//------------------------------// // Chapter 4: The Friendly Zone // Story: See the Zone and Survive // by RoadRunneR //------------------------------// Chapter 4 The Friendly Zone I stood up, signaling the others to move. Vano was already prepared and went outside while Celestia put on her bags. I have to admit: she’s a clever one. She had tied the straps together and formed some kind of saddlebags. They seemed to hold in place pretty well and did not hinder her wings. “Nicely done Celestia,” I said, nodding in approbation. The alicorn froze. “Beg your pardon?” she asked, raising her gaze towards me. “I was appreciating the way you put on your bags. Very clever.” “Huh, okay... thanks,” she replied, dumbfounded, before proceeding to check her rifle. What? Not my style to make compliments? “I wanted to ask you,” I began, sitting back down. “Are you going to do anything with your jewelry?” “No,” deadpanned the winged unicorn. “Take it if you want, it’s only a dead weight... I never really liked wearing all that stuff,” she said, sighing. “It’s worthless, just to glint and catch the eye.” We will see about that. Once Celestia was done checking her weapon, we headed outside, climbing down the stairs and exited the building. Vano was waiting for us there, sitting on an old decrepit bench. Upon seeing us, he stood up, moved the bolt back, producing a series of clicks before moving it forward. A loud clunk could be heard. Satisfied, the bearded stalker rested his gun on his shoulder, pointing the muzzle in the air. I chuckled. “Are you done showing off Vano?” The bearded stalker grinned. “Let’s go.” Clouds had darkened the sky and the wind had picked up, blowing across the land, whistling through the vegetation and ruffling my feathers. I was thankful for my jacket: it did a good job at stopping the wind and keeping me warm. The two stalkers were walking silently by my side, Strider on my right, Vano next to him. “Say Strider,” I began, “you teached me how my gun works and how to maintain it properly, but... I still haven’t learned to shoot it. It’s not that I want to use it anytime soon, but I’d like to be prepared, you see?” The bald stalker stopped in his tracks. “I had thought of it,” he said, producing a few cans and bottles from his backpack. “I think we can stop anyway, we have been walking for a good hour and we should almost be at the canal.” “What do you want to do with these?” asked Vano, looking at the bottles. “Target practice,” replied Strider. “Come over here, Celestia. “Let us make a sharpshooter out of you.” I walked up to him, my shotgun drawn and loaded two shotshells in it, one in each barrel. Strider scratched his head. “I have never taught how to shoot to someone like you... let’s see how well you can handle the recoil first. Point the weapon at this tree there and shoot it. You loaded buckshot in it, right?” “Yeah,” I replied, taking aim. I oriented the gun in the general direction of the tree and fired, both barrels at the same time. B-BANG I was not prepared for this. I should have held it with more force. When I pressed the triggers, the gun almost flew off of my magical grasp and sent a volley of pellets flying wildly in the air, completely missing the tree. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” I apologized, standing still, my gun smoking, staring at where I had shot. Strider put a hand on my shoulder. “No harm done,” he said. “How bad was it?” “Not that bad. I could have controlled it... I should have,” I replied. “FUCK!” I brought a hoof to my mouth, ashamed by my outburst. “Sorry,” I said weakly. Vano laughed. “Don’t worry, it’s normal to be angry at that kind of thing. Just remember to hold it tightly: this kind of shotgun kicks like  a mule!” “Close range is quite easy actually: just line up the sights with your target and squeeze the trigger,” said Strider, smiling. “Let me show you.” He then showed me the correct way to use my shotgun. While I understood quickly the aiming mechanics, It took me a while to remember all the safety procedures. It went like this for at least half an hour, then he decided it was time to practice. The stalkers placed a few metallic cans on a fallen tree trunk a few dozen meters away. Following Strider’s advice, I rested the buttstock of the shotgun against my shoulder, holding it in my magic, breathed out and lowered my head to see the sights. I aimed at the first can. I observed Celestia as she breathed out like I told her and aimed at the first can, the rifle held in her telekinesis. BANG The first can fell, obliterated by a volley of buckshot lead. She instantly switched to the second can. BANG Like its predecessor, it fell off the tree trunk, destroyed. I let out an admirative whistle. Celestia reloaded and took aim again. BANG BANG Once again, her aim was true. Two cans flew in the air and hit the ground. She reloaded, smiling. “Nice,” said Vano. “Let’s try something else. Pull!” he shouted, throwing an empty bottle of vodka in the air. Celestia instantly spun around and took aim, before squeezing the trigger, effectively breaking the bottle in a multitude of sharp glass bits. She smiled. “Hey, I’m good at this!... You guys want to challenge me?” she asked. Vano waved dismissively. “No way, Strider is gonna win again!” “I can only agree with Vano on this one, not wanting to brag,” I said. “Aw come on! Please?” asked the alicorn, battling her eyelashes, a small smile on her face. I stood up, sighing. “Fine.” Vano laughed. “Beware, dude, she’s got you!” “Yeah, yeah. THINK FAST!” I yelled, throwing two bottles in the air. Vano’s eyes widened. Instantly, he grabbed his shotgun, took aim and squeezed the trigger. He hit the first bottle but missed the second one. “Aw shit,” he said, picking up the intact bottle. “I missed one.” “That I saw. Good thing you can spray as much as you want with that machine gun of yours,” joked Celestia. “Blah blah blah pffft.” I turned towards Strider, raising an eyebrow. “And what about you, Strider? How good is your aim?” I asked, an eyebrow arched. Vano turned around. “Hah! wait ‘till you see this,” he said, before picking up the last empty bottles before giving them to me. “You throw them in the air when you feel like it, all at once, and without warning, I’d rather not go easy on him if I were you,” he explained with a grin, gesturing towards Strider and winking. I gave him a hesitant look before glancing at Strider. He was sitting down on the ground, looking at us, his usual deadpan look on his face. I threw all the bottles in the air. All at once. Without warning. Instantly, Strider shot up and pulled a L shaped contraption out of a holster on his right thigh. BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG I looked incredulously as all the seven bottles exploded in the air in rapid succession, their debris scattering and landing on the ground. I turned around only to see Strider reloading his still smoking weapon. “W-what was that?” I stuttered. “I shot the bottles,” Explained Strider, sitting down. “B-but how?” “I wished I know,” replied the bald stalker. I walked up to the him and sat down. “What is that weapon anyway?” I asked, curious. Strider pulled out his weapon again. “My custom Remington R1 1911 pistol, 45 caliber. A design over a century old,” he explained, showing me the pistol. “Single action. Standard magazine holds seven rounds, extended magazine holds ten. Robust, ergonomic, reliable, and very accurate. Most experienced stalkers shun these pistols because of their low magazine capacity, but I prefer it for its accuracy and durability.” I  examined the weapon. It was ‘L’ shaped, and a box was protruding from the bottom of the grip. It had a multitude of external levers which purpose was lost to me. It looked much more complicated than my shotgun, but curiously, I wanted to learn more about the way it worked. “Over a hundred years old? Whoa,” I simply said. Vano laughed. “What can I say? Us humans know how to kill our brethren,” he joked. Strider grunted. “That is true,” he replied, looking at the sky. “We should move.” As we moved out, Celestia asked me how my pistol worked. I explained her nearly everything: the single action mechanism, how it feeds from the magazine, the various safeties, the magazine release... She seemed very interested by all technology and mechanics behind the gun. The alicorn eyed me. “And what are you wearing anyway?” she asked. “Your garments look much more complex than my jacket.” “Lightened SKAT-9M bulletproof armor. Just as protective as the original model, but lighter thanks to the use of carbon fiber and many other technological innovations I do not even know about.” “And you?” she asked, turning towards Vano. “Upgraded SEVA suit. Not as much physical protection than Strider’s but second to none when it comes to anomaly protection. I could swim in a pool of acid and not give a shit thanks to the closed cycle respiration system,” he explained, showing Celestia his the inside of his helmet. “I’m not a fan of this sort of suits,” I said. “Too fragile in my opinion... that is one of the reasons why I did not get any utility upgrade on my armor. These systems tend to break easily.” “Yeah, I was thinking of changing it. That and I don’t like the idea of my armor pumping me full of antibiotics and shits like that,” added my bearded friend. “Mens sana in corpore sano.” Celestia looked at him. “What?” “It’s Latin, a dead language. It means ‘a healthy mind in a healthy body’... and if you’re artificially pumped full of weird drugs, your body is far from healthy, and so is your mind,” explained my bearded friend. Seeing Celestia’s expression, the tall stalker laughed. “Heheh. I studied, young lady. I have several degrees in history, literature and linguistics. I taught English to Strider you know.” Celestia looked at him in disbelief. “I never took you for a scholar... oh and by the way, I am well over two thousand years old so I’m far from a ‘young lady’” Vano pouted. “Yeah, yeah. Blah, blah pfffft.” I smiled. Despite being older and well educated, Vano he is barely more mature than a teenager. The rest of our walk to the canal was uneventful. Not even a single mutant bothered us. We were almost arrived to the canal there when I spotted something in the distance. I signaled to the group to stop and get down. Celestia looked at me, her ears flattened and a look of worry on her face. “What’s going on?” she whispered. “Bandits, maybe Renegades, 2 o’clock, eight hundred meters away away. Group of three,” I said as I watched through my binoculars. Vano snorted and spat on the ground. Celestia looked at him. “What’s so bad about them?” She asked. I looked at her. “They are bandits: rude at best, steal loot, gear, and take lives; just for profit. The last two years, they killed more stalkers than mutants did. Back then they had no organization, wandering in small groups, but now... now they are unified, allied in a big syndicate the Russian Mob would find strangely familiar. They are a major threat to stalkers, rookies and experienced alike... and people who are gullible enough to believe them.” Vano rolled his eyes. “Tell me about it. What are they doing?” “Nothing. Walking. See for yourself.” I handed him my binoculars and he watched the group, which was slowly advancing towards us. “Bullshit!” he exclaimed. Celestia and I looked at him. “What?” “It’s Jack!” “Who?” “The resident ‘boss’ of the assholes,” he spat. “He took over the bandits in Yanov a while ago. I had been stupid enough to believe him; that got me involved into large interest-laden debt with him, just for my suit! Then Degtyarev showed up... he was kind enough to pay my debts and scare him off, but apparently he’s back.” I laid down on the ground, extended the bipod of my SVU and put the suppressor on. “What are you doing?” asked Celestia. “Preparing my weapon,” I explained, holding the artifact fragment. “My rifle has been modified for higher muzzle velocity and better accuracy, without sacrificing reliability neither increasing recoil, but using the bipod helps achieving maximum stability.” Her face lit up with wonder. “I see... why are you removing it then?” “It reduces the velocity of the bullet, allowing the use of a suppressor, custom made.” I explained. Vano interrupted us. “Enough chit-chat! They’re coming.” I set the rifle on the ground, loaded it and looked through the scope. “I got them in my sights. Seven hundred and fifty meters, wind: north east at fourteen knots,” I said, adjusting my aim. I flicked the safety off. “I have a shot. Your call, V.” “Terminate,” he said in a cold voice. “Very well.” I lined up my scope with the first bandit’s chest, put my finger on the trigger and- “WAIT!” Argh. “What now, Celestia?” I asked, mildly irritated. She looked at me with a pleading expression on her face. “Don’t. Let them go.” I raised an eyebrow in annoyance. “Why? It would be over in a matter of seconds.” “I know bandits are bad pon-people,” said the alicorn, “but that doesn’t mean you have to kill them.” Vano frowned. “Oh, they deserve it, trust me,” he muttered. “That wouldn’t make you any better than them!” Shouted Celestia. My gaze switched alternatively between Vano and Celestia. She looked at me with her big, pleading eyes. “Please?” Oh hhhnnnggg. I stared at her, trying to keep my composure. “Rah! Fine.” I put the safety back on and let go of my weapon. Nobody should be exposed to such levels of... of what? Adorableness? If even I could not resist her powers, who could? “Thank you,” she said with a warm smile. Vano was displeased. “Whatever, let them go; but don’t be surprised if that outburst of mercy comes biting us in the ass later.” I rolled my eyes. “You are overreacting Vano, as always. Let us move, and avoid them. We are not far from the canal anyway.” After walking down the hill, we arrived at the railway near the canal. A lonely train car was sitting there, overlooking the stretch of water. “Alright, here we are. Vano, you go down to the canal with Celestia. I will keep watch from the top of that train car, there.” Vano walked off with Celestia to the canal. I headed towards the abandoned train car. I climbed on the roof of the wagon and sat there, pensive. What do we do next? I suppose we could look for a way to send Celestia back to her world... we will need the help of the scientists. And besides, they could make her a nice suit... maybe. I shook off these thoughts and took my binoculars to scout the surroundings. There was nothing around except a group of Loners walking towards us in the distance, Vano was listening to his music and Celestia seemed happy to finally have a bath and a swim. Needless to say it was about time she got rid of the grime covering her. Nothing seemed out of place, when a metallic flash caught my eye. Something was there, in a vent on the roof of that train car, something that was reflecting the sun rays. I moved to it, to discover it was a SVD. Yes, as in Dragunov SVD. Someone had left a sniper rifle on top of this train car. I pulled it out of the hole, examining it closely. The receiver and barrel had a few scrapes, and the wooden parts were weathered, indicating the old age of the rifle. I raised my head... the Loners from before were passing by. I greeted them with a nod. “Howdy ho,” said their leader, before the group walked off. I turned my attention back to the SVD but before I could examine the weapon any further, I felt a twinge in my right shoulder. I knew too well what was coming. “Emission, incoming!” I yelled at the group of Loners walking off. “Head for the tunnel!” Before they could say anything, I jumped off the train car and ran down the hill. The water wasn’t cold at all surprisingly. Oh yes, that was nice! I could finally refresh myself and relax somewhat. I let out a long, content sigh, when Strider came running down the hill. “Celestia! Vano! We have to move, quick!" He yelled. Vano gazed down towards me, removed his earbuds, then gazed at the sky. “Right. Celly?” “Yes?” I asked. “We gotta go,” he said, still scrutinizing the sky. I was worried. A second ago Vano was sitting down calmly, eyes closed, slowly bobbing his head while holding his strange device, and now he looked nervous, fearful even. I scanned the skies as well. “What’s going on?” Vano opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by a low, distant rumble. I looked towards the sky, only to freeze in awe at the sight. A massive, threatening, unnatural column of grey clouds was slowly advancing from the North, completely obscuring the sky. We stood still, listening. A crack of thunder interrupted the silence, and the skies lit up, followed by a continuous loud rumble. A siren went off in the distance. Strider looked at me. “Blowout,” he simply said. “Pack your things. We have less than a minute before it hits.” I managed to gather all of my equipment and looked anxiously at the sky. It was frighteningly beautiful. The pillar of clouds was still there, except that a bright red glow seemed to shine from behind, while streaks of bright yellow light extended from it like an Aurora Borealis, as if trying to escape. “What the hell are you doing? Come on, hurry! To the tunnel!” called Vano, waving his arm towards me. I shook my head and realized I had been standing still the whole time, and ran after my two friends, to the tunnel. I could feel the ground shaking as the rumble intensified; I desperately fought to maintain my balance as I ran behind Strider. My rifle fell on the ground; I picked it up and ran for my life, looking helplessly at my two friends ahead of me. Vano was already at the entrance of the tunnel, waving his arms like a madman. Strider stopped and looked behind. I turned around, looked at the sky and stopped in fright. It wasn’t beautiful anymore. It was lit by a ferocious, threatening fire. The red glow from before had spread to the entire sky, and I could see an avalanche of orange clouds buzzing with energy speeding towards us, causing an earthquake and rumbling like a the beating of a million drums. “What are you doing? Run!” Yelled Vano. I stumbled forward, hopelessly trying to stay on my hooves. I looked backwards again... the wall of clouds was approaching at an alarming speed. I came to an abrupt realization: I wasn’t going to make it. I saw Celestia struggling to maintain her balance as she stumbled forwards. She wasn’t going to make it. Not on her own. Seeing this, Strider discarded his sniper rifle and backpack before turning around and running back to the alicorn. He swiftly picked her up and tucked her under his arm before dashing to the entrance of the tunnel without looking behind. I picked up his discarded gear and quickly followed. The tunnel was actually an old underground railway station, built to house the trains serving the Jupiter factory during the Soviet Era. It was closed by two massive, unmovable steel doors, but thankfully a service entrance existed right next to it, and we made it inside just before the blowout hit. I rushed inside first, followed suit by Strider carrying Celly firmly tucked under his arm. Okay, that is an awkward way to carry a nearly immortal being. Strider gently put the alicorn back on her hooves. She looked at him and smiled. “You should really stop saving me sometime,” she said playfully. Strider smirked. “When you stop putting yourself in danger, I will stop running to your rescue.” We climbed the stairs to the second floor, leading to the catwalks overlooking the indoor rail yard, where a group of stalkers was already discussing around a bonfire, one of them playing the guitar. I took a deep breath, smiled and let escape a content sigh. “This is why I love the Zone so much.” Strider smiled. “Home sweet home, heh?” “Seems like a friendly atmosphere indeed,” noted Celestia. “Let’s go meet them then,” I suggested. “Let’s.” We climbed down the stairs and headed towards the group of stalkers. Upon noticing Celestia, they froze, stood up and aimed aimed their weapons at her. I facepalmed. Shit. Three against three, they’re in formation, while we’re unarmed and lined up like fucking retards. Great. I had rarely dealt with worse odds before, but with an inexperienced rookie at our side to protect, everything would get from bad to worse if the situation was to head South. The Blowout was roaring outside. The stalkers’ guns were still trained at us. Celestia recoiled, moving closer to me; her eyes wide as saucers, her ears flattened against her head. Vano held his nasal bridge and sighed. Everyone was silent, no one dared to make a move, frozen in fear, expectation or, in my case, calculations. Our odds were not bright in case the situation was to degenerate. That’s when Vano advanced towards the group of stalkers. “Wow whoa wait there,” began the bearded stalker. “Calm down and holster your weapons. We just want to avoid the Emission, do you think we’re here for fun? Can’t you see we’re all friends here? Me and my friends have been through a lot, trust me on that. We came here weapons holstered, seeking shelter from the Blowout outside, only to be greeted by the muzzles of your guns? And there I thought it was going to be a friendly meeting.” The stalkers lowered their weapons but kept them at hand. Vano opened a bottle of vodka and handed it to them. The stalker in the middle holstered his shotgun and took the bottle. Vano continued. “Have a sip. Now listen here: the Zone is ever changing. It is our home and our battlefield; we never go to sleep without wondering whether we wake up or not. We never take a step without thinking it is our last, but it is our home, and we will accept it however it is. I can understand your nervousness and uncertainty in the face of the unknown, but do you rationally think that our companion here represents any kind of threat to you?” The stalker one the right lifted his brow. “I thought it was a tamed mutant or something... Noah has a pseudodog after all. Who knows if his ‘pet’ will stay loyal, the guy’s batshit insane. I say someday we’ll find his corpse, devoured by one of his dogs.” “Seeing its equipment I had my doubts,” said the stalker in the middle. He was wearing a radiation suit and his helmet hid his face. He put the bottle Vano gave him on the floor and took off his helmet before offering his right hand to Celestia. “Name’s Grizzly, pleased to meet you.” Celestia looked hesitantly at his hand and then at me. I nodded towards the stalker, inviting her to accept his greeting. She lifted her right foreleg and awkwardly shook his hand. “My name’s Celestia, and it’s ‘she’, not ‘it’, thank you very much.”  I frowned; Celestia seemed to notice that. Grizzly raised an eyebrow. “So you talk English. How interesting.” The stalker on the right grunted in annoyance. “Whatever. You shouldn’t trust people so fast Grizzly.” “Don’t be so dramatic, Torba. Last time I trusted a stalker, he got us Mitay back,” Grizzly objected, gesturing to the last stalker. “Yeah,” approved the said Loner, “Who knows what these bandits would have done to me?” He was wearing a hooded Sunrise suit, and a nice-looking rifle was slung across his back. Vano raised his brow. “What happened?” Mitay made us a sign to approach. “Come on over, make yourselves comfortable, I’ll tell you.” The blowout had passed outside, only to be replaced the sound of the wind, rain falling and cracks of thunder. We sat down around the fire. Torba picked up the guitar and began playing. Mitay took a gulp of vodka. “My friends and I had found a rare artifact. That’s when a group of bandits came to us and threatened to kill us if we didn’t give it to them.. We had been harassed by bandits before, and we drove them off as usual. But this time, they meant business. They attacked me when I was alone, and kidnapped me.” Grizzly continued. “Torba and I were desperate; I wanted to free Mitay by force. Turned out we had no other choice but to comply with their conditions, except we couldn’t do it ourselves-they said they’d kill us if they were to see us again. That’s when that guy comes up to us, asks us what happened and spontaneously offers his help. He didn’t even ask for the artifact, he just said: ‘Okay, wait here, I’ll sort this out’ and took off. Next thing we know, we got Mitay back at our side thanking his unknown savior.” “How did he do that?” I asked curiously. “He negotiated. Gave the bandits a lot of money and they let me go. That guy was quiet, but a damn good bargainer. He even gave me his weapon, saying he didn’t need it. I love this shooter,” Mitay said, patting his AN-94. Needless to say I was jealous. Such rifles were reputed for their accuracy, their near AK-like reliability and their famous two-round burst mode which allowed it to eat through armor like it was not even there. But I digress. The storm was still roaring outside, and we all agreed on staying there for the night. Grizzly was eating, while Mitay proceeded to clean his rifle. Vano had pulled a guitar out of seemingly nowhere and was playing along Torba. They were talking, sharing their adventures and laughing, enjoying each other’s company. I leaned on a far wall and began to relax, when two stalkers burst into the room. One was wearing a blue and green set of Clear Sky armor while the other one was sporting a Duty exoskeleton out of all things. “HOLY SHIT! We made it!” said the exosuit guy. “Not thanks to you,” replied the other one dryly. Vano and Torba stopped playing the guitar as the newcomers noticed our presence, staring at our group. An awkward silence followed, interrupted by Vano. “Come in, don’t stand there! We’ve got enough space for everybody!” The two stalkers removed their helmets and smiled as Grizzly stood up to greet them. “Name’s Grizzly. Who are you guys?” “Barin,” said the exoskeleton-wearing man, smiling slightly and mimicking a salute. ”Snag,” muttered the second stalker. “We’ve been chased by a large pack of boars for a while, but we managed to lose them. We’re just here for the night. Care to present us to your friends?” asked the first stalker. Grizzly shrugged. “Fine by me. Make yourselves comfortable. The guys playing the guitar are Vano - the bearded one - and Torba; here is Mitay, the bald one in the corner is Strider and this is Celestia,” he said, gesturing towards us. Snag gazed at the alicorn, surprised. “What is it?” Barin slapped him the back of the head. “OW! What was that for?” asked Snag, clenching his occiput. “Buddy, that was just rude.” Barin seemed very interested by Celestia and spent most of the time talking politely with her. He looked very interested as to how she had ended up in the Zone. I observed the alicorn. She seemed happy to talk about her home but something was off. She seemed to gradually become less enthralled. Strider had sat down apart from our group and was leaning against the far wall, reading a book. I knew of his social awkwardness so that didn’t bother me. On the other hand, Snag concerned me. He too was far from us, cleaning his gun. He looks suspicious... and kind of cute. I’m definitely keeping an eye on him. Celestia, Vano  and the others were sitting around the fire, singing and animatedly talking. They were really loud and distracted me from my book, also I decided to leave the room. I stood up, climbed the stairs and entered the small room on the second floor we first came from. There I sat down and reopened my book. It was not long before Celestia moved away from the group to join me. Her magical features had disappeared, her ears were flattened and she held her head down, as if she was exhausted. “I’ve been looking for you,” she said. “You seem troubled,” I stated, putting my book down. “I have... quite a lot of things on my mind,” she replied. She shuffled around before laying next to me and resting her head on my shoulder. The sudden contact surprised me. She seemed so depressed and in need of comfort to a point it was heartbreaking, even for me. “Hey, are you alright?” I asked the alicorn with concern. She gave me a bitter look. “Why would I be? Plenty of ponies count on me back home, and I’m stuck here.” “I am sure they are doing fine,” I reassured her. “Your sister -Luna, right?- can take care of your responsibilities. From what  you told me, she has a strong personality, she can deal with you missing,” I said, gently stroking her head. Her coat was surprisingly soft, even softer than the fur ushankas are usually made of. “Are you sure?” She asked with tearful eyes. I nodded. “I know it. For your own sake, worry about yourself for once.” “Maybe I should,” she deadpanned, sighing sadly. I tilted my head. “I cannot help but feel that you have something else on your mind... When you were talking about your homeworld, your attitude changed from cheerful to sad, depressed even. I felt there was something more to it... what was on your mind?” She sighed and looked at the floor. “Something hit me, something that now haunts my mind.” “Go on, I am listening,” I said softly. “At first when I talked to the others about Equestria, I thought naturally about the responsibilities I had left, my sister...” She sighed and her ears flattened. “... and then I thought about the others. My niece, my faithful student... and her friends. Hers. I realized I never really have any friends... the curse of being timeless, I suppose.” She paused. “Ponies often see alicorns as immortal, but that’s not true. We just don’t die of old age and happen to be more resilient than normal ponies, that’s all. In result, we are treated with respect, fear even, sometimes, hatred. Nopony never, ever befriends us, let alone truly loves us. My niece has been extremely lucky to find a loving husband... my sister had a mental breakdown once, and I had to banish her for Equestria’s safety, leaving me in charge of the country for a thousand years... I’ve never felt so alone.” The alabaster alicorn began sobbing quietly, tears rolling down her cheeks. Oh boy. I’m not good at comforting people. Here goes nothing. “Hey, you have us now. We will not let you down,” I said softly. She chuckled bitterly and looked up to me with her big, tearful eyes. “Do you mean it?” I looked at her in the eyes. “Yes. Vano and I will be at your side no matter what, I promise,” I affirmed, gently wiping off her tears. She moved closer to me, huddling herself against my side. I smiled and extended an arm over her shoulder. It must look strange from the outside to say the least: a mythical winged unicorn snuggling the buzzed, scarred ex-Monolithian stalker. I chuckled at the thought, petting Celestia’s side. We stayed immobile like that for what seemed like hours, before she slowly closed her eyes peacefully, finally relaxing. I felt the need to talk about something else. I had told him a lot about me, surely he could open up to me too? “You keep staying apart from groups of people,” she said, “Why?” Strider sighed, a grim expression on his face. “As you know already, I used to be a Monolith fighter. An empty, emotionless, brainwashed husk.” he sighed. “Most people learn this quickly and stay away from me. So in I stay away from them, it avoids ‘complications’. Nobody would trust an ex-Monolithian... except Shulga, maybe.” I locked my gaze with his. “I trust you.” “I... you really do?” “Yes.” He pulled me in a hug. “Thank you. Thank you. You have no idea how much this means to me,” he said, gently caressing my neck. Hmm... I could stay like that all day...I leaned forward, making myself more comfortable. “How was it?” I asked. “The nicest feeling I have ever felt,” replied the bald stalker. “A warm feeling in my chest, I felt... worthy.” “That’s not what I meant... how did it feel, when you... ‘woke up’?” I asked. “Ah, that... physically, it felt like waking up every normal morning, except I had no idea how I ended up there. I was lost and without identity. Everytime I try to remember what happened before, there is just nothing,” he explained, sighing. “I have read that some amnesiacs compare their pathology to a white wall blocking all access to their memories, but I do not feel like that. There is nothing but an empty void here,” he said, pointing at his temple. It must have been terrible... the poor dear. I don’t know how I would cope without knowing who I really am... I nuzzled his arm gently. “You’re a good person. You’ve been a great friend. Despite everything you say, you’ve been one of the most empathic being I’ve met, and that’s all that matters.” He smiled weakly. “You are too kind. But I have to admit, human contact helped. Who knows how my squad and I would have ended if we never encountered the Major?” He sighed. “No need to alienate myself with the past. What is done is done. Now let’s speak about the future. Your future.” “My future?” I asked. “Yes. Vano and I think that there may be a way back to your world, but we will need the scientist's help to find it; space bubbles are quite rare, not to mention random as well.” He paused, eying me and holding his chin. “Hmm... Maybe we should go to Yanov first. I think the technicians there could also be able to craft you a decent suit of armor, providing we have the materials.” My ears perked up at the news. “Really? You’d do that? That’s very nice of you.” “It is the least I can do. I think the scientists would be very interested in studying your ‘magic’ too.” I shivered. “Studying? I don’t I like the sound of that.” “Nothing harmful, worry not: a couple of scans and a sample of skin will be enough I am sure,” He assured. “If you say so... are you sure they can send me back home?” I asked worriedly. He chuckled. “Hey, these guys managed to pierce the secrets of many anomalies and made several unprecedented breakthroughs in nearly all field of science... I am sure they will come up with something,” he added, twiddling absent-mindedly with my mane. We stood motionless, enjoying each other’s company. Noises of laughter and discussions could be heard coming from downstairs.  It had been a long time since anyone treated me without distant respect or fear even,a long time since anyone treated me as an equal, as a living, breathing being, with emotions, hopes and aspirations. It was... relieving. Finally I could count on someone else... it felt good, heartwarming. Strider and I stayed huddled against each other, and it was not long before I fell into a deep, peaceful slumber. Celestia shifted, probably to make herself more comfortable and closed her eyes, a slight smile adorning her features. Her breathing slowed down as she fell asleep on my shoulder. There was something undeniably cute emanating from her, something pure, innocent. She was yet to be tainted by this world, and I swore to myself to keep it that way.  Even though I might fail... The Zone is dangerous, she has no place here... I shook off the thoughts and looked at my PDA. 0130 hours. Might as well hit the sack. I took a blanket from my backpack and covered both Celestia and I with it. I gave her a last glance before moving a bit, closing my eyes and slowly drifting to sleep.