Amie was on borrowed time.
“An entire troop carrier is coming here,” she muttered, staring down at the telegram. It sat on the bathroom floor beneath her, still visible despite the strangeness of it. There was no time to question how she could even understand the native language. The meaning was enough. “I’m so screwed.”
Why am I thinking like a character in a horror movie? Amie darted past Tailslide heading straight for the table. Her phone was still sitting there—if Stern thought anything of the strangeness of the machine, she hadn’t said anything. Amie turned it on, while her pony companion circled slowly around her.
“Maybe both of us are.” Tailslide stopped, staring towards one open window. “Somepony matching the description of one of their officers rescued me, then vanished. Her family should know the truth.”
The phone finally switched on. She stared down as she waited for the app to start. “Mesh connected. 1 device.”
That meant her phone was on and ready, but had nothing else to talk to. Her brother’s phone was off.
She took the stylus in her mouth and typed out a quick message. “Wes—Equestrian soldiers are coming today. We need to leave. I’m going to find you, then we’re running. If you see this message, reply.”
She tucked the stylus away, then started packing everything into her saddlebags, starting with her sleeping bag. “I think the answer’s obvious. Tell them you remember seeing Gale die, because that’s the truth. Then you were too delirious to realize I should be dead. When you saw me today, you confronted me right away, and I changed in front of you, attacked you, and escaped. I’m sure they’ll be quick to believe an evil changeling could do that.”
Tailslide shook his head once. “You wouldn’t attack me, Amie. I see it in you—you’ve never hurt another pony before. I don’t think you could.”
What are you seeing I can’t? Could ponies read emotions too? “If I had to keep my brother safe, I would. But I don’t want to hurt anyone. I just want to get him to safety.” Could she leave him here in Motherlode while she searched Equestria for more information? But if they think there’s a changeling hiding in the city, he’s the first one they’ll bring in. He looks like a bug, just friendlier than we do.
“I’ll think of something,” he said. “Maybe the truth. But I don’t know what that is. Bugs like you killed Gale.”
She shook her head reflexively. “You attacked them first. I think Gale killed one before they realized what was happening. Then Garcia shot her, and you got him…”
She trailed off, clutching at her stomach. Rehearsing that scenario filled her with a fresh wave of disgust. She remembered the blood, the exposed parts of bugs and horses alike that would terrify most others.
It was war, naked in all its horror. “Oh. Celestia, you’re right. And they were like you? We attacked them without saying a word, and they… defended themselves.”
He slumped to the floor, staring at his hooves. In an instant, his confidence melted into defeat. Powerful guilt washed over him, overwhelming his thoughts.
Amie finished zipping up her saddlebags, tugging them off. She didn’t put them on yet, though. She might want to change again first. “You might’ve forgotten,” she began. “But those two—they wanted to kill me. Well, when they were finished.” She shivered again, bile on her tongue instead of words.
“You saved my life. Those two did not represent the rest of camp. They were… criminal thugs. Hunting my brother, because he was different. I don’t like that anybody died, but don’t lose sleep over them.”
Something hummed outside, a distant droning like an engine. They both stopped, staring up at the ceiling. He spoke first. “Amie—that’s a zeppelin, coming in fast. That loud, it should be here in… a few minutes. They must’ve set out last night.”
She was out of time to deliberate. “You said the princesses might know how to send my people home,” she said, tugging on the saddlebags as quickly as she could. They were a little tight, even a pegasus was bigger than a bug. But she squeezed them on. “Is there anyone else who would? Someone who wouldn’t kill me?”
He shook his head once. “Not a unicorn. There’s a library in Canterlot with powerful magic like that—the Royal Archives. But it has tight security, and you need a signed note from a librarian explaining the book you need.”
He reached up, resting a hoof on her shoulder. “We could just try telling them the truth. I would tell them you saved my life—you might get to see the princess.”
Amie might’ve agreed—a few weeks ago, before Mr. Albrecht ordered a few members of his private army to hunt her down and bring back Wes at any cost. He probably hadn’t told them to attack her. And the ponies probably wouldn’t execute her as a prisoner of war, either.
She shook her head, pulled away from him. “Tell me a town. Somewhere big enough that I could vanish for a while. Can’t be so small everyone knows everyone, like Motherlode.”
“Agate is close,” he said. “Bigger than here. Royal Guard base is there. But it’s a proper town, ten thousand ponies and maybe a dozen guards. Lots of ponies coming and going.”
“Where?”
He explained, rattling out directions. They were less useful to her than he probably thought, since they described flying there, rather than walking down the mountain. But there were landmarks, and roads connecting towns to each other. She wouldn’t have to bivouac the entire way.
“Good luck, Tailslide,” She embraced him. “Got you here alive, just like I said. Now it’s up to you to stay that way—haven’t lost any of my boys yet.”
She turned for the door, then galloped out into the street. She could still hear his voice, but ignored what he was saying. That horse was on his own now.
The streets were packed with ponies, most of them sturdy-looking miners marching past her up the road towards the entrance to a large mine. Some carried equipment, or pushed heavy carts.
Many of them turned to stare at her, whispering confusion about who she was. “Royal Guard got here last night,” said one.
“I saw her. That’s a different pony,” said another.
Amie turned back down the hill and started walking as quickly as she could. The more people were walking around her, the easier it would be to blend into a crowd.
She could see the airship high above. Tailslide hadn’t been lying, there really was an honest-to-god zeppelin flying in. It was smaller than she expected, smaller than the one time she’d seen the Goodyear blimp. But the passenger area seemed bigger than it should be. Did they have other ways of keeping airships in the sky?
There was no time to worry about that. The further she got from her bunkhouse, the safer she felt. Except that everywhere she went, she was still a stranger. Ponies looked up from whatever they were doing, even though she was doing nothing more interesting than walking. Did Motherlode never get visitors?
“Excuse me,” she picked someone walking alone at random, pushing a heavy cart up the hill. “I heard there’s a farm in town. Can you give me directions?”
The pony in question was an older male, with a wrinkled face and a cart full of old lanterns. He stopped, squinting through thick glasses at her. Finally he gestured. “What does a young mare like you want with a farm?”
But she didn’t stop to listen, breaking into a trot in the direction he suggested.
There were just too few people here—every turn just brought her to more staring miners, on their way to work.
The airship didn’t have a place to land, at least not in the town itself. But as it dropped, Amie realized the huge metal tower near the peak was its destination. There’s a tether near the nose. It’s going to dock.
Amie continued down the mountain, following the directions she’d been given. Far enough that rough rock paths were replaced with sparse grasses, and the occasional stubby tree. Far enough that, at last, she found the farm.
There was no mistaking it—thanks to the heavy wooden fences attached to its sides. And much more importantly, thanks to the bright orange and yellow figure she saw tending to the animals.
Well, chickens anyway. The farm had no horses that she could see—thank God. What would Earth horses look like in a world of smaller, colorful, intelligent ponies?
There was no one around, though orange firelight flickered behind farmhouse windows. Hopefully they wouldn’t see her coming. “Wes!” she called, as she passed the building. She broke into a gallop, spreading both wings instinctively as she sprinted to the fence.
The poultry enclosure had thin metal mesh fences, rather than the tall wood slats that they could slip through. So there was little to obscure her vision.
He looked up, then set down the bucket of feed he’d been holding.
Wes was okay. She saw no signs of injury on him, either small or large. A dozen birds followed behind him in an obedient line, with a level of intelligence she’d never seen in a farm animal before. They even seemed to be listening to her.
“Wes,” she said again. “It’s me, Amie.” She stopped beside the fence, then dropped to one knee, breathing heavily from her long run.
Somewhere far above, metal rattled against metal, as the airship docked. She saw the flash of more gold armor. Two winged ponies hovered near the front in uniforms like the one Tailslide had been wearing the first night, guiding the ship into place.
His mouth fell open, staring at her. He glanced to her familiar saddlebags, then relaxed. “How did you do that? And… wait, why are you here? I’ve got a whole list of chores to do before I can visit you.”
Just like that he picked the bucket up in his mouth again, and continued all the way to a feeding tray. He dumped it there, spilling seed for the waiting birds.
Amie followed him along the fence. She was still breathing heavily, but recovering by the second. “I don’t have time… to explain,” she gasped. “Wes, we need to run now.” She pointed up at the airship with one wing. As she did, a group of four ponies emerged from inside, all armored, flying directly down for the town. They weren’t headed towards the farmhouse… yet.
“That’s a military ship. If those ponies find you, they will kill you. Do you understand?”
He dropped the empty bucket, eyes widening. His confusion shifted instantly to fear. Her little brother might be a little too friendly, a little too trusting. But he wasn’t stupid. “What do we do?”
“Anything you want to grab? And is it close?” He pointed down the road, to a tiny bunkhouse across the street. Very much like the one she had stayed in, except that it was smaller and more run-down. There was a window missing, and covered with heavy boards.
“You sure they’d… really do that?” he asked. “They gave me a job. The ponies here seem so nice.”
She nodded. Then she… lifted into the air. It wasn’t much—a brief arc, over the fence, landing beside him in the mud. She wasn’t sure how she did it, and it was over in an instant. Amie took one of his hooves in hers, then started tugging. “I can explain it all when we’re on the road. If I tell you now, we’ll be caught before I finish.”
“The farmers are gonna be so upset with me. At least I put in my two-weeks when I quit at McDonalds.” Wes sighed. “Sorry, chickens. Hopefully I’ll see you again one day.”