//------------------------------// // 3 - Getting Help // Story: Fallout Equestria: An Honest Soul // by _STELLAR //------------------------------// Chapter 3: Getting Help I awoke with groggy eyes and a dry mouth, but a surprising lack of pain, save for a bit of aching all around. I was later informed that I was in the wing in the Atrium along with most of the other survivors. I was lying on a mattress with a blanket over me. As my wits came to me, I peered around the wing to find it full of ponies. Some I recognised, like my go-to barber, or one of the chefs from the Stable saloon, or one of my Dad's drinking buddies. Others I really recognised. I gasped at the sight of Brandy and my Dad sitting near me, then choked horribly, coughing something awful. "You're finally awake!" my Dad cheered. When my fit subsided, I noticed Suki was held in his hooves. I smiled at all three of them. They were alive! "Dad! Brandy! What ha-" "You. Have suffered. Nothing." I peered to where I heard the blatantly magically enhanced voice, and low and behold! Velvet Remedy! She was here! And she just... hit... my Dad's drinking buddy... Huh? I looked closer, and she was here too. Littlepip had returned from the Outside! Sorrow surged through me, as her presence reminded me of Mi- reminded me of Buck. Then guilt surged through me, as I recalled that fateful day when she left. I had to tell Buck that she was probably dead. Now I had to tell her that he was definitely dead, and that he didn't even know she was alive. I hated it, but it was the right thing to do. I moved my leg to get out of bed... I mean... I tried? I couldn't move my leg. Or the other one. In fact, I couldn't even feel them. I looked to my Dad with a look of confusion. His very fatherly look of saddened support made me more confused. Brandy placed a hoof on my shoulder. "It's gonna be okay, AB. I promise. We'll help you through this." *** Sitrep: I woke up to the information that 'Steel Rangers' in what I now knew as power armour were at our front door, I then spent the entirety of my conscious day getting hunted down by said Rangers, saw a close friend murdered because 'they were following orders', and now I was irreversibly paralysed from the waist down and will never walk again. And the 'fuck you' cherry on top was that my wheel chair had a squeaky wheel. Denial. I couldn't believe it when Brandy had told me I would never walk again. After all I had been through today, over the past five weeks, hell, since Mom died, did I really deserve this? I was assured that this was no joke, and once my denial passed, very quickly came sadness. My Dad suggested that, once we were allowed to roam the Stable again after a few hours of... clean up... from the very brave crew sent by the Overmare, Brandy should take me somewhere to take my mind off things. Honestly, I didn't want that. After everything I'd been through, I just wanted to be in the embrace of the two most important ponies to me. No. Really, all I wanted was to go apple bucking with my best friend. Just like we used to. Soon after, Dad wheeled over the chair I would be confided in. It was a bleek, black chair with a pale, lifeless pink colour on the sides of the wheels. And I had to suffer the humiliation of both ponies lifting me into it. After a few seconds of silence, save for the constant chatter in the wing full of countless ponies, the two ponies staring at me simply hugged me, and didn't let go for some time as we all just wept together. Hearing them weep for me was more painful than that power armoured hoof destroying my spine, and the feeling of Brandy's tears running down my back made mine flow ever more. The tears and pain of the day all draining, but the despair all the more present. *** Late in the evening, Brandy and I were off. I held Suki in my hooves as Brandy wheeled me towards Pallet's (The designated artist of the Stable) stall because he thought it would be a good idea to have our cutie marks painted on the sides of my new wheels. I was assured by Ellabelle back at the Overmare's wing that there were special devices specially designed for patients like me. Supposedly, your waist is suspended on a frame with wheels attached, and you just walk along on your front legs. I think she called it a 'Trottin' Wheels'. Although due to short notice and lack of priority at the moment, I was stuck with the squeaky chair. I now felt angry. I didn't deserve this. Not me. Not Brandy. Not Dad. It was her. She did this. If Velvet Remedy hadn't left the Stable none of this would have happened! How could she be so selfish! She and Littlepip did this! Then I felt overwhelming guilt. Now the anger was aimed at myself. How dare I? How dare I? If these Rangers were just one group of ponies from the Outside, then what others awaited us out there? No wonder they wanted back in. They must have been suffering endlessly for those five weeks. Maybe we truly have suffered nothing? My venom for both of them still didn't disappear. Only shrink as my guilt started to join it. I felt poisoned by my own venom. As we traveled through the hallway, I thought of an idea to cheer myself up. I sought solace in my new friend. "You've been awfully quiet since Buck died. Maybe you'd like to reveal yourself to Brandy?" "Hm? What's that, Buck?" I craned my neck to see Brandy. "I don't mean to be quiet, I'm just trying to give you space," Brandy said with a sympathetic smile. I simply went back to staring out into nothing. Suki. You want to be my friend? Don't hide yourself from my family, I warned "Buck?" Why was Suki being so quiet? No. Why was Suki being so difficult? "Buddy, you're scaring m-" "Answer me!!" "Buck, what's wrong!" Brandy stopped and ran in front to face me. Concern was etched in his face, as tears started to form again. I couldn't bear to see his face like that, so I looked away. "He wouldn't be able to hear me." "Then say that for Luna's sake!" Brandy abruptly leaned in and hugged me. I could hear him sobbing now. How stupid could I be? I must have sounded like I was shouting at him. "Please," he said through tears. "Just talk to me." "You wouldn't believe me." "Bullshit." Sigh. Alright. You asked. "Brandy," he raised his head, then I placed my hat atop it. I stared into his eyes and smiled, searching for the words that wouldn't make me sound crazy. Eh, who am I kidding? "My hat is alive and can talk to me." The confused squint look didn't suit him. "Her name is Suki. And she only talks to me for some reason." He looked at me, unsurprisingly, like I was crazy. Then a thought came to me that should have come much sooner. Maybe I was crazy? I didn't bother asking Suki any questions, as I knew how that would go down, so I simply asked Brandy, "Do you believe me?" He continued his stare. His hesitation told me enough. After a moment, he asked: "What does she tell you?" Not the question I was expecting. And what does she tell me anyway? Philosophical mumbo jumbo about how change isn't bad? Yeah, look where change got me so far. Just what Mom would have wanted. "She sang to me when I was hiding from the Rangers." I wasn't sure if stating that she could sing made me any more convincing. His face sure didn't suggest it. "Look, Brandy. I'm not crazy. My hat, I assume, is magical. She's a pain in the ass and won't tell me anything, though I only found out she can talk earlier today. From what she's told me, I can assume that she's-" "Stop, okay. Just stop," he lost his temper with me. "Your hat isn't alive, AB. No magic spell can do that, and even if it could, who would want that? You've just hit your head earlier." He got up to start pushing the chair again. "I swear, Brandy! She told me she knew my Mom! From when she wore the hat before I did!" "What, does Mister Buck's horseshoes talk to you too?" *** So Suki wasn't helpful. And my best friend thought I had a concussion. Thanks, Suki. Ten points to loyalty. "Actually, I made a vow of honesty" I ignored her. She wasn't my favourite pony right now, as my mom would say when I misbehaved as a foal. Brandy and I arrived shortly at Pallet's stall, where I had to shut my eyes and cower. Brandy assured me that those 'Steel Rangers' were the good guys. Outcasts, apparently. The real rogues. Sigh. I'd been doing that quite a bit lately, sighing. I knew these guys were good. I understood that they hate what their former peers did just like we did. But seeing those suits, with or without the helmets, with or without that new red streak, it just hurt. "Do you want to talk to one?" Brandy asked me. I'm glad he did. The answer was no, I told him as much, "but it would be good to meet one. So I can overcome this." He put his hoof on my shoulder, and I savoured it. I just wished we could be together forever. With Mom and Dad. Like brothers should. "I'll be right back," Brandy told me as he replaced my hat atop my head. Wait. Come back! What if one of them was lying and actually wanted to kill me because I was vulnerable! Brandy walked up to a red striped mon- Ranger. "Excuse me. But my friend wanted to take his mind off of everything that just happened, and I thought it would be a good idea to meet one of the good guys that stood up against what was happening. My name's Brandybuck; it would mean the world to both of us if we could just talk to you for a moment, please?" Reading the Red Striped Ranger's emotions through the helmet was impossible, but the voice was audible. "Absolutely. Is that him over th-" he stopped when he saw me. "Applesnack?" Oh now you decide to open your metaphorical mouth? "I recognise that voice anywhere! That's Lieutenant Applesnack of the Macintosh Marauders!" Wait, you know him? How does that work? "Applesnack is a pony from... from... oh, forget it. I must be mistaken. You just said- "Buck!" Again, I was shaken out of my daydreaming by the calling of my name. This time with the creative addition of a tap on my shoulder. By the time my senses caught up to me, Brandy was already mid-sentence. "He's a Surface Dweller, and he travels with Littlepip and Velvet Remedy on the Surface. That's what they call the Outside." "You're friends with Pip?" I asked, a bit surprised at how she made such a friend that (at least formerly) associated with those monsters. Not the kind of Pip that Buck talked about. He held out a metallic hoof. "SteelHooves." I looked at his hoof. "Yeah, I guess they are." That garnered a facehoof from Brandy, and a chuckle from maybe-Applesnack. "My name is Star Paladin SteelHooves, formerly of the Steel Rangers." "Oh. Applebuck," I tried to shake his hoof, but he didn't seem to want to budge. Weird. "I'll leave you two alone for a minute," Brandy respectfully bowed, then went off towards Pallet. I watched Brandy leave, then after he left sight, I asked "So, um, Brandy said you travel with Pip and Velvet?" "Huh? Oh, yeah, I do. I've been travelling with them for some weeks now. I take it you know them?" "Well, not exactly," I was too dejected to use my confident speaking voice around the deep tone of the potentially dangerous paladin. "I've never met either of them, but I was a friend of Littlepip's friend. When she left the Stable five weeks ago, I was the one who was assigned to replace her job. I used to buck the trees in the Orchard to collect the apples, but... that's all in the past now," my head was lowered, almost in shame of replacing the pony who apparently was a huge reason the Stable was still mostly alive. "For goodness' sake, Applebuck," Suki bitched. "Pull yourself together. This isn't like you." I ignored her still. "Very unfortunate, Applebuck," he said. I think he was trying to sound sympathetic, though the helmet wasn't helping portray his emotions. In fact, it made it look like he was staring at my hat. "On behalf of every Steel Ranger Outcast, I apologise for the destructiveness of my former peers. They don't deserve to be Steel Rangers." "Thank you, sir." I gave him a warm smile. And to my surprise, the already weird yet intimidating pony did something even weirder. He put his hoof on my head, resting on my hat, and said "I think we could all take a few pages out of Littlepip's book. If we did, maybe the Wasteland wouldn't be so bad." Wasteland? I was about to open my mouth to speak, but was interrupted by Pallet's call as he and Brandy approached. "Mister Applebucker!" What a weird and no longer appropriate nickname. "I hear you need me to spruce up your new wheels! Hey, you know my brother could probably set you up with one of those Trottin' Wheels thingies that allows you to walk on just your front hooves. He's pretty clever like that. And you can even use those same wheels after I've de-dulled them!" What an energetic pony for someone who's home was just desecrated. How the hell did he stay so optimistic? And how the hell was he making me smile right now?! "I'll leave you to it, Applebuck," said SteelHooves, retracting his heavy hoof from my head. Seriously, was he trying to paralyse me from the neck down? Now I'm joking about my misfortune?! How did Pallet do it?! "Please understand that us Ranger Outcasts will do everything we can to repent for the Steel Rangers' sins. I hope you can forgive me someday, son." *** Check out these wheels! Ow! I mean the squeak is still there, but you know what they say about polishing a turd. Where the wheelchair was once black and boring, now it held the trademark red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple of the rainbow along both its leather seat and backrest. I probably wouldn't want to be sitting in it during a funeral, but for everyday use, it had style! And the wheels, the wheels! Where once the wheels were a plain and ugly, pale pink, the kind of colour your grandmother probably had in her bedroom when she was little, now it was as hot pink as my dad's mane! But what really got me excited was what was promised from the start. Circling the centre of each wheel was the continued pattern of mine and Brandy's cutie marks. Apple heart, hexagon formation, repeat. Apple heart, hexagon formation, repeat It sounds weird, but the 'de-dulling' of my chair really made a difference in my mood. I may never buck again, hell, never walk again, and was now practically guaranteed to work in the Technician Stall for the rest of my life, but at least I could still spend time with the pony marked on my wheels. Change can be scary. It usually is. But at least I'll have my family there to help me. *** Okay. This was a big change. Three days had passed since the attack. Living casualties were recovering or recovered, personal funerals were held, usually at the loved one's home, and Brandy even got to keep the gun that I technically have right to since I was now the Senior Pip-Buck Technician (by a technicality, but still). Things seemed to be smoothing out, and returning to a semblance of normal. Until today. We were leaving! Like, leaving leaving. Out the door leaving. A meeting was held, meaning all available residents were summoned to the Atrium for what was, in Surface Dwellers terms, a town meeting. We were all assembled in the Atrium. I still had my squeaky wheelchair, but I didn't mind because it was a cool wheelchair now. Plus I didn't have to worry about finding a seat, unlike Dad and Brandy who had to sit on the floor because the Atrium wasn't built for this many ponies at once. Peasants. Heh heh heh. As we waited for the Overmare to show up, Dad and Brandy were talking, but I was still trying to get something out of Suki. You know she hasn't told me anything worth mentioning since last you heard her? 'How are you alive?' No response. 'Who the hell is Applesnack?' Nothing. 'Do you call me darling because you like me, or does it just make you feel important when you say it?' That one got a grumble out of her. Suki, what's the point in telling me you're alive if you never talk to me? When you first talked, you said I should embrace change because it allows you to advance as a person. Isn't gaining a new friend a good way to change? "I get the feeling big changes are just around the corner, darling." It was at that point the Overmare showed up. She wore another one of those serious faces of hers. She's a really kind and sweet individual 99% of the time, honest! She wasn't making a good example of this today, though. She climbed up onto a table, silencing the room save for a few murmurs. She peered around, visually addressing all of us with simply a glance. After she made a full 360, she ignited her horn and finally spoke. "I have an announcement to make," her voice was magically enhanced, not unlike Velvet's spell. "One that will bring about great changes for all of us." Oh brother… Was this aimed at me or something? "It was brought to my attention from Velvet Remedy three days ago that the Stable has... an issue. An internal issue which cannot be easily solved. And it cannot be solved going on the way it has been going for the past 200 years. Some of you may be aware of this issue; most of you aren't." She paused to glance at some of the residents. I noted a few were couples. "True love can be both easy and nearly impossible to find. It's fate, and we cannot choose who or what we love, the same way we cannot choose if we live up there, or down here. And though it may shock and scare you to hear, it is impossible for this community to continue down here in Stable Two. Effective one week today, all Stable Two residents will be sent out into the world above, where we shall all take whatever paths the Goddesses decide is right for each of us." Murmurs turned to full conversation, some panicked, some intrigued, and many conflicting tones. And me? I was... terrified. I was afraid of what would happen when we got there. Until three days ago, some of us thought your skin would melt if you went to the Surface! I mean, it still might if you wait long enough! My fantasy of an ever expanding orchard was killed when SteelHooves called it a wasteland. And what about my condition? I could look after myself before. But now? I couldn't even go to the bathroom without needing someone to help me. I mean, Brandy bathing me has been fun, but what clean water could be found in a radioactive nothingness? The idea of being up there, even with my two literal security guards at hoof, struck fear into my heart. But it was easily assuaged when I felt Brandy's hoof on mine over the armrest. He gave me a worried smile that told me he knew what I was thinking. Then Dad's hoof was on my other one, and next thing I knew, we were three idiots with no idea what the hell they were about to do next. The Overmare stopped waiting for the chatter to quiet. "We love who we love here in Stable Two. Unfortunately, over the past 200 years we have lost track of who's who down here." She sighed, and opened her mouth to speak a couple times, but struggled to find the words. "I'll be blunt, my little ponies: our Stable is at risk of becoming entirely inbred. That is why we will be moving to a relatively nearby location, where we will meet friendly ponies, from whom the next generation shall be born. An outpost, a fixer upper called Junction R7, which we'll all lend a hoof in turning into a great town, like the ones our ancestors would have lived in hundreds of years ago." As the Overmare spoke, I felt Brandy hold tighter. Dad didn't seem much calmer. I was glad it wasn't just me. Leaving the Stable. I was terrified. But they were too. And we would do it together. *** I was in the public shower room with Brandy and that aforementioned friend of ours called Ellabelle, a ginger unicorn (freckles and all) with a light orange coat and purple eyes. She was there to help strike conversation between the three of us, but also because it was hard for Brandy to keep me sitting upright and sponge me at the same time, so her telekinesis was very helpful in getting the job done. Also, she was a lesbian, so it wasn't a problem for her to undress and redress me, or be here in the showers with a pair of boys. Still didn't stop some of the other boys in here from being shy. "So what do you make of us all leaving next week?" Ellabelle was prone to asking questions. She always sought more knowledge, which Brandy teased her for, calling her an egghead from time to time. She really was the clever one of the three of us, and I was glad to have her as a part-time carer, alongside Dad and Brandy. Ellabelle was wearing my hat, as she was shampooing my mane, though she never showed any signs of hearing Suki. "Well I think it's a great chance to become the sheriff of the place," said Brandybuck. Always ambitious was he. More ambition than sense, really. He wasn't the 'stupid one' of our friend group, but I think it suffices to say that he thought with his gut before his head. Quite an opposite to Ella in some ways, really. Though we never let this get in the way of our friendship. "And," he continued. "I think it would be a good opportunity for AB to settle down." "Settle down? I'm not even in my mid-twenties. Once I get my hooves on a Trottin' Wheels I'll be good to go." "Buck," Ella said solemnly. "You're in no condition to work. People will look after you in Junction whatever it's called." "Junction R7," Brandy corrected. "Exactly! You need to take it easy, Buck. Or else your mind will never recover, much less your body." "My mind is fine," I said, a little too harshly. "Look, I know you two are looking out for me, but I can't spend the rest of my life off my hooves." "Well you can't be a farmer, even if your legs worked. The soil is bound to be too radioactive for any plants to grow." "We were not farmers!" we said together. "Right, right, whatever, boys," she chuckled. Still. I wasn't going to spend the rest of my life jobless. On the other hoof, what jobs were there in my field that were within my abilities and OW OW OW OW SHAMPOO IN MY EYES!! "Close your eyes, Buck. Jeez," Ella held the shower head over my head once she noticed my plight. A few rubs from my hooves shooed the stinging away. Sigh. Again. I was doing better now than I was three days ago. I was still shaken by Sheer Kick and Buck. And my legs were still useless. But really, I was just grateful to still have ponies who could, and would, help me overcome this. I felt useless. But they didn't see me that way. More helpless than anything. "Brandy," I asked. He looked at me. It always assured me when a friend responded with a look rather than words. It shows that you're close enough to not need words. "I'm sorry about the other day. Before we met SteelHooves." "Oh, it's all in the past, AB. You were angry, and grieving. And you probably had a concussion." "I'm telling you, I didn't, Brandy!" I said as politely as my temper would let me. "Brrr! The Stable is under attack, Applebuck!" Ella mocked me by moving Suki on her head to make it seem like she was talking. "You blabbed?" I yelled at Brandy. If he thought I was crazy, or that my head wasn't working properly, why the hell did he tell her what I was saying in my 'delirious state'? Oh, but it's okay, because at least two of us were laughing... Ellabelle was a lovely mare. She had a contagious laugh which would make someone very happy one day. And as much as I wanted to be angry at both of them, her laugh was just too contagious. We were all laughing like idiots while the water from the dropped shower head pooled at our hooves. Then something unexpected was said. "Heh. You two want to hear a secret?" said Brandy, through his laughter. "What?" We both said as one. He waved his hoof in front of him to call us toward him. Ella leaned in and, thoughtfully, shifted me forward with her magic as he whispered into our ears the words I wouldn't have guessed in a thousand years. "I have the Stable override code on my Pip-Buck." Silence. Then *plop* as I was dropped and landed on the floor. "Brandy, what the fuck! You know how much trouble you could get into? How'd you even get that?" Ella's cursing was not uncommon, and though I'm not one for sailor talk, I was on the cusp of asking the same thing. As Brandy picked me up and sat me between his kneeling legs, my back to his front, he explained. "They treated Littlepip's escape as a sort of crime scene all those weeks ago. When Security arrived, a butt ton of evidence was taken to see what happened so they could figure out why and how she did what she did. That was before the Chief told them what the Overmare told her: that the override code was a part of Sweetie Belle's belongings, and wound up on Velvet's Pip-Buck, then Littlepip's. As a part of all that evidence, the security recording of Pip leaving was stored on the security terminal network. And in that video..." he looked left and right, as though checking if anyone was listening. He leaned closer to Ella and whispered - I was loving the intimacy with him, by the way - "You can see her type in the code... CMC3BFF." The code. I now knew the override code. CMC3BFF. Okay, Cake Making Contraption 3 Bratty Friends Fight. Wait, why was I memorising the code? It's not like I wanted to leave. And we were gone in a week anyway, so what did it matter? I didn't care. Not at all. Why would I? Nope. I didn't care at all. Nuh uh. Nope. "Wanna see the Surface?" "Yes fucking please." *** That night, we knew what we were doing. Brandy, Ella and I were going to the Surface. But how? Sure, we had the code, but what about the guards? I was there myself when the Overmare gave the order to put a pair of guards at the entrance, and a hidden pair in case someone tried to incapacitate them. Not to mention the alarm would go off the moment that code went in. And what if the code didn't even work anymore? This was a stupid plan! After Dad went to sleep, I managed, by some miracle, to slip myself into my wheelchair. Ella and Brandy met me outside my quarters at 2200 hours like we discussed earlier today. A simple nod was all we shared before we set off. Now, Stable Two didn't have a curfew. No one cared how long you stay up, and many jobs, mine included, were being suspended for the time being for the sake of the workers' recovery. Three mischievous-looking ponies sneaking around in the late hours of the evening, however, was just asking to be stopped by a night-shift Security Officer for suspicious behaviour. But don't worry, we were only going against a direct order from the Overmare herself! "Guys," I asked as Ella wheeled me down the hall. "I don't think this is worth it. We're gonna be out in a week anyway. We're just asking for trouble." "Oh, don't be a square, Buck," Brandy said. "Besides," Ella continued. "it'll be educational. We can get an idea of what we're dealing with so that we can be better prepared for when we're out in it for real. " I knew she was full of shit. I told her as much. Before they had time to reconsider what we were doing, we heard the hoofsteps of an Officer from around the corner of the hallway. Brandy took off to take a peak around the corner. "Oh shit, it's Cuff. Her first instinct is to cuff someone who she thinks is up to something. If she catches us, we're screwed." "Other way," Ella was about to move my chair. "Stop, I can't. My wheel's too squeaky." We were only five minutes into our mission, and we were about to be busted before even breaking the rules. Brandy looked pensive. Never a good sign. "Don't worry," he said. "I've got an idea." We were screwed. We came around the corner in full view of the Officer. I was being wheeled by Brandy with Ella by his side now. "Going somewhere?" Cuff asked. She was one of the ponies I talked about who had a pair of sunglasses without the lenses. Not many ponies could pull off the look, but her tall frame, blue pony tail, security barding and glasses all clashed nicely, giving her that badass authoritive individual look. Her baton looked threatening though. And she always had a set of cuffs on her belt. Always. Brandy looked cool and calm, but Ella and I were visibly nervous. "Yeah, you wouldn't believe it, Cuff. I caught these two... copulating in one of the shower rooms near the Atrium. He was so dead. Ellabelle and I, for as incompatible as we were, went pretty red at the suggestion of... 'copulating' with each other. "Yeah, proper goin' at it, they were. I don't know who sounded girlier as they did it, but I put an end to their potential disturbance/indecency before it escalated. I'm taking these two to the Security Lounge. Applegreen is Applebuck here's dad," he nodded to me. "He'll know what to do with 'em." Cuff stared at Ella. Then at me. I should have stayed in bed. "Heh. You didn't join them did you?" Now Brandy went a slight shade of red. Good. "Hah. As if. You know I'm a virgin, Cuff." Aaand Ella just went even redder. "Anyway, I need to get this one," he placed a hoof on my head "to his pop. And this one," now Ella's "to her mom." Again, she just stared at him. I heard his gulp of nervousness. Brandy always had a little crush on Cuff; he wasn't good at hiding it, as he would go on and on about her sometimes, and it really bugged me that he never said those things about me. "Fair enough." A 'phew' escaped all three of us, as she simply walked past us. "But just so you know, Brands." We looked back to see her looking to us over her shoulder. "If ever you wanna lose that V card of yours. Gimme a call." Now the only face that wasn't smug was Brandy's cherry coloured one. *** Here was the plan: Brandy shuts off the Stable door security protocols with the terminal in the Security Lounge, meaning we can open the door without anyone knowing, then we make our way to the door, get past the guards, enter the code and... well... see the world for the first time. I wasn't confident. My attempts to persuade my companions against escaping, even if only for an hour, were futile. I could throw a hissy fit and put a metaphorical hoof down, but I knew that even if I were to go back home, they would just leave on their own. I didn't want my friends in danger. Not without me. Ella and I weren't needed for the first part of the plan, so we stayed behind and waited for Brandy to return from disabling the security systems. To pass the time, I asked Ella why she wanted to leave early. She responded telling me that we'd be home by midnight, and that we weren't really leaving, at least not for good. Though I believed she was dodging the question. "But why now? Why is it so important to see what's up there now?" Her answer surprised me. "Because I want to experience the Surface for the first time with my best friends. On our own terms. With no one else." I felt a flutter at hearing her call us her best friends. "Your best friends aren't colleagues from work?" She questioned if my best friends were from work, which was technically true, though I only ever really had one true friend, and that was Brandy. Everyone else was more of a mate. People I liked and got along with, but if it came between them and Brandy, it would be him, purely because he was beyond a mate. I supposed that meant Ella was a friend too. I definitely appreciated all that she'd done for me as a carer since my paralysis. After a while, Brandy returned. With a great big smile on his face that brightened my day (my night, rather) to see. "I am such a clever pony." Modest. *** Now was the hard part. The guards. Two out in the open, and two that didn't know we knew were there. Fortunately, Ellabelle had a plan. Brandy and I watched from around the corner of the door room, where Ella simply walked up to the first pair of guards standing either side of the walkway down to the exit and said "Hey." The guard on the left raised an eyebrow. The one on the right was less patient. "Ma'am, you're not allowed to be here. Please return to your living quarters, or I'm afraid we'll have to report you." Ella stood on her hind hooves, ignited her horn and touched their noses with a hoof each. "Boop!" The guards fell to the ground without so much as a peep. She looked around, waiting for the second pair of guards, then we heard snoring. It wasn't from the first pair of guards; the second pair were just lazy slackers. "The coast is clear!" Doctor Ellabelle whispered to us, after snuffing out the other two guards and casting her sleeping spell on them. Oh yeah, I probably should have mentioned that Ellabelle was a Junior Doctor at Stable Two, hence why she was my part-time carer. It's funny the things that slip your mind when they make for a big reveal. As Brandy and I approached the three ponies at the door, Ella had a smug look on her face at her handy work. "Yes, very good," said Brandy. "but they saw you. And a ginger unicorn isn't exactly hard to spot in a crowd. Not to mention that only a Doctor Pony would be able to use a spell like that, so they'll be able to track you down in no time." She went smugger. It wasn't a good look. "You forget, Brandy, while I am a healer, I also fill out paperwork and accident report papers. This means I have to have at least a bit of knowledge on memory magic, so I can interrogate patients on their accidents. Or in this case..." She held her horn to the sleeping couple. *ZAP* "I can erase a small portion of their memories; enough for them to forget their 'operation.'" Her horn was slightly blackened with a trail of smoke emitting from the tip, and she was breathing a bit more heavily. She was clearly showing off, and wasn't used to using her magic like this. "Now they'll wake up thinking they just dozed off." Before I could even ask her if she needed a minute, she ran off to cast her spell on the other two guards, just to be sure. Brandy was at the controls. In went the code as he had a cheeky grin on his face. He turned to Ella and I, placed his hoof on the enter button, then before he could push it, he was stopped by Ella. "The time is just coming up to eleven. My spell will last till about midnight, so we've got just about an hour to explore. Any more than that, and the guards will wake up, notice the door is open, then close it. If we're not on this side of the door by midnight, boys..." "Then I guess we're off to Junction R7 a little earlier than expected," I finished. "Then let's stop wasting time," Brandy pushed enter. Silence filled the room for all of three seconds, then the silence broke a second later with the sounds of the door being pulled back, then sliding across to reveal a pitch black tunnel. We moved in front of the open door. Three friends, holding hooves, with no idea what they had just done, or what it all meant. We started for the tunnel, and blackness consumed us.