While GleamingChance and Xoqan searched for OrchidRays, SwiftHaze sulked in her room. Apparently Ayza had a bedridden patient that couldn’t make it to her healing room, so she sought them out in their own home. That left Haze all alone in the house.
Halfway dropping off the bed, Haze scrolled through her PipBuck. Bored. There was nothing new, obviously, she just sought out distractions. She let her forehooves flop to the wooden floor. Her eyes followed up the direction of the planks to where Chance’s bags were laying.
Curiously, she tried to scrabble to her hooves, but ended up flopping downward, hitting her chin on the floor. She dragged the other half of her body off the bed and sat up on the floor. With a hoof, she reached for Chance’s saddle bag. In the main pouch were several photos of his mother rolled up, along with a map of Los Pegasus specifically. Besides that, the main pouch contained his blanket.
Haze’s hoof felt something hard against another pocket. She flipped it open and found a memory orb snugly perched inside of it, protected by extra cushioning. Wait, was this the one they had found in Umbra? Haze didn’t see a reason for Chance to keep it. If not, why would he carry a memory orb with him, especially if they are so fragile.
I wonder what it is, Haze thought. Should I view it? She couldn’t know how long this memory was prior to viewing it, so she was unsure if she could watch it before the boys returned. But Haze was desperate for stimulation and distraction from her pain.
Fuck it. She took the memory orb and sat it on the bed while she searched for her recollector. Once she had the object she bent forward and entered into the memory.
Something about this memory was different than the ones she had experienced before. The air was different, yet extremely familiar. The sky was ever cloudy and the buildings laid in a state of deterioration. It was obvious that this memory took place after the apocalypse, perhaps not so long ago. Besides that, this one felt… fuzzy. Haze wasn’t sure why that was.
Her host was sneaking through the downtown streets. But there were boards, sandbags and tripwires closely built together. It was more of an obstacle course then a street. Haze’s host popped out from behind a propped board, then returned behind it. Haze’s attention wasn’t quick enough to pick out what they had seen. A strange feeling emerged from their forehead. Magic? They were a Unicorn, who floated out a pipe pistol from a holster on their side. Quickly, they jolted out into the open and took aim. BLAM. They shot a board in the shape of a pony’s head, right between the eyes.
Quickly, they scurried to the next check point. With swift reflexes, they reached out with their magic to disarm a tripwire. Orange magic.
The next section of the course had pitching machines that pelted soft balls from both sides. They were quick to dash past the machines, a few balls smacking their legs.
The next target was a moving board, levitated by another Unicorn out of sight. Haze’s host reloaded, then unloaded a full clip into the moving wood pony. Half of the shots were successful. One in the neck, one in the head and the other in the chest.
With hooves scrambling to a halt, they arrived at the end of the course. The street beyond was more clear, although it still had overturned pieces of concrete exposing cracks in the aged roads. Haze could feel them taking in sharp breaths. They had much less lung capacity than what Haze was used to. With shaking legs, it was almost as if they were struggling to keep their stance.
As they stood, they watched a Unicorn mare trot out of the shadows of an alley. Immediately, Haze recognized the maree from the photos printed from Stable 47. Wisteria Snap. Chance’s mother. Haze had a strong idea who’s memory this was, and the first words out of the mare’s mouth confirmed it.
“Well done, Chance. You’re getting faster.”
Chance huffed. “I-I’m still... Not fast enough.”
“Don’t sell yourself short,” Wisteria told him.
As she drew nearer, Haze got a better look at her scarred face. It made her look a lot older than she actually was. Something struck Haze at that moment. She wondered if either of her parents knew Wisteria personally when they were the same age.
After another huff, Chance let out, “Thanks Mom.”
“You’ve grown so much. Honestly, I don’t know what else there is for me to teach you. You learn more when you experience the shit out here for yourself.”
“But the others don’t think I’ll make it,” Chance lamented.
“Fuck what they think. You’ll show them, just wait,” his mother said.
Chance’s vision followed Wisteria as she walked past him. She picked up one of the wood pony targets in her magic. With force, she snapped it in half with a forehoof. Chance flinched in surprise. Wisteria was quite muscular for a mare, Haze observed.
The mare then locked her eyes with her son. “Whatever you do, whatever you aim for, just don’t hold back. Do you understand?” Chance gave her a hesitant nod.
A voice rang out from above them. Chance craned his neck around to see a stallion standing atop one of the building’s roofs. “Wisteria! If you’re done playing your game, we could use your help!”
Wisteria groaned in annoyance. “I’ll be there in a minute, fuckhead!” Then, in a much softer voice, she spoke to Chance. “Good session.” With a dip of the dead, she strolled forward and returned to the darkness of the alley. After her black and plum colored tail disappeared, the memory began to fade.
As Haze regained her own reality, she was left in wonder of how Chance got the memory recorded. How long after memories could you get them recorded? Did Chance want it to remember his mom, or was this recorded before she vanished? So many questions, yet Haze couldn’t go about asking them without her friend being suspicious of her watching his memory without his permission.
After a few minutes of wandering her mind, Haze pricked her ears. The house was still silent. She set the recolector on the end of the bed and went to put the memory orb back. As she did, the orb fumbled out of her grasp, thudding loudly on the wood floor. It rolled under the bed on the opposite side of the room.
“Fuck!” Haze let out.
She hurried over to the other bed and knelt down to peek underneath it. Darkness made it too hard to make out where the orb had gone. She knelt farther and reached under the bed with a forehoof. A reflection of her PipBuck’s light shimmered off the orb. The stretching motion was putting more strain on her injured wing. It was throbbing by the time she flicked the memory orb back in her direction. It appeared to be unscathed, which is what Haze hoped for. She returned the orb back to its place in Chance’s bag and sealed the flap.
For a few minutes, Haze just sat on the floor, not feeling like putting the effort into standing up. Her eyes settled on her bag as she realized she was hungry. She dragged the bag over to her and began sifting through it to find something tasty. Magically preserved snack cakes. Ah yes, that sounded perfectly edible. Haze hated eating over a century old food, but that was just about all they had with them.
Haze was still sitting on the floor when she heard the sound of hoofsteps on the stairs approaching. The door opened and GleamingChance stepped in, Xoqan following.
“Did you find Ray?” Haze asked, raising her head to look at them.
“Yes, and no,” Chance said. “We couldn’t find her while we were out, but she was here when we came back.”
“Well, at least she’s back.”
Chance groaned and rubbed the bridge of his muzzle. “She needs to learn that she can’t just wander off. I swear, that girl is so oblivious.”
“She means well,” Haze offered.
“Yeah, but, I just don’t wanna see something happening to her.”
“She’ll learn,” Haze said.
Off topic, Chance wondered, “why are you on the floor?”
Haze took a glance at her bags and then looked back to Chance. “I didn’t feel like getting up,” she stated matter-of-factly.
“Oookay.”
Chance’s vision wandered around the room and settled on the bed next to him. Within a second, Haze realized what had caught his eye. Her recollector. Shit. Her heart began to race and her head became warm.
“Why is that out?” Chance inquired seriously.
“Um, I pulled it out of my bag so I could get to my food,” Haze fibbed.
“And you forgot to put it back?”
“Yes,” Haze replied quickly.
Chance squinted his eyes at her. “Did you watch a memory orb?”
“What? No! I don’t even have a memory orb. How could I have watched one?” Haze defended, panic rising in her chest.
Chance gave her a hard stare but said nothing. He stepped forward in the room and reached for his bags. Orange magic opened the pouch that held his memory orb.
“Did you view my memory?” Chance asked slowly.
“W-what? No! I didn’t even know it was in there!” Haze retorted a little too quickly.
Chance rounded on her, stomping a hoof. “Haze! Tell me the truth. Did you watch this?”
“I-no!” How would he even know I did, there’s no evidence.
“Tell me,” he uttered.
“Ugh, okay. I viewed it,” Haze admitted with annoyance.
“Haze!” Chance snapped. “Why the fuckwould you view my memory without my permission?”
“I didn’t know it was your memory!” she shot back.
“It was still in my bag. You have no right going through my bags,” Chance asserted.
“I’m sorry! I was bored,” Haze quipped.
“Being bored isn't an excuse to go through some pony’s personal belongings,” Chance said. “I thought I could trust you.”
Now that stung, the feeling pierced Haze’s racing heart. She knew she was in the wrong here, but almost had enough pride to deny it. “You can! I-I’m sorry, okay? I don’t get why it’s such a big deal. I didn’t see anything bad in the memory.”
Xoqan shifted in the doorway. “Um, should I go?” The two ponies continued to contend.
“It’s a big deal because it’s my memory. It’s personal to me,” Chance insisted, a hoof on his chest. “And you tried lying to me. You should have told me the truth to begin with.”
With a sigh, Haze gave in. Her head hung low. “You’re right. I’m sorry.” The fact that this was the angriest she had seen Chance only made the guilt more painful. He usually kept his cool and his patience. Even so, he still seemed to be holding back. Haze wished she had just a portion of that self control.
The Unicorn let out a breath, but kept his brows furrowed. Xoqan was still standing in the doorway awkwardly. He wore a frazzled expression, stiff from the argument. The room became cold with silence.
At last, Haze spoke up. “I don’t get it.”
“What?” Chance said. “I already told you why I’m-”
“No!” She cut him off. “I mean, why did you get that memory recorded?”
Chance looked bewildered as if that was a foalish question. “I- I wanted something to remember my mom by. That was the last training session we shared before she disappeared.”
Haze nodded, understanding. “Of course. And…. that’s why we’re out here. I’m sorry if I fucked up, but I do want to help you find your mom,” she said sincerely.
“Your mom?” Xoqan spoke up from behind them. “Is that why you’re all the way out here?”
“Our trail leads to Phoenix City,” Chance explained.
“Actually, my dad went that way a few weeks ago to trade. He hasn’t come back yet. I’m worried. Maybe I could join you all down that way,” Xoqan commented.
“I mean, I don’t have an issue with that,” Chance replied then pivoted his vision to Haze. “What do you think?”
“I guess,” Haze grumbled. “That’s just more weight to pull.”
Xoqan gave her a hard stare.
“I think it would be good. Xoqan has healing skills, and we could really use a medic,” Chance said.
“That’s true,” Haze considered. “It’s not like any of us really know how to treat things. We just shove potions down our throats.”
Chance perked up as he realized something. “Xoqan, you said you know every pony in this town. Do you remember the ones who pass through?”
“Well, it’s not like there’s a lot to pick from when it comes to passersby,” Xoqan said.
Orange magic opened the bag nearest to Chance’s hooves. He pulled out one of the photos of Wisteria and presented it to the Zebra. “Have you seen her before?”
Xoqan studied the photo for a few moments. His green eyes lit up, almost exaggeratedly. “I think I may have! But I can’t be sure when. May have been several years ago.”
“Seriously?” Chance’s face broke into a smile. “That’s great! Maybe there are other Zebras here who saw her! Do you think we could go ask around?”
“I- um, I guess?” Xoqan replied, taken aback. “If you’re ready to go out again.”
Haze threw her head into the air and groaned. “I want to go explore! This place is so interesting yet I have to stay here so I can heal.” She stuck her lip out in a pout.
“Well, I might be able to help with that,” Xoqan offered.
“What? Huh?”
“I mean I can heal you faster,” he spelled out.
“Really?” Haze cocked her head. “What can you do that your mom can’t?”
“Actually, quite a bit,” he claimed, raising a brow and giving a smirk.
“Oh?” Haze challenged, intrigued.
“Sit back up on the bed,” he instructed and Haze did so, although with a grunt of dissatisfaction. Xoqan stepped to completely face her. “I have learned some things my ma… does not really approve of. So you gotta make sure you do not tell her I did this, ya hear?”
“Alright,” Haze said, unsure what he was getting at.
The Zebra extended his hoof forward and a dark mist gathered around it calmly. Chance recognized the dark magic, but Haze jolted in alarm. The magic swirled around her injured wing and extended it. Haze yelped in pain. Soon enough, the dark mist completely covered her wound, and spun around her wing like a wheel. The pain was diminishing, unlike the potion Ayza had given her. Haze could tell this was actually healing her… whatever this was. Once Xoqan was finished, the gash was considerably smaller.
“Can’t give away that I healed it. Better cover it up so my ma don’t see it.”
“What was that?” Haze gaped in awe and aghast.
“Dark magic,” Xoqan answered. “Healing spell, specifically. Ma thinks it’s unnatural so she doesn’t approve of it. But it has so much potential.”
GleamingChance was staring at him with wide eyes, as if he was thoroughly impressed.
Suddenly, Xoqan winced and lowered his head.
“What’s wrong?” Chance asked urgently.
“Repercussion of healing with dark magic. You receive the pain-” Xoqan paused a moment to gather himself with a grimace. “The pain of the person you healed. Guess wing translates to back pain for me.”
“Are you okay?” Haze questioned, feeling guilty for transferring her pain to him.
“Yeah,” he assured. “It’ll go away after a couple days. Besides, painkillers ease it. But I uh… gotta get some first.”
“Then we can go out and get some and ask around about my mom,” Chance offered with eagerness.
Xoqan shrugged. “Alright.”
And just like that, they were gone down the stairs. Haze checked the time on her PipBuck to determine if there was enough time to explore.
She too cantered down the stairs, feeling refreshed. The two stallions had already left. Haze poked her head outside a window to see OrchidRays standing by their wagon.
“Oh hey!” Ray greeted her. “I fixed it!” She gestured to their vehicle.
“Awesome,” Haze replied. “Hey you wanna go explore the town with me?”
Ray’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Really? You want me to come? I’d love to explore with you!” She beamed.
“Great. Just make sure to stick with me.”
Dirty streets were lined with cracked cobblestones. Several wind chimes softly sung in the air. Above GleamingChance was a strange, arching bridge that connected the top floors of two parallel buildings. It was an odd design choice. Was this Zebra architecture? Several homes seemed to be connected to trees, as if the trucks provided protection.
“Hey, you coming or what?”
Chance jolted and dashed after Xoqan. The Zebra continued to show the way. Chance couldn’t tell if these Zebras were living better or worse than the ponies of Los Pegasus. He noted no murderous raider gangs, but that didn’t rule out the possibility of hostile creatures in the surrounding area.
“So... Do you know what- er, where to get your painkillers?” Chance asked.
“Oh yeah, I got a guy,” Xoqan said.
That made Chance chuckle a bit. “You got a guy?”
Xoqan smirked. “Yeah, sounds funny when I say it like that. But don’t worry, I ain’t into hard drugs, just need some Med-x.”
For the second time that day, the two stallions entered the marketplace. This too was foreign to Chance. Instead of store fronts behind glass windows, each shop was set up as a stall. Some were small and only allowed trade through a window. Others were larger, allowing bodies to browse the selections.
Xoqan stopped at one of the smaller stalls. He propped his foreleg on the counter, placing his weight against the structure. A Zebra stallion with deep brown eyes greeted him.
“Ah, Xoqan, what can I do for you?”
“You know my usual. I need some Med-X.”
The brown eyed Zebra grimaced at that. “Eh, well... you see, I am out of stock.”
Xoqan took his hoof off the counter and spoke in a serious tone. “Are you fucking kidding me? Then just go get more!”
“Not that easy.” The merchant shrugged. “Have to wait until the traders come back with a shipment.”
Xoqan groaned. “And that would be my dad’s group. Ugh, I can’t believe this!”
Now he sounds like Haze, Chance remarked to himself as he stood at a distance. He watched Xoqan angrily slammed his hoof against the side of the stall, causing it to shake.
“Perhaps I could interest you in other pain killers?” The Zebra offered with just a hint of anxiety on his face.
“You know that shit ain’t no good! I need Med-X! This is fucking bullshit!”
Xoqan spun around and stormed off. Quickly, Chance galloped to catch up with him. Eventually, he slowed to a normal gait while Chance took his place next to him.
“What are you going to do?” Chance asked.
“Gotta get back home,” Xoqan muttered. He seemed to have blown off most of his steam. “Can’t let Ma suspect anything.”
“B-but, I thought we were going to ask around about my mom,” Chance pointed out with disappointment.
“I’m sorry, Chase-”
“Chance.”
“Chance. Whatever. I can’t let ma know anything about using dark magic. Better get back before she finds out I even left in the first place. I’ll have to come up with an excuse for a back ache,” Xoqan muttered.
“Can’t you just lay low for a while?” Chance suggested.
Xoqan snapped, “No! It fucking hurts and I’m already sucking it up as much as I can. Listen, it’s already getting late. We can ask around tomorrow.”
“Alright,” Chance said, discouraged, and began following the Zebra again.
SwiftHaze was not used to being land-bound in the wasteland. Yes, SilverFlash had advised her not to fly, but she had already broken that rule many times already. Now, she was physically incapable of flight, even after Xoqan’s healing.
Multiples Haze had to call out to OrchidRays to insist she slow down and not run off too far without her. The two mares continued to follow a gravel path adjacent to a ditch that held a dirty stream. Garbage littered the bottom of the ditch, blocking the stream’s flow in some parts. On the opposite side were more buildings of Quagga. They passed two Zebras standing outside of a doorway. Both began to speak to each other in hushed tones as they observed the passing ponies. Haze felt a little irked, but wasn’t going to let it get to her.
The farther they followed the stream, the worse the condition of the houses became. They had passed the last populated house a few streets back. Wooden planks were nailed over windows and doors. This was at the edge of town, Haze noticed. The fence that encircled the city was just beyond the crumbling, abandoned homes.
“Oh, what’s that?!” Ray exclaimed and pointed. What looked like a watchtower rose behind the roofs of the buildings. “Can we go look?” Ray begged.
“If you can find a way over,” Haze said. She spotted a bridge ahead, but it was badly damaged, making it impossible to cross.
“I’m sure I can climb to the other side of the ditch,” Ray remarked.
“Uh, you sure? Those sides look pretty steep,” Haze commented on the smooth, slanted walls of the ditch.
Ray peered over the edge and slowly crawled forward. Suddenly, she dropped out of sight. A small lurch hit Haze’s chest. She peeked past the edge to see Ray had successfully slid down. She proceeded to jump over the trash in the water carefree, like a game of hopscotch. The first time she attempted to climb the opposite wall, she slid back to the bottom. Ray gave herself a running start and sprung for the top. Her forehooves latched to the edge as she pulled the rest of her body up by pushing her hind legs on the wall.
Although Haze was impressed, all she said was “um, I think I’m going to find another way. I ain’t trying that.”
Haze stepped onto the bridge she had seen and gazed at the nasty water below, the wood creating beneath her hooves. She analyzed the distance to the other half of the bride, assuming she could make it. Confidently, she ran and launched herself forward. In an instance, that confidence evaporated as she fell short. Her forehooves frantically scrambled to latch onto the other side, but she lost grasp. Splash. She fell belly first into the mud. A shockwave of pain surged through her body from the impact.
“Fuck!” She groaned as she pushed herself up.
OrchidRays came to the rescue and tossed over a wooden plank she had found. She set it so it was angled against the ditch wall. Carefully, Haze put one hoof in front of each other as she stepped on the plank.
“Thanks,” she mumbled as she reached the top. “Ugh, now my Stable suit is all dirty!”
“Are you okay?” Ray worried. “Do you wanna keep going?”
“Yeah,” Haze huffed. “Let’s go.”
Inside the watchtower, the mares were greeted by the presence of a skeleton on the floor. Just by was a chair and a lit terminal. At first Haze thought it was safe to assume it was a Zebra, but on second look, she saw there were bones of limbs extending from its back. A Pegasus.
“Who were they?” Ray wondered.
“Let’s find out,” Haze said as she approached the glowing terminal.
Locked. She attempted a few guesses at the password. Quagga? Zebra? Watchtower? Nope, none of those.
“Try ‘Equestria’,” Ray murmured into Haze’s ear.
With a few clicks, the terminal was unlocked. Haze glared at Ray. “Lucky guess.”
But Ray only shrugged and pointed to the pin board above them. There was a miniature Equestrian flag in almost perfect condition.
They found reports as well as personal journals. They were marked under the name “Blackout.” Haze opened a journal entry.
I can’t fucking believe I stuck here with these Zebras. Sis would hate me if she knew I hated them. She’s always accepted Zebras, but I know better. These people have ruined our country with their war. And now I’m stationed as a guard in a Zebra town! This is bullshit. I’m sorry Iri.
As Haze read, she thought oh gosh he was one of those ponies. Then she continued.
Sis has requested to come visit, but has been denied access. Nobody gets in or out of Quagga. We can’t risk Zebra spies passing under our muzzles. Besides, I don’t want sis to see me here like this. By Celestia, why did I tell her I was okay with Zebras? I didn’t want to upset her. But I’ve been living that facade for too many years now. That’s what got me this mess to begin with. I wish I could go fight instead of babysitting these striped bastards.
The more Haze read, the more she hated this Blackout. She looked at some status reports instead.
She found that there had been searches of every Zebra home. Even so, there was no evidence of spies. They were told to stay in Quagga for their own safety. At least, that’s what the government claimed. Specifically orders incoming from the Ministry of Morale. Apparently even shipments of food and medicine had been denied entrance to the town. The Zebras of the past were prisoners in their own home.
Back to the journals.
So Iri isn’t allowed in to visit, and I’m not allowed out either! this is bullshit. I’m a PONY, not a Zebra. Why would I be a spy? Luna dammit. I just want to see my sister. But at the same time, I’m afraid to. I’m afraid of her finding our the truth.
Haze despised this ‘Blackout’ but had to admit, he was a pony and still had a heart, somewhere deep inside of him. He had clearly cared deeply for his sister. Even enough to lie to her about his feelings in order not to hurt her.
“Can we stop reading? I don’t like these,” Ray asked in a small voice.
Haze turned to her. “Yeah. Let’s get the hell out of here. But, um... I don’t think I know the way back.” She gave an awkward grimacing smile.
“That’s okay! I made a custom location on my PipBuck,” Ray said.
“Smart,” Haze remarked. “Alright, show the way.”
“I got it!” Xoqan exclaimed as he wandered the yard outside of his home. Chance gave him a quizzical look from the doorway. “I’ll say I injured my back in a sparring session,” he explained.
“Sparring?”
“Yeah.”
Xoqan slowly walked over to the wall of the house that was under the eave. There propped up against the wall was a weapons rack which held spears. Xoqan’s dark magic picked up the smallest weapon, which looked to be more of a short stick than a weapon. His magic then revealed a spear head, opening like a switchblade. Next, at the end opposite of the spear, the stick extended out into three parts. Now it stood nearly as tall as Xoqan himself.
“Whoa,” Chance gaped. “That’s awesome.”
“Thanks! I made it,” Xoqan smirked, and then added, “well, with my dad’s help.”
“It’s genius,” Chance continued to marvel at the weapon. “Portable, and safe to carry.”
“That’s the idea!”
“I’ll just tell Ma I was showing you my spears, and you accidentally hit me on the back,” Xoqan decided.
“I mean... I wouldn’t mind an actual sparring session,” Chance said.
A chuckle came out of Xoqan. “Maybe when I’m not hurting, okay?” Chance nodded.
Then Xoqan looked at the rack of normal spears. “Eh, she wouldn’t believe me if there wasn’t a visible injury.” He held up his hoof and pulled another spear over to him with his dark magic. Twirling around, the spearhead faced Xoqan. The magic drew it across Xoqan’s back, and forcefully sliced it. Xoqan winced in the amplified pain.
Horrified, Chance uttered, “why did you do that?!”
“So it’s convincing! Erg- don’t worry, it really isn’t any worse,” Xoqan claimed.
Chance trailed behind Xoqan as he entered his home with the spear. He found a cloth and cleaned the blood off of the spear. It was passed over to Chance.
“Can you put this back?”
Chance agreed. Once he returned, he saw Xoqan stripped of his shirt. He was pressing the cloth against the slice on his back.
“You’re really going to lie to your mom about what happened?” Chance wondered.
“Hey, what she doesn’t know won’t hurt her,” Xoqan claimed. “It’s not like it’s the first time I’ve done that.”
It wasn’t long until Ayza finally arrived home. As she went to greet them, her eyes became wide at the sight of dried blood on her son.
“What happened?” she demanded.
“I asked Chance to spar with me and... he kinda hit his spear on my back,” Xoqan told her as if it was completely true. Chance only stood awkwardly. As Ayza turned her face to Chance, Xoqan spoke before she could condemn. “It’s my fault, really. I didn’t show him how to properly hold it. I’m fine... it just... hurts.”
With a shake of the head, Ayza muttered something Chance did not understand. Zebric? “Let me treat you properly. Do you have any of your painkillers?”
“Actually, no,” Xoqan let out. “I went looking for some a few days ago and they were all out.” Once again, he twisted the truth. “Said the traders need to come back. That means Dad.”
Ayza sighed. “It has been an unusually long amount of time since he had left.”
At that moment the sound of hoofsteps echoed from the other room. Ayza twirled around to see SwiftHaze walking in the door.
“What are you doing out?!” The Zebra mare exclaimed. “I told you to stay put. You need to heal!”
“Sorry,” Haze said through bared teeth as she got closer and let room for OrchidRays to step in. “I got bored. I wanted to explore.”
Ayza shook her head. “No, no, no! Go back up to the room now, I don’t want to see you back down here unless you truly need something.” She pointed her hoof to the staircase.
Haze just rolled her eyes and stomped through the room to get to the stairs. She gave a passing glance to Xoqan as she made her way.
Once Haze was gone, Ayza approached her son again. “Come, Xoqan,” she addressed. She motioned her hoof to gesture him to the front room where she did her healing.
After Ray stepped up next to Chance, the two of them watched the Zebras exit the room. The two ponies stood in awkward silence. That silence was broken by Ray taking in a gaping yawn.
“Yeah, I’m with you on that. Today’s been a long day,” Chance remarked.
“You’re with me with huh?” Ray said and cocked her head.
“Oh. You yawned. I was agreeing that I’m also tired,” Chance explained and blinked.
“Oh. Okay.”
Chance just sighed and shook his head. It really did feel like the events of an entire week had been crammed into one day.