The whole room just fell into a deafening silence as Shadow Shroud sheathed her kunai. The mass of chimera corpses seemed invisible to the elephant in the room. Air Slash lowered his head in sheer disapproval, Fire Fight and Turf War just looked at one another, Spiral Galaxy slowly peeked out through her hooves, and Kickback finally broke the silence when ran into a corner and gagged; the sight of a dead pony reminded him too greatly of his mother.
Fire Fight looked away from Turf War, and just….stared at Shadow Shroud. He couldn’t believe what he had just allowed to happen. While it was most likely for the best, he was a little more shocked than he probably should have been at how calm she seemed to be about carrying it out. It was then that he thought back to the night that he met her, and recalled her words: ‘Our training begins at birth, and when our parents and masters deem us fit, we are sent into the shadows of Equestria to hone our skills on our own, culling potential threats to Equestria in the process’. Shadow Shroud had prepared herself for a moment like this, because to her, this was nothing more than a duty for her to fulfill, and tonight was a firm reminder of that. Granted, she was not at all without honor as she gave the mad stallion her own kind of last rights before executing him, and that brought the fiery colt some comfort……but still…
Shadow Shroud turned to the other foals. Kickback had just finished gagging, and he eyed her nervously as he tried to remain completely calm. She made a long, sorrowful sigh. “I’m sorry, everypony. I should’ve just asked you all to leave the room altogether. I was a fool to think you’d be able to take this as easily as I could.” She said.
“Y-Y-You don’t….really look like you took it too well yourself…” Fire Fight said.
“Admittedly, you are correct, Fire Fight. This was my first…..act of judgment, and it very well may not be my last. Even if I’m helping you all run away, remember that a life like this is normal for me, and I still have the role of a Shadewalker to fulfill. But know that I will never turn my blade to any of you.” Shadow Shroud said.
“That doesn’t make this anymore excusable, Shroud! I know he was pretty much beyond help, but……” Spiral said.
“I won’t ask for your forgiveness. It’s my burden alone to bear. I wouldn’t thrust this on any of you if my life depended on it. Now…….I must ask that you help me do something that may further damn my soul.” Shroud said.
“What?” Turf War asked.
Shroud sighed heavily once more. “I feel I should make it look as though he was simply mauled by his creations should anypony happen upon this, and otherwise believe he was murdered. I don’t want a potential manhunt to impede our progress.” She said.
“He was murdered!” Air Slash growled.
Fire Fight continued to stare at his shadowy friend. Her eyes……they were flooded with guilt. She didn’t like any of this. Perhaps she wasn’t as mentally prepared for this as she thought. While he wanted nothing to do with defiling a body, he also didn’t want to leave her to deal with this by herself. He thought of a better solution. “Why don’t we bury him instead? You wouldn’t have to feel bad about……well……I-It’d just be more respectful, you know?” he suggested.
Shadow Shroud’s eyes widened a little as if to silently express gratitude. “So you’ll help me? I did say it was my burden alone to bear.” She asked.
Air Slash cut Fire Fight off before he could answer. “And it shall be!!” he exclaimed as he swooped in between them. He pointed his sword at Shadow Shroud. “This is exactly why you should never have trusted her to begin with! She’s nothing more than a killer! While I do not condemn your intentions, Shadewalker, I certainly condemn your actions! How can you end a pony’s life and see it as nothing more than business!?”
“Homie, hol’ on one second!” Turf War said.
Air Slash glared back at him. “What for!? Do mean to say that you approve of this act of murder!? For shame, Turf War! If I recall correctly, this was the sort of thing you’d mean to prevent back in Detrot!” he shouted.
“W-Well….yeah, but….” Turf War stammered.
Kickback took a deep breath. “Now let’s just all calm down fer a moment and talk about this, y’all.” He said calmly.
“Talk about what, Kickback!? I’m shocked you’re even able to calm down after watching another pony die. I’m shocked that any of you are even a little okay with this!!” Spiral Galaxy shouted. “Who were we to judge whether or not he could’ve been helped!? Shadow Shroud, you didn’t have to just kill him! I can’t believe you!”
“Man! It ain’t her fault dat dis what her clan do! It’s f***** up, but what the hell else we supposed to do? Dis b**** was on some serious lean! Prolly made it himself too.” Turf War said.
“Don’t even begin to presume that I would EVER act with the intention of furthering their agenda!” Air Slash said.
“B****! Dis ain’t ‘bout you right now!” Turf War said.
“What did you say?” Air Slash asked angrily.
“Man! You heard damn well what said!”
“It doesn’t matter what you said, Turf War! The only thing that matters right now is that Shroud just killed somepony!” Spiral said.
“And she said it was her burden to bear alone.” Kickback said.
“Oh, what’s the matter!? Are you too afraid to bear that kind of weight on your shoulders again!? We basically had a hoof in this whether we like it or not, you know!” Spiral shouted.
“Well Ah don’t reckon screamin’ an hollerin’ is gonna help much, Ms. Spiral.” Kickback replied.
“Don’t you ‘Ms. Spiral’ me, mister!” Spiral’s horn was beginning to flicker. Fate had the kindness of having them be deep underground, and away from the stars.
The four foals continued to argue loudly, but with Kickback trying but failing to ease them. Fire Fight could only look on as his comrades’ ugly exchange. He looked back at Shadow Shroud, whose head faced directly towards the floor. He couldn’t see her eyes. The sheer magnitude of the action she had taken shook her as much as anypony in the room, but true to her nature, she tried not to show it. While he respected the ninja as his friend, he still found himself questioning her decision. He was completely split between defending her, and reprimanding her. It certainly didn’t help that the other foals were in chaos. His doubt was suddenly shattered when he caught the sight of a tear falling from Shadow Shroud’s hanging face.
Fire Fight took a deep breath, put his game face on, and forcefully put his hoof down. “GUYS! ENOUGH!” He shouted. He shot a quick flare from his horn for extra effect. The arguing foals immediately shut up and looked at him, and Shadow Shroud lifted her face to look at him. Her eyes slowly produced tears. “Look….I’m not okay with any of this…at all! But…….it was all gonna be hard to avoid no matter which way you look at it. We all jumped into this blindly, and had to make some tough choices as a result. Stopping Gene Splice was a good thing to do, but nopony said we’d come out completely clean. And nopony ever said that this whole journey would be easy, or what we would encounter. I know you’re all upset, but…..I should have been a better leader here. We were facing a mad scientist that threatened all of Equestria, and all I did was punch, kick and burn like I always do! This was a much graver situation than anything else we’ve faced up to this point, and I didn’t take it as seriously as I should have; and look what happened! If you guys want to blame somepony, put it all on me! I wasn’t strong enough as a leader, and I let you all fall into chaos.”
Shadow Shroud eyed him with silent gratitude behind her tears while the other foals had mixed reactions. Turf War felt a little relieved that the chaos subsided, but could still feel the tension in the air. Spiral wasn’t sure whether to be angry at Fire Fight, or to feel guilty. Kickback just lowered his hat, ashamed that his own efforts were for naught. Air Slash just eyed him angrily, frustrated that he’d continue to side at all with the ninja filly; he slowly and reluctantly sheathed his swords.
“I’ll just be removing myself from this place now that it has been tainted by spilled blood.” Air Slash growled.
“Y-Y-Yeah…..I….don’t really want to be in here anymore….” Spiral muttered.
“Man…why don’t…..why don’t we all just bounce?” Turf War said.
“Ah reckon we oughta….”Kickback said.
With that, the four distressed foals went for the tunnel exiting back into the ruined subway, but Fire Fight didn’t follow them; he was too concerned about Shadow Shroud to warrant following them immediately. He looked back at her and into her eyes just as she’d wiped them. This was the first time Fire Fight had seen any kind of emotion out of her apart from anger, and it was as strange to see as it was…..disheartening. He walked over to her. “So….I guess we should get started?” he softly asked. Shroud just answered with a solemn nod.
Using a couple of the giant tools knocked from their robot arms as shovels, the two slowly dug a sufficient grave for the dead stallion. They were silent for a while with the only sounds audible were their digging, their breathing, and the tense ambience born of tonight’s unsettling events. Fire Fight occasionally glanced at Shadow Shroud to make sure she wasn’t about to break down or anything, but was a little caught off guard when he suddenly saw her stop digging.
”Fire Fight…….why do you trust me so much?” she asked sorrowfully.
Fire Fight was taken aback. “Wh-Why shouldn’t I? We’re friends, right?” he said.
“In the beginning, we were nothing more than uneasy allies. You only allowed me to accompany you on strict conditions, and then seemed to forget about them. Even after what I just did, you still manage to show me compassion….why?” she asked.
Fire Fight took a deep breath. He took off one of his gauntlets, and put his now bare hoof on her shoulder. “Shroud…..I may not be a Shadewalker, but that doesn’t make me any less able to be friends with you. Even if I was terrified of you at first, we spent time together and….things just happened. I never asked you to not do your duty as a Shadewalker, because I think we both know well that the reality we live in is harsher than we’d like to think, so harsh that foals like us would be rejected by our own society. It’s…..pretty much why we’re out here. I’d much rather be in a harsh place where I can be myself than an easy place where I can’t. You’ve lived in that place your whole life, and you’ve helped to remind me how it can still be enjoyable…..even if its ugliest parts are….well, you know. Either way, I’m glad I met you, Shadow Shroud. You’ve made this journey way easier beyond your skills coming in handy, and…….I don’t want you to leave.”
Shadow Shroud looked into his eyes to see his sincerity. Air Slash might have been right, he was a fool, but…..a good one. “And…..you’d go so far as to help me bury my sins?”
Fire Fight nodded. “Yeah. It’s clear I need to be a better leader here. If there’s ever a burden that’s too much for one of you guys, I’m kind of supposed to bear it with you, even if it’s something as heavy as this.” He said. Shadow Shroud choked a little, but tried to hide it. Fire Fight caught it however, and chuckled a little. “C’mon, Shroud. Let it out. Nopony’s looking.” He whispered.
After a second of hesitation, Shroud buried her now tear-flooded face into Fire Fight's chest. He embraced her as he let her sob away her distress. “I’m sorry!.....<sob>….I….I never wanted to drag you into my affairs like this!” she sobbed.
Fire Fight gently stroked her back and mane. “It’s ok. I honestly probably should have expected something like this to happen.” He said.
After a moment or so, Shroud finished crying, and let up. She wiped away the last of her tears, and took deep breathes. “Well……I….honestly don’t feel too bad. I mean…..I performed my sworn duty so…….I just hope I made the right call. As I said before, this is something the Shadewalkers do not decide lightly. My masters stressed that to me a great deal when I was still a fledgling.” She said.
“Yeah…..But if you think about it like that, it’s not much of sin now, is it? I mean, let’s be honest, this nut was probably going to be executed anyway…..or at least exiled……which wouldn’t have really helped mind you.” Fire Fight said.
Shadow Shroud giggled lightly as she began digging again. “You try to make even death positive. Now you’re starting to sound worse than me.” She joked.
“Well, we’ve gotta keep the morale up as much as we can with how hard this journey is definitely gonna be.” Fire Fight said as he also went back to digging.
Shroud giggled again. “That is true.”
*****
Little did they know, other ponies were looking, being the other foals. They peeked in on the duo out of worry, and saw Shadow Shroud’s breakdown after listening to Fire Fight. The whole spectacle had eased their emotions somewhat, and decided to actually start heading back when the two went back to digging.
“Kickback…..I’m sorry I yelled at you like that….I guess a lot really did happen.” Spiral said.
Kickback tipped his hat. “Ah understand, Ms. Spiral. Maybe it was the wrong time fer me to be as calm as Ah was.” He said.
“Yeah….you’re the only one here with a really level head.” Spiral commented, to which Kickback chuckled.
“Hey, homie? I’m sorry I called y’all a b**** and all dat s***…..er….my bad. All dat stupid yellin’ and all.” Turf War said to Air Slash.
“I too must apologize for my behavior.” Air Slash said. “But…..you know she wouldn’t have been so remorseful had she been acting alone without eyes to judge her.”
“An’ the fact that she was is mighty fine proof that she has a soul, partner. It’s a cryin’ shame that you fail to see that. Mah mama once told me a story about an older mare she knew as a filly. This mare lived just on the outskirts of the city, and almost never came into it unless she needed groceries or whatnot. Apparently, the whole thought she might o’ been some kind o’…..Whaddya call ‘em?.....psychopath, that’s right. Anyway, they thought that because of just how reclusive she was. Nopony in town that was her age ever remembered much about her in her younger days at all. So one day, her class starts sellin’ cookies fer their school. Bullies that liked to tease mah mama dared her to try an’ sell some to the old mare, or they’d……well shucks, Ah can’t seem to remember that part. Anyway, she went and knocked on the door and all that, and just stood there in fear. Well the door was answered, and she sold the cookies about as easily as all the other houses. She said that the mare was mighty happy to have company. When mah mama asked her why she wasn’t in town very much, the mare told her that all of her relatives had either moved on or passed on, and she was just….lonely. Being the kind filly that she was, mah mama made a point o’ visitin’ her from time to time, and eventually introduced her to the town. She said that the mare was about as happy as a cactus in a rainstorm from then on. Well…..the day finally came that the old mare’s time had come…..and in her will, she’d left mah mama her house sayin’ just how thankful she was for making her last days so full of joy, and guaranteed her ownership o’ the house when she was old enough, an’ she’d lived there ever since.” Kickback explained.
“Ooooohhh! That’s such a sweet story!” Spiral squeaked.
“Y’all mean it da same house y’all grew up in!?” Turf War asked. Kickback nodded. “Yo! Dat’s fire!”
“Yeah. So Air Slash, you really need to check your ego.” Spiral said.
Air Slash looked down in frustration. He didn’t hate Shadow Shroud, but he didn’t totally trust her either. He’d been taught that the safety of others comes first, and he knew and seen for himself the potential that Shroud had to become a very real threat. That thought that kept him from being completely satisfied with working alongside her despite the others being open to her. He decided not to argue so as not to spark another heated debate. They finally reached the ruined subway, and decided to wait for the other two.
When Fire Fight and Shadow Shroud reemerged, they found themselves looking at right at the others that had stormed off, and were suddenly worried to confront them. All of that worry was washed away when Spiral walked up to and hugged Shadow Shroud. Pleasantly surprised at the gesture, Shroud returned it. Turf War shoulder-bumped Fire Fight in a friendly manner, and Kickback just tipped his hat. Air Slash wasn’t in the mood for making up right about now, and just looked away in frustrated guilt.
“You okay, Air Slash?” Fire Fight asked.
Air Slash looked up at him. “Yes….I’m alright. It seems you’re not the only one who has thinking to do…” he answered. He then looked over at Shadow Shroud, who eyed him with both resent, and…..strangely enough, concern and pity. She seemed willing to forgive him, but not by much.
“Well…..alright. Just….let me know if anything’s really bothering you. We’re all in this together, you know.” Fire Fight said.
“Yeah, homie. You got da weight o’ yo’ swords on yo’ shoulders, not da weight of the damn world!” Turf War said.
Air Slash raised his head, and sighed. “Very well…..I suggest we return to that train car we settled into. The bread I purchased is still there, and I’ve no doubt that we could all use some sleep.” He said.
Kickback tipped his hat. “Ah reckon Sound and Fury did a lot o’ talkin’ today, so they could surely use some shuteye.”
“Yeah. You’re right. There was nothing in Baltimare, so we’ll head out for Fillydelphia when we’re rested. These signs down here still point to where the trains would go, so we can use them to navigate there.” Fire Fight said.
“Good idea.” Spiral said. “I still have a bit of a headache.”
With that, the foals made their way back to their coach. As the tension loosened in the air, Air Slash found himself thinking solemnly to himself. Fate had set a cruel trial for the young samurai, and he was beginning to feel it. All he could do for now was wait and see what happened next.