go stark raving mad on you. OK?" She nodded quickly, her eyes misty. I sighed, and turned to AJ. "And you, AJ... you really want to do something like that again, you're doing it without us. Because I'm not gonna have a raging android traveling with me or Willow, got it?" AJ turned to me, her eyes flashing from red to blue. She nodded slowly, grunting a bit as she did.

I was just going to have to accept that as her answer. I think it was five minutes later that we heard some hoofsteps in rhythm coming towards us. I peeked from under our shade, and recognized a few NLR soldiers trotting down the highway from the other road at the junction. I stepped out from the shade, raising my wing up to hail them.

"Hey! Over here!"

They all turned to me, drawing their weapons initially but keeping them lowered. "Name and business," one of them requested.

"First Class. Courier. I also have Shining Willow, caravan runner, and AJ, Bronco Guardian Bot."

The soldier nodded. "Sorry for the alert. Never know who you can run into in the desert."

How true that was. "No kidding. But there is something we need to let you know."

"What's that?"

"Know the town nearby here? Dodge Junction?"

"Yeah."

"You might want to get on the horn and let any other Grand Army soldiers know to stay the hell away from there."

"Any particular reason?"

"Yeah... Shadows." Right when I said that I saw the small unit of troops lower their ears and widen their eyes.

"Shadows? Dear Luna... they're already this far from Everfree... what did you run into exactly?"

"These smiling lunatics. Willow calls them Smiley's."

One of the soldiers coughed a bit, trying their best not to retch. The leader of the unit turned back to him. "Breathe nice and easy." He turned back to me. "Smilin' Jacks, huh? Definitely wanna avoid those... I'll let 'em know right away. Thanks for the heads up."

"No problem." I stopped a moment, and hatched an idea. "You going near Appleloosa by any chance?"

"Gonna make a rest stop there. You too?"

"Yeah, and it'd help to have a bit more ponies to travel with."

"Why not? I assume you've heard of the Ranch?"

"That the one you were talking about, Willow?"

"Yeah."

"Well, while it's not really an official rest stop, it's very convenient for troops to bunk there. Keep it nice and maintained and it gives back."

"Sounds like a good plan to me then. Let's get going."

2134 Hours

We didn't reach the Ranch until long after sunset. By then the lights within were glowing radiantly, a beacon in the night. The Ranch itself was a fairly large bungalow, comprised of redwood. Much of it looked as thought it had seen its day but kept going without a halt. A fence surrounded it on all sides; while it wouldn't keep out ponies, it'd keep in any livestock in.

We all entered inside the abode, a lobby leading into a few bedrooms. The soldier in command turned to us. "Each room has two bunks and a queen. You mind sharing one room among yourselves?"

I immediately turned back to AJ and Willow. Before either could raise any objections, I spoke up. "No problem at all with sharing. Come on, ladies. And good night to you sir." I led both into the room, shut the door, and before they could interject again, I raised my wing. "Both of you, shut up. Willow, you sleep in a bunk. AJ, you sleep in the other bunk."

"Oh, and you get the queen all to yourself?"

"I knew you were gonna say something like that. As a matter of fact, no. I'll sleep on the floor. That way, neither of you complain all night and keep me up." I retrieved the sheets and a pillow from the queen, fixing them onto the floor to create a makeshift nest for me. I used my hooves to stamp and press them a bit, before I roosted on it. "And please... don't wake me up." I saw both stand and stare at me in a mix of disappointment and a bit of contempt. Finally, they returned to their own beds, lied down, and covered themselves with the sheets. It was a few minutes later when I shut off the lights in the room, roosted in my nest once more, and closed my eyes...

{END DAY 4 TRANSMISSION}