//------------------------------//
// Travelling Salesponies Nonpareil 
// Story: Lifesparks 
// by Sythax 
//------------------------------//

Bolts and Sweetie Bot sat close, their hooves wrapped around each other as the carriage creaked and bounced down the hill. The tidal wave of bandits surged around the trailer, their battle cries drowning out the screams from the terrified foals. The ferocious cries from the bandits immediately drew the attention of the travellers, who cried out at the approaching caravan.
The camp was a simple affair; seven trailers sat in a semicircle around a large fire that blazed under the night sky. Embers drifted around as the travellers scrambled around, grabbing whatever they could to defend themselves. All the caravans were bustling with activity, all except one: it sat some distance away from the others. Its strange but familiar shape sent warning signals streaming through Sweetie Bot's system— signals she was too terrified to acknowledge.
With the camp getting closer and closer, they could see the strange assortment of weapons the travellers had assembled. Some held small knives and swords; one unicorn even had a rusty old pistol gripped tightly in his magic. Those not fortunate enough to have proper weapons wielded frying pans and brooms as they stood to meet the bandits.
Sweetie Bot was horrified. Would the bandits really kill for the contents of seven measly caravans? It hardly seemed worth the bloodshed. She could feel Bolts' heart beating rapidly through his skin; he was shaking as he clung to her, his eyes wide and staring as they bounded along towards the camp.
With her vision magnified, she examined the travellers from a distance. The rag-tag groups she saw were not what she was expecting. It wasn't just stallions preparing to fight; mares and even a couple of the bigger foals stood ready, brandishing their crude weapons. What were they willing to pay to protect their homes?
The bandits never slowed down. They spread out, aiming for the gaps between the caravans. The trailer powered on, heading straight for the group of ponies that stood before them. They couldn't fit through that gap, could they? It was too narrow; they were going to smash straight into the wagons! Bolts wouldn't survive such an impact.
"Bolts, get down," she commanded.
In no state to argue, he lay on the bottom of the cage, confused as to what she was doing. She couldn't stop the impact, but maybe she could shelter him. Surprised she could still feel awkward at a time like this, she placed herself on top of him gently, trying to shield him as much as possible.
With their faces pressed up against each other, she sighed as his faced registered the shock of the intimacy of the situation.
"Don't get any ideas," she said, his face blushing. He looked at her again, his eyes searching her face, almost star struck.
"Your eyes," he said gently. "They're really pretty".
She cocked an eyebrow at him.
"You chose this moment to compliment my looks?"
He shrugged sheepishly. "Good a time as any, I suppose."
She rolled her eyes. His compliment, however, raised a troubling question. What did the future hold for her? Could she ever really have a normal life if no one past he friends and family would accept her? What about foals? She had never really thought about it; only now, when it was taken from her, did she realise how much she would miss in life.
A loud crack brought her back to reality. She watched as one of the bandits fell to the ground with a thud, blood pouring from his leg as he screamed in agony. She didn't need and X-ray to see his bone had been shattered. It would never set right with that much damage.
She screamed as part of the caravan next to them exploded into a shower of splinters. The unicorn had obviously opened fire with his pistol, each shot ringing in the air. The camp was getting closer; the wall of travellers was merely 100 metres away. When they realised the caravan wasn't going to stop, they panicked, yelling as they dived out of its way. She closed her eyes, bracing herself for the impact.
With a jarring crunch, the wagons collided, wood spraying everywhere. She bunked down, trying to cover Bolts as much as possible. The cage swung wildly as the bandits’ wagon spun out of control, skidding to a halt just short of the campfire. The two foals gasped, waiting for the cage to stop spinning.
"You OK?" she asked, lifting herself off of him. He nodded in reply, too shocked to speak. She helped him up, brushing shards of wood out of his mane.
All around, the camp was alive with the sounds of fighting. Oddly enough, while some still held them tightly, most of the bandits and travellers had sheathed their swords, instead using their hooves to block and punch each other. While she didn't approve of the violence, at least neither side intended to kill.
It also explained why the unicorn with the pistol had only hit the stallion in the leg. She had thought it was just poor aiming, but now it seemed more deliberate, to maim rather than kill.
With nothing better to do, the two of them watched the battle. Both sides exchanged blows, bucking and biting viciously. It was a fairly evenly-matched battle. While the travellers had numbers on their side, the bandits were much more experienced in the art of combat. Even her Battle Processor was intrigued, analysing the fighting styles of several bandits simultaneously.
"So what happens now?" asked Bolts as they watched a bandits buck a traveller in the chest, sending him flying into the side of one of the trailers.
"I don't know," admitted Sweetie sadly. "There's no way out of this cage. I suppose this is it."
"But I don't want to go home," he mumbled.
Neither did she. There were still so many questions left unanswered. Her thoughts returned to her earlier worries, the things she had been robbed of. No, that was wrong. She hadn't been robbed of them; she had never had them in the first place. Had the engineer not thought that far ahead? Had he expected her to go through life wondering why she could never raise a family of her own? She could just picture it, watching Applebloom and Scootaloo with foals of their own while she sat to the side.
"Something's troubling you", said Bolts, knocking her from her thoughts.
"I'm fine," she said nonchalantly.
"You're a really bad liar." He smirked. "You go unnaturally still when you’re thinking."
She sighed. "I'm just thinking about all the things I can't do."
"Like?" he asked curiously.
"Like..." She looked away awkwardly. "Well... mare things," she stuttered.
"Oh!" he exclaimed, his eyes widening in understanding as he blushed.
"It never seemed that important before, always so far in the future. But now? When I know it will never happen? It's all too close."
She began to weep, her tear tanks spilling their contents down her cheeks. All around her, ponies fell to the ground as hooves dealt shattering blows. Mares and foals screamed as they fled the camp, the bandits not bothering to give chase.
Bolts placed a hoof around her heaving shoulders, doing his best to comfort her. "Don't worry, I'm sure the Professor can do something about it," he said, trying to sound optimistic.
She looked up at him. "You think?" she asked.
"Of course! Look how amazing he made you! If anyone can do it, it's him."
Her tears slowed. Maybe Bolts was right; the Professor was obviously a genius. Could he help? To find out, they had to get to Manehatten. Unfortunately, the cage made that seem like a distant possibility. Still, she smiled at him, even if it was a false hope he had tried.
"Thanks, Bolts," she said. "What would I do without you?"
"Still have a bullet in your leg, I'd imagine," he chuckled.
She laughed with him. It felt good to laugh, despite being in the centre of a raging battle. As their laughter died down, they looked at each other, smiling. The battle faded. It was just them, together in the cage, happy with each other’s company. She examined his face; the soft lines of his muzzle, the messy purple mane upon his head. His eyes were a lovely shade of blue, just like Rarity's...
She snapped back to reality. No, this wasn't right. She couldn't get attached now; it was Rarity all over again. Once she had her answers, then maybe, but now, while her words and feeling were as hollow as her fake heart, she couldn't bear to hurt him like that, to fake something so personal. He deserved better.
But at the moment, she couldn't deliver better.
She looked away, blushing. She felt the air shift as his ears fell sadly. She didn't want to hurt him. It was for the best.
Her internal conflict was interrupted by a thud from below. The two of them looked down to see a row of ponies up against the wagon, battered and bruised from the fight. It seemed the bandits’ experience came out on top, overpowering the travellers. Now the bandits were pillaging the trailers, taking anything of value.
Scrubs stood nearby, watching over the hostages. His right eye was black and swollen, but he seemed otherwise unharmed. Sweetie Bot examined the group below. Most of them appeared to be stallions; the majority of the mares and foals had fled the camp. She frowned. Those two unicorns, she could have sworn she recognised them. Their hats seemed familiar...
She gasped as recognition hit her. She glanced over to the other side of the camp to the wagon that had struck her system as odd. There it was, covered in pipes and chimneys: The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000. Looking back down, she watched as the Flim Flam Brothers trembled, their hats slightly askew.
What in Equestria were those two doing here? The travellers didn't seem like the greatest source of business. Perhaps this was how they travelled from place to place, probably to protect themselves from bandits. It really seemed to be working for them.
But it didn't matter; they might just be their ticket out of here.
"Psst, Flim!" she whispered. "Flam!"
The two unicorns looked up, frowning at the young filly. It took them a couple of seconds to recognise her.
"Why, dear brother, I do believe we know that filly!" whispered Flim.
"I believe you’re right, brother of mine. She was with that lovely unicorn in Ponyville, if I remember correctly," replied Flam.
"It makes one wonder what a filly could have done to wind up in a situation like this, doesn't it, brother?"
"It certainly does," said Flam as they both looked at her expectantly.
"We don't have time!" she murmured urgently. "Just get us out of this cage and we can get out of here!"
"And how do you plan to do that young filly?" asked Flim. "There happens to be a large amount of bandits, if you hadn't noticed."
"You know, brother, there is something strange about the filly that I cannot quite put my hoof on," said Flam.
"You’re right brother. Perhaps it's her mane?" replied Flim.
"A hooficure?"
"Maybe the rubber tubing in her legs?"
"I don't know brother, seems a little farfetched to me," said Flam.
Sweetie Bot rolled her eyes.
"Look, do you want out of here or not?"
The brothers looked at each other and nodded.
"Well, little filly, it seems we have ourselves an agreement," said Flim.
"Good," said Sweetie. "The key to the cage is just there."
They shot a shifty look at Scrubs, who was watching his fellow bandits unload the other trailers. With a faint hum, the key was enveloped in a green glow, floating up and an around to the front of the cage. It slid into the lock and turned with a faint grinding. With a creak, she pushed the cage door open. It was quite a drop to the ground.
"You ready?" she asked Bolts, offering her hoof.
"As ready as I'll ever be," he replied, holding her tight.
She dropped from the cage, landing with a loud thud. The Flim Flam Brother scrambled over, looking at the strange filly.
"And now, may I ask, what do you plan to do now?" asked Flim.
"The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy— how fast can it go?"
"Faster than a pony, that's for sure, thanks to the Patented FlimFlam Combobulation Engine," said Flam proudly.
"Ok, let’s go," she said.
"Now where do ya think you’re goin'?" came a voice.
Scrubs stood before them, blocking their path. While nopony else had noticed their escape, it wouldn't be too hard for Scrubs to raise an alarm.
"Move out of the way Scrubs. I don't want to hurt you" said Sweetie Bot.
He looked down at her with a smile.
"You don't have to," he said. "Go on, before they notice. Your bags are in that there wagon."
Bolts walked to the back of the wagon. She listened to him inside as she watched Scrubs.
"Thank you," was all she could say.
"Don't mention it, Missy. Go to Manehatten. This is important to ya; I can tell," he replied.
Bolts re-emerged from the wagon, their saddle bags on his back.
"Come with us, Scrubs. We can help you," said Bolts.
"An' leave this lot? These guys are like family to me. They'd be lost without me," he said with a smile.
"You sure?"
I'm sure," he said. "Now go, quick! That contraption of your friends doesn't look like it was built for stealth. You need all the head start you can get"
With that, he stepped aside, allowing the four of them to scamper across the camp to the waiting vehicle. They clambered on board, the Brothers heading for the controls.
"It'll take a moment to warm up," said Film
"And it'll make a lot of noise doing it," finished Flam.
"Think you can hold them off?" asked Bolts.
"We'll see," said Sweetie Bot nervously.
With a screech, the machine burst into life, the deck shuddering as steam belched from the chimneys. The bandits cried out, abandoning their looting and heading straight for the Super Speedy.
"Here they come!" cried Bolts.
Sweetie Bot lowered her horn, letting off a few low-power blasts. The beams hit dead on, knocking four of the bandits to the ground. She lifted her head, just in time to dodge the large stallion who was diving for the deck. She rolled, watching him sail over her and crash down, dazing him.
She was about to push him off the deck when another stallion jumped up, swinging a short sword at her face. She barely managed to bring up a hoof to deflect it, sending it spinning from his mouth. With the bandit disarmed, she slammed a hoof into his jaw, sending him tumbling off the side.
She was about to fire off another laser blast when she was roughly knocked to the side by a blow to the head. Her vision fluttered as she hit the deck. A diagnostic appeared on her HUD and she groaned. She hoped the engineer could hammer out dents in her skull.
She jumped to her hooves, facing the large stallion before her. With a running jump she launched herself into the air, bringing her hoof down on his head. He stumbled back, clutching his skull until he fell to the ground unconscious with a final sigh. With a shove, she dumped him onto the ground just as the sound of the engine changed tone.
"Forward!" yelled Flim, pulling back a lever.
With a lurch, the Super Speedy began to move; slowly at first, but quickly gaining speed. 5, 10, 15 miles an hour. Soon they were pulling away from the bandits that had given chase. Sweetie Bot looked back at the camp and saw the lone figure of Scrubs silhouetted against the camp fire.
She saw him wave and she waved back, watching the elderly pony until he, the camp, and the bandits were all lost from view.