//------------------------------//
// Chapter 3: Two orders of bad luck. 
// Story: Astro Lord - Act I Molten Rage 
// by Uros 
//------------------------------//

Warning: This chapter contains a scene with blood and death.





***





"Dude, I hadn't noticed but... you know you look like Lord Voldem-Shit!"

*CRASH!*

"HEY! You almost hit me!"

Amos was not a happy camper tonight, and the feeling just worsened.





Coming to the bar that had hired his brother had been one thing, having WAY too many ponies trying to give him hugs was another. Those that just stared at him, or frowned at him, he could deal with, but the friendliness was not something he was used to and while it could sound weird, well, he didn't like it. Don't get me wrong here; it was a welcome change! But it was way too much way too fast. Maybe someone else would cope better with this, but Amos was not that someone.

Oh, his brother w as basking in the attention like a fool, and he loved it like you wouldn't believe. Hell, even if he didn't have as much as he would like to work with at the bar (Most the liquor here was quite simple, the hardest thing was some kind of cider that, as Pacho put it 'Hits like a truck') he was having fun mixing shit and dishing it like nobody's business. Some ponies didn't seem to like what he prepared and gave as free samples, but if one mix didn't convince then there was another one waiting for them. It was not that there weren't mixes here, but making things stronger didn't seem to be commonplace, and if there was one things humans did 'right', it was getting drunk.

Well, Pacho did it right at least.

The uncomfortable feeling didn't leave even after the ponies got into groups and left the pale brother alone close to the bar to face his older bro. While there were many ponies and most of them were in groups, some preferred to be by their lonesome, or they were still curious, or distasteful, of the humans here. Whatever the case was, Amos felt the stares and the small talk with his brother, or the overly amicable Berry Punch, didn't help any. In fact talking with Berry seemed to be the opposite of helpful.

Anyone would misunderstand this, probably, but the fact that Amos was being talked to when it came to Berry made him cringe. The thing, no, the pony, mare to be specific (and he would need to get used to pronouns here), was as friendly as his brother had told him, probably more. That was not something Amos wanted, even the other friendly ponies let him be when he didn't show interest, though it was obvious that they would probably try at a later date. Berry was way too happy and hyper at the moment, though she was quick to get scared when Amos appeared about to snap. It was a mix of friendly, adventurous and excessive cowardice that would be fun if watched from afar, but face to face it made the young man groan.

Then it got weirder when the door opened and five figures came in. Two were human, the others were all ponies.

The place got quiet, like old, foggy graveyard at night quiet. Amos had expected someone to scream, to fuss over or to greet them, but once the humans came in every single pony seemed to lose interest.

"Wat?"

"Evidio Balistreri, of the Balistreri family from Rome and... I think the other guy called himself Azubuike? He gave me his nickname to correct that slip quickly enough"

"Balistreri?" Amos looked at his brother for a second "Isn't that one of the surviving 'families' from WWIII?"

Pacho nodded quickly "Yea, I don't know if they are like that, but Ev is a very nice dude, a bit too respectful for my taste, but he is nice for a gangster" He chuckled "Azul, and yea, that IS his nickname, was just a very famous sky surfer if he is to be believed" His brother eyed him with curiosity "Well, you know; WWIII around 2020, lots of people dying, everyone being scared shitless... I know you don't like sports but nearly everything that has to do with entertainment has a channel nowadays"

"No shit sherlock, but skysurfing?" Pacho shrugged at his brother's question "Sounds stupid"

"Says the guy that loves running around rooftops and falls down more than fifty percent of the time" Amos glared at his brother "What? It is true, at least you weren't old enough to remember all the shit that happened back then, not that I blame you, but you didn't even want to see the fucking videos when you were in history class"

"Of course not! Who would like to see how our predecessors almost bombed each other from the face of Earth?"

The bar got so silent that not even breathing broke it, hell, a needle falling would have been brutal at this point.

"This is why I don't open my mouth"

Every head, be it human or pony, was looking at the area of the bar with both brothers. It seemed that ponies recovered quickly from shock, but new things did hit hard. The other humans had been seen, but the idea of humans being wrathful creatures probably hadn't crossed the ponies' mind at all since they first saw one. Maybe they thought that humans weren't all that nice since some arrived with changelings, but Amos' little outburst had been quite the eye opener.

Then they returned to their talking and drinking.

"What. The. Fuck. Seriously" Amos sighed in defeat.

"HAH!" His brother laughed at him, ignoring the danger he was in at the moment "When I asked Cheerilee about the sex stuff she took a moment to let the gears grind and then answered me like there was no problem, bro! Well, more or less, but you'll know why soon enough. These guys get used to shit pretty fast, even if they are whimps for a few seconds when you first shock them with some shit"

"HEY!"

"Sorry Whimpy Tears! It hasn't anything to do with you, get back to your drink!" Berry threw both brothers a look "Don't get on the apothecary's bad side! I need his pills in the morning if I don't have coffee at hand"

"Whimpy Tears, seriously?" Amos sighed and let out a "Fuck it all, man"

"You'll get used to the names, believe me"

The voice was strong but cheerful, and when Amos turned he saw why.

Azul was smaller than Amos, maybe ten centimeters or so, probably a bit more than that, but the guy was packing. He was wide, his arms were muscular, his legs looked ready to run the marathon and you could see that the guy had a six pack hiding badly under what looked like a simple black shirt paired by equally black pants and black shoes. The guy was as black as coal itself except for the deep blue eyes and the red hair on his head, braided in a large ponytail behind his back, almost large enough to reach his ass for the looks of it.

He had a friendly face with swollen lips and a slightly bigger than average nose. The guy could be described as friendly at first glance, if it wasn't because he was so muscular that it would probably intimidate most people around him. He had a feel about him though, because he looked so relaxed and the smile was so wide that you could hardly think of the guy as dangerous after a few moments.

The only thing that broke the illusion was the blue tattoo that covered his arms, legs and the underside of his neck. It was impossible to see under his clothes, but there were definitely blue ropes going from his knees upwards, the same thing as from his wrists and neck. The shirt was one of those sleeveless one though, so it was easy to see that the ropes reached something before they went towards the chest area, though whatever was hidden under the clothes remained a mystery.

That did bring up a little something though. The guy was ebony all over, yea, but the underside of his hands was not. True that some black people could have it much lighter and such, but as he offered his hand for a shake, Amos managed to see that there wasn't anything on them.

And by that he meant that the hands had no marks, they looked like the skin had been flattened to perfection.

"Don't worry, it was an accident when I was a kid" Azul smiled at him "Got them badly burned, can't feel anything, but I still have a mean handshake"

Amos grimaced as he finally shook the man's hand.

"Took you long enough to get here" Pacho decided to intervene and slam a shot glass he had just emptied, making Berry chuckle at the sight "I thought you and your girlfriend would take for fucking ever. Hope she isn't mad about having to leave Cloudsdale, she didn't seem thrilled when I asked her opinion this morning"

"It is 'marefriend'" Azul nodded at Pacho as he let go of Amos "And she seems to be happy enough since the hospital here is always seeking for volunteers. Also: She is not my marefriend"

"But you said you boned her" Pacho smirked with a grin.

"She was in heat, I was handy, she saved my life, it seemed like a good trade... That and I was still half unconscious" The man's smile never wavered though "But I have to tell you: I never thought I would do that with a pony, much less love it, but man was it good"

"HAH! I knew I liked you for a reason, you are one forward dude and you fucking rock!" Both men came as close as Pacho could to fist bump, which for some reason elicited a cheer from the patrons of the bar "Now though, let's make things official before we join the others: Azul, my brother Amos, call him Bone unless he says otherwise" Azul nodded at Amos, no need for another handshake "Bro, this is Azul, sky surfer extraordinaire from Africa"

"Quite obvious he was, the blue tattoos give it away" Amos commented offhandedly.

This, however, got a naughty look from the African man. Pacho saw the look and knew what it meant, even if they had just meet a short while ago.

"Man, don't..."

"Dude, I hadn't noticed but... you know you look like Lord Voldem-Shit!"

*CRASH!*

"HEY! You almost hit me!"

"SORRY WHIMPY!"

There was no silence this time, but Amos was glaring daggers at the man in front of him. He could be strong and all, but there was one single tease that Amos would not accept, and it was THAT one.

"That name" He began curtly "Is forbidden"

Azul lifted his hands to signal defeat "Good enough, not going to bring it up again"

"Good" Amos nodded, still unhappy about the mention.

"You are killing me here" Berry punch was livid however, not just angry "I am going to kiss Whimpy's flank if I want something from him!" She hissed in a low voice since everypony seemed relaxed at drinking for the time being "Try to not murder anyone else with MY glasses next time" She grunted in defeat "At least it wasn't a cider mug, otherwise you'd have hit him, and they are pricier for a reason you know? It would've been worse than this flimsy glass" She waved another shot glass with her hoof, then looked at Pacho "It is coming out of your pay by the way"

"Come on! First day on the job and I am already getting bend over the counter!" The older brother threw Amos a dirty glare.

His eloquent answer? Middle finger.

"What does that mean?"

Despite Amos' growing displeasure, the question from Berry just made him smile, but at least he didn't laugh as his brother explained to the mare what the middle finger meant. Her 'o' face was pure comedy gold even for the otherwise always neutral tall man.

"That isn't very nice" She decided before going to serve another round for some patrons.

The three men chuckled and shook their heads at that. Even Amos had to admit that the ponies had some kind of effect on him when they were this close and when they interacted together. It went away as fast as Berry was out of range, but since his brother was okay with her, Berry was one of the few ponies that he hadn't flipped off yet.

'Yet' being the keyword here.

"Are you guys going to come over or not?"

The new voice was slow and sultry, literally. It was as if someone was having an orgasm with every damn word they uttered and was having a field trip by seeing Azul stiffen as the words caught him. Hell, Amos could accept it when Chrysalis had teased him before, and she was eyeing him like a walking toy, but this was a bit too much!

The mare that came attached to the voice didn't help things one bit either. She was taller than most other ponies, around one meter ten, probably a bit taller (1.12 in fact), and had a very well kept hair combed to the side, quite long and vibrant yellow with a strand of dark purple/pink on the middle, something that was obviously mimicked in both style and color on her tail. Her coat was of a light blue coloration that seemed to shine easily with the light of the bar, the same color, and shine, as the bedroom eyes that she was giving Azul. Those two pits of sultriness were bright and eager, with a beautiful cerulean coloration that indeed almost matched the mare's coat.

She was a pegasus, that was obvious by the two prominent wings she had on her. They were quite strong and large, maybe a bit more than necessary for her body, but since she had stepped in she hadn't moved them even once, and if she had, it had been such a small movement that it was all but lost to the eye, much different than the other pegasi that seemed as comfortable hovering as they did walking. When she noticed anyone fixating on them the mare would turn that sultry gaze into a scowl, even baring her teeth if the offender didn't look away right that instant. She didn't look excessively muscular, but Amos wasn't an expert on pony anatomy, so he wouldn't be able to really judge if the mare was strong or not.

As for her cutie mark, or butt tattoo, whatever you preferred, it was a purple ring surrounding a red cross with one musical note within each arm of the cross as well as the central area. Amos liked music, but he didn't know shit about how to make it, mostly because he had forgot about those classes as soon as he took them, so all he could say was that the most common notes, the single black ones (crotchet), were on the horizontal arms while the white ones (minims) were on the remaining arms, with a white circle (semibreve) in the middle of the cross. 

Did it have anything to do with the fact that her voice was melodic? His brother had said that those cutie marks had a lot of significance, he had even egged Twilight to explain, but the young alicorn was centered on writing about changelings as well as not particularly happy. Pacho had commented that she would've given him a pop quiz on the subject otherwise after she was done with her lecture.

"We are going in a bit, Morrow" Azul finally petted the mare's mane, which got a gentle murr, almost a moan, in return. Was this mare a walking sex bomb or something? "I was just talking for a bit"

"Oh don't talk too much" Morrow purred to him "I would prefer you use that mouth for something else..."

That was it for Pacho as he burst out laughing his ass off. It went to the point that he just lost his shit and fell to the ground, caring for nothing but the dirty humor he found on those words, for obvious reasons. If you wanted to find a perfect example of someone that found naughty thoughts the funniest thing in the world, and something you could talk with impunity, it was Pacho.

"You done?" Amos was so used to this that he just didn't even look his way.

"NO!" Came his brother's heated reply "Come on man, that was glorious!"

"You have said worse and cheesier lines" Amos commented offhandedly.

"Yes, I have, but it is still funny" Pacho got up, still chuckling "Come on, admit it was funny"

"Bro, you are an ass"

Everyone, including Amos and Morrow, chuckled at that point. Everypony else seemed to have dismissed the scene quite fast, as they did with most things.

"I am Morrow Sing Song" The mare purred as she offered a hoof to Amos once everyone relaxed "Me and my sisters helped my dear Azul when he arrived here"

Amos took the hoof and shook it with neutrality "Charmed"

"Hello again, pretty lady" Pacho butted in with a smirk "I knew I liked you for a reason"

Morrow batted her eyes playfully at the elder brother "Wasn't it because I am 'sex on legs', as you put it?"

Amos snapped his head sideways to try and murder his brother with a glare.

"That helps, yea" And instead of caring, Pacho just winked at the mare "But as I said before; I know you are spoken for by a friend, and I don't step that low unless they hurt me or my bro, so I'll play nice. Teasing, however, is a guilty pleasure I will admit to"

"Oh my dear, I wouldn't mind more than teasing if he doesn't" Morrow chuckled as she nuzzled Azul's hand "But I would prefer the sharing to wait for a bit, first I need to make him MINE" She threw Azul a growl as she bumped her flank on his leg "Well, to make him mine AND to get my sisters to join, it would be oh so fun"

"I love this world" No one was surprised at Pacho's simple response.

Morrow chuckled before nuzzling a slightly flustered Azul, she even got on her hind legs and pulled up, making herself quite taller, in fact it worked pretty much like a dog: She almost raised her eight around fifty percent. This meant that she was still short as far as Azul was concerned, but he did give her a half begrudging, half loving hug. It seemed that despite his nice outlook he was a bit shy, or maybe he was just a bit shocked still since he admitted they had done it.

"And you are okay with this?" For Amos it was a chance to see how others had taken the news.

Azul shrugged "Could be worse. I jumped from the plane hoping to make a crater during my last show. I really thought that the weird man was joking when he said I was going to a new world" That made Amos quirk an eyebrow "The sky is my life, being asleep forever didn't sit well with me, in fact it is probably a very stupid thing to have a depression about, I was very happy back home other than for that little bit"

"I didn't mean that" Amos clarified, though the information was handy "I mean what just happened"

"Oh..." Azul blinked a few times, then looked at the smiling Morrow "If she wants to play with others I am okay with it" He shrugged again, making the mare giggle "There are a lot of places in Africa that still hold the idea of many wives and such, more so now since we were hit hard during WWIII and most guys were bloody idiots around my old country"

Amos snorted at that, but the one to pipe in was his brother "Same thing in Russia, Afghanistan, China, Japan... I think only Europe got more female casualties than males, at least for what little I remember about the history lessons"

"Yea, there were a lot of girls and not too many guys to go around, much like here" Azul did something Amos didn't expect and just lifted Morrow like she was weightless before he sat down at his side, occupying one of the free stools, allowing her to sit on his lap "I don't think anyone cared, or had enough balls, to check the ratio, and most people find the idea of having more than one girl deplorable" He shrugged a bit, giving Morrow a gentle rubbing on her back, making her sigh "Not adding the fact that some places were almost literally nuked and most countries still 'dislike' one another, so no one is sure of the exact number, nor will they be until things calm down"

"Yea, and the biological weapons didn't help. So many advances only to kill others with them" Pacho rubbed the back of his neck "Luckily most of them died quickly, but if it wasn't for those virus there wouldn't be this fright about a 'pandemic' scenario. We would have been pretty well off if our family hadn't lost their shit about it"

"Can we talk about something nicer?" Morrow chimed with a hopeful smile "Sadness does not help anypony right now"

Amos found himself agreeing, much like the rest of the humans before Morrow pointed towards the table where two mares and the last human were located. They seemed relaxed, more or less, though now that Amos paid close attention it was made obvious that one of the mares and the human had many bandages around their bodies.

"I don't want to be insensitive" The voice of Morrow took the three's attention "Sadness is like any other emotion; good or bad depending on the moment" She explained with a smile "But the past is the past, and your focus should always be in the future" Morrow smirked, gently jumping down despite the apparent enjoyment she had while resting on Azul's lap. 

She was about to head towards the table before she stopped herself "Besides, if you focus on that, you ensure that you will do your best to make it better than the present. Remembering where you come from and what happened IS important, but dwelling on it too much hurts and is unhealthy, I know that very well" Morrow smiled towards Azul "So do help me looking forward, will you?"

Azul didn't say much, he just smiled back, got up and went to the mare while the brothers watched.

"'Not my marefriend' my ass" Pacho growled under his breath.

"Do think, my brother" Amos looked at him with a fragment of a smirk on his face "That not everyone is like you"

"THANK CELESTIA for that!" Berry decided to appear just then, atop the counter, smashing her muzzle against Pacho's face as she hissed under her breath so nopony would hear her other than the brothers "Because other creatures at least WORK when they are EMPLOYED!"

There was a tense moment before Berry scrunched her muzzle, then she just laughed at Pacho's befuddled face.

"Man, you almost pissed your pants" She snickered "I never had anyone working under me and I wanted to pull that one since for-ever"  Berry took a moment to regain her breath before shaking her head "Now, today is Wednesday, so as you can see there is almost nopony here" Could've fooled Amos, because the place was packed "Granted that a lot more ponies have been coming as of late, I think Twilight mentioned the town expanding a bit since more people want to be part of her new kingdom, but I am going off topic here" She cleared her throat "Do go with your friends today, but I will chew your flank if there are customers and you are talking somepony's ear off next time"

"Thanks, Berry" Pacho scratched the mare behind her ear, making her sigh for a moment "I'll get everyone's story out of the way and tomorrow it'll be fine, I promise"

"You better" Berry growled halfheartedly as she received Pacho's attentions "Or I'll kidnap you for the day..."

"Oh no! How will I survive such ordeal!?" He was almost dramatic enough to 'faint', but when he withdrew the hand that was tending to Berry a growl caught his ears "Seems like I would be safe if I give you enough attention"

"Your hands are the only reason I don't have your flank on a platter right now" Berry huffed "Now go with your friends, scamper!"

"YES MA'AM!" Pacho saluted for a moment before he turned on his heel and dragged his groaning brother away.

If he had been able to, and believe you me he wanted to do exactly that, Amos would've just lied on the floor. He had done it before, many times, and that was AFTER he hit eighteen, hell, after reaching twenty one he had hit the floor at least once a week to stop his brother from dragging him anywhere he didn't want. It is not that good of a tactic when your brother can easily lift you, no matter if you are taller than him, but it did bore him enough sometimes, so it wasn't exactly a lost cause as far as options went, mostly because saying 'no' didn't work with him.

The reason to not be so childish was simple: He was serious when he said he felt like crap back at the hive.

One doesn't get back on their feet in a few hours though, and being used to the idea of simply being alone except with those close to you doesn't go away either. As his brother dragged him towards the table Amos could do little more than fret. Wouldn't you do the same in his skin? Let's forget the fact that those he considered close left him, all but for one, and focus on the idea of being a solitary creature that dislikes being in the spotlight. Now add the fact that he was one of the few humans around. Despite most ponies not caring all that much after just a few minutes you have to understand that there were stares, not a few either, but many a pony did eye him warily.

Throwing the glass at someone and almost hitting Whimpy didn't help either.

It was a simple principle for him: He didn't like people, people didn't like him, end of story. Azul had been easy to relate and talk to, maybe it was thanks to the fatalistic end he had shared, but Amos had felt a bit of a connection there and had even relaxed when Morrow was around. It probably was because Amos was used to carefree people, and Azul was quite carefree, or he looked like it at least, while Morrow was almost a Rule 63 of his brother in pony form.

...

No, just no, fuck it., brain bleach is needed

Why in the nine hells had he warmed up to someone so fast anyway? Back home it would have taken weeks, if not months, and that was being generous. But here it took just a few minutes for him to just accept them? And this is also adding into account a topic such as how Earth got even more fucked up than it was, the one topic he utterly hated. That topic always downed his mood and this time it just blew over like nothing after just getting him slightly upset.

"Bro, you are weirding everyone out"

Well, shit.

Everyone was at the table, including his brother. Seven seats, six filled, and everyone was eyeing Amos with a mix of wonder and worry as he just stared forward like a dunce.

"Sorry guys and gals, he has problems interacting with others" Pacho waved a hand inches away from his brother, only to get a bite mark on his thumb "SHIT! You promised you wouldn't do that anymore! LEGOLEGOLEGOLEGOLEGO YOU FUCKER!" He was almost jumping up and down and waving his free hand, about to do something very violent.

Amos spat his brother's thumb with a mocking grin on his face "Don't mess with me bro. I am quick,  you are strong"

A gentle chuckle caught the tall brother's attention "You seem like a spry young man I have to say" The owner was an equaly gentle looking mare with a disarming smile on her face "I am Cheerilee, I meet everyone else here but you, including a very... animated Bender"

Cheerilee was more or less average as far as height goes for ponies. She was probably around one meter, possibly slightly over that height, while she was also slightly wider than some other ponies. It didn't exactly come as a shock when Amos thought back to the conversation with her brother and remembered that Cheerilee was a teacher. Taking care of kids was taxing, and if they were as mischievous as human kids, then the girl probably got a workout simply by trying to give her class with some semblance of order.

Her green eyes were full of mirth and patience, her smile was big and sincere, and she looked the type to take care of herself at all times as well as take care of those around her. With a two tone mane (light rose on the sides and light cerise in the middle), mimicked by her tail, as well as... shall we call it simply cerise? Whatever, cerise for a coat, the mare looked quite a bit like Berry, but there were enough differences (At least Amos thought so) to not ask whether she was related to Berry or not, not like he really gave a damn at the moment.

She got up to offer a hoof to him after the few seconds that took Amos to eye her up and down without so much as a hint from him. That made it possible for the tall  man to finally see her cutie mark: Three smiling flowers. It was hard to relate THAT thing to teaching, but fuck it, his brain was already hurting so he simply shook her hoof.

"Amos, though I am sure my brother told you my  name already"

Cheerilee smiled and nodded "Oh yes he did, and he also told me to call you Bone until you are comfortable with me. Your brother is quite a nice person, though I think he could dial back a bit on certain aspects" Her smile receded a bit.

"He asked you about how sex works here, eh?" Despite everything else that was going on, Amos had to do his best not to chuckle.

"Well yes" Her smile was gone "But that isn't what worries me" She directed a pointed glare at Amos "He seems to think that sex is there just to have fun, and he should know better than that"

Pacho raised his hands to show he wasn't up for it "You already chewed me over it, so no need to get me again. Besides, isn't your charge the one to start with the story? He'll learn about our little mishap soon enough"

Amos gave his brother a look "Story?"

"Oh yea, mostly needed because you were out of it" He chuckled a bit "Well, I was around a lot the other day, so I meet these two here and there" Pacho pointed at both Azul and the other human that Amos hadn't been able to analyze properly yet "But I don't know all that happened or how they got here, not the whole story anyway, so I wanted them to share and then it would be our..." Amos' glare intensified "My turn, if the others want me to tell them whatever they missed when I went back to the hive"

"Damn right it will be your turn, I don't talk that much" When Amos finally decided to sit down he looked to his side, the area where Cheerilee was sitting, and saw the bandaged man eyeing him evenly a step away from him "And you must be Evidio Balistreri"

He nodded but didn't offer his hand "Evidio Balistreri indeed, at your service" His voice was smooth and serious, an air of formality around him.

The man was roughly one meter seventy in height with short blonde hair, green eyes and almost chiseled features on his face, chest, arms and legs. It was obvious that this man was not one for inactivity, nor did he take poor care of any single bit of his body. Not only were the muscles an example of that, but those white teeth showed that the guy made sure to take his time with everything while both brothers had their own mouths slightly touched, be it because Amos hadn't paid as much attention to his own health sometimes (and a few impacts) or because Pacho's sweets were more powerful than the older brother's will.

His eyes were the only sickly thing you'd see as far as his unarmed body went. Sickly yellow, something that struck Amos as odd, but then again bio engineering made huge leaps back home, and for someone powerful, influential and loaded it was easy to do something as easy as to change their eyes' color since there were many other things you could do in 2038 that you couldn't do twenty years ago. Despite the sick like coloration however, those eyes were sharp as an eagle's, and the man made sure to watch Amos with as much precaution as the tall man did him.

Other than the muscular look, chiseled face and almost perfect damn body overall, the man was hurt. His right arm was bandaged from hand to shoulder, and it was clear that the underside of that arm had been cut deep as there was some blood coating the bandages, albeit it was little more than a few specks at the moment. His chest was covered, at least his stomach was, and there were multiple scars that were obviously made from old cuts and impacts while part of his head was bandaged with a slight bit of blood falling from the side of what seemed to be a still healing gash.

As far as clothes went? The pants and shows, finely made too, but the pants at least had a few slashes and it was obvious that whatever had happened had destroyed his shirt. There were many areas that had blue, purple and even black all over his body, so it was obvious that he hadn't arrived here as happily as everyone else.

"Admiring my sister's handiwork?" He asked without giving it much thought or any visible emotion on his face. This guy was better than Amos at hiding things.

Amos blinked for a moment, sincerely surprised "What do you mean?"

"My sister did this to me" Evidio explains with a shrug "It is the reason I was going to die, simple as that" Turning to the side, he gave a gentle pet to the mare sitting between Cheerilee and him "A sad development I did not see coming. Despite such blunder it allowed me to help someone, although it gave the three of us quite the scare"

The mare was quiet, and sad. Her blue eyes were as big and precious as that of any other pony, but behind that deep blue of hers was not a sea of happiness, but a river of tears. It was hard to describe, but for a creature that looked like a lovely cartoon made for kids at first glance, the mare literally felt like sadness was radiating from her. That effect was dampened when Evidio touched her, and the frown on her face fell quite a bit, even if it was still there.

Despite that little fact it was obvious that the mare was quite beautiful as far as mares go, albeit in a darker coloration than usual In fact she was both taller than usual, maybe not much more than Cheerilee but still above average for a pony, and had dark colors on her coat and mane. With what looked like a mix of light brown and yellow mane and three shades of brown for her mane, she was one of the few ponies Amos had seen that lacked the same color scheme on her tail, having it as a two tone instead of three. It was something surprising since most had an almost identical style of mane and tale, so when he looked at it intently, curiosity killing him, he could see that the tail was styled to try and hide a few bald spots near the base, as if something had happened there.

That there was something wrong with the mare became even more obvious when she turned to face Evidio with something close to a smile, only to fail and turn it upside down as quickly as she did so. She quickly turned away, showing her right side fully for a moment. On that side Amos could see a red heart surrounded by a white lace; a quite cute and simple cutie mark, no pun intended. However, once she turned away, embarrassed at her little display, she showed that her left side had a large bald spot on her flank, a bald spot covered with scars that his brother knew very well. They were knife marks. 

That shocked Amos more than he thought it should. How could any creature do that to a pony? He could be an asshole when needed, but this was... 

Why was the thought of such a wound so alien to him right now? Scars, and worse things, were common back home, more so for those that were alive during the war, be it as kids or adults, no one was spared if they were caught in the middle of it. Why would be the idea of a pony this wounded a surprising one? It could've been a fight, as simple as that, or something more sinister. It was something that most people would just wonder for a moment back home, maybe ask if curious, and then let go since there are worse things than a simple old wound.

This just seemed wrong. For whatever reason it just struck Amos as sickening that a pony would hurt another this much, it was just as sickening, if not more, to think that they went for the cutie mark with such a passion. It was like if someone found out your hands were what gave you joy because you paint, write or some other reason, only to mangle them.

It didn't help any that the same side was bandaged too, not the flank in this case, but she had been wounded not too long ago, around the midsection to be specific. The wound seemed fresh, but unlike Evidio the mare looked to be healing much faster since there was no blood whatsoever despite the obvious length of it and the fact that she winced as she moved, no matter how slight or slow the movement was.

"Don't worry about her wound, it is not as bad as it looks" Cheerilee chimed in, bringing Amos back to reality "You seemed to focus on her side with such intent..."

"It just seems wrong" He half muttered "I had the impression that this world was peaceful, perfect even"

"Our world is really nice, almost with no conflict even" Cheerilee smiled gently "Everypony could tell you that, but where there is light there is also darkness" Despite this Cheerilee still smiled kindly "There can't be good without bad, harmony requires a balance and sometimes it tips to one side, but we do try to make the best of it"

"Take Eve for example" While not as cheerful as before, Cheerilee did her best to smile at the dark coated mare "She is from an important family, she lived on Manehattan with her father and her mother, but she said that there were... problems after her father passed away" Said mare grimaced without looking anywhere but the ground "I was asked to take care of her and watch over Evidio, and while they will live with me for a while I didn't ask about them too much, after all I do respect other ponies' privacy" At that point Cheerilee focused on said human "Now, I know you told me a few things, but since you volunteered to tell us more I would welcome the chance to learn more about you if you please"

Evidio nodded without much outward emotion "First things first for those of you that do not know: She is Everlasting Embrace" Evidio gently patted at the mare at his side, receiving a gentle sigh in return "She told me, as you have already heard, that she is from Manehattan, from the Lasting Embrace family that has a few business over there. I cannot tell  you much more about that as she did not go into any details, nor was I in a mood to ask much when we talked about that"

"I would prefer not to talk about my family if at all possible" Eve's tone was neutral, detached, quite cold even, except for the sadness on her voice "I hardly plan on having anything to do with them ever again"

"I share such sentiment at the present" Evidio gave the mare a small smile that went without reciprocation, the first try at showing any emotion without guarding his expression at all "And since you do not wish to share I will not force you to" He turned to face everyone else "I, on the other hand, want to get rid of all that weight and start anew as soon as possible"

Cheerilee's smile came back full force "Then would you share with all of us please? I would like to get to know you more and learn why you are here. You did drop some hints but... since all of us may be meeting regularly I think it would be better for us to have no questions that could come at a bad time for anypony"

Everyone nodded in agreement, everyone but Amos. 

He had been still, waiting, wondering. It hadn't been a whole day yet and he was already seeing a few things he didn't like. What one gets by being silent and observant is, as you may have guessed it, perception, and perception was what made Amos flee most people that he thought could hurt him or had certain interests that he didn't share. True that it would seem superficial, and it was in some cases, but it is very much the same thing he had received all his life, so he had never felt too bad about being too quick to abandon the ship.

Despite his insistence on avoiding people his brother had made sure to force such situations on him as often as possible. The one positive thing from those encounters was that not only did he notice the small things directed at him, but it was easier to see those things that were directed at others. It could be argued that he wasn't as good as he thought, in fact it would probably be spot on, but having that little touch, that little edge, given by Chrysalis, made it much easier whether Amos knew it or not. It was almost child's play to just notice, even if he didn't know how to explain, that the two men he got to meet today shared something with their respective mares.

In fact he could argue that there were connections so obvious between the two little groups that it was just plain impossible to miss, and he was sure that he was not the right person to notice it at almost first glance. True that he didn't know about Evidio, Cheerilee and Eve, but Azul and Morrow were just plain insulting with how easy it was to read. But it was impossible that one could connect this fast, it was basically unheard of, at least unless something was very wrong or horribly right. 

You could call him skeptic, you could call him an hypocrite, both things would have more than a bit of truth to them. In fact you could call him whatever you want, it would indeed ring home, but being how he was had helped him more than once in the past.

There was something at play here, something that was throwing his previous good vibes about this, his regret at being angry, to the trash can. Playing the waiting game had never hurt before however, and they also said that patience was a virtue. Fleeing from these situations had been commonplace once, and yet it didn't feel right now despite how wrong something felt to the tall man. That was one of the reasons that made him think something was afoot. The doubt of his choices and feelings went unnoticed by the others however, so Evidio decided to start his little tale.

"It was two days ago, early in the morning while the sun was still low..."





***


Monday, the eight of November, morning. Usually it would have been like any other day at six, except the alarm clock was bro...

*Riiiiiiiiiiing!*

Well, now it was six in the morning and the alarm clock was intact. Whatever; it was still dark, still cold and still lonely.

In a way of speaking that is.

Once one of the best suites at the hotel he lived, the place he had considered his home for years now, now a mess of immeasurable proportions. What once was a magnificent living room with portraits of their ancestors as well as some fine art he had acquired during his life, with beautiful marble walls and expensive furniture as well as a large and pricey television with many bookshelves full of rare books that he loved to read, was, in turn, no more than a wasteland full of holes, a few burnt marks, discarded weapons, broken equipment and unconscious or heavily wounded bodies as well as blood copious amounts of blood.

For nearly eighteen years this had been his home; it had survived the war, it had survived the dispute between the remaining families and it had survived his sister's attempts to shack him of everything when their father had told them that yes, Evidio would inherit leadership of their family since he had wanted to turn things around. It was never meant to survive a real confrontation that was brought within its confines, it was supposed to remain here, calm and untouched, to comfort the man after whatever soured his day.

Thirty six years of age and Evidio had seen much, with this place seeing as much as he did if not more. He had seen his family grow from two bit thugs to one of the biggest families in Italy, he had seen his father worried by the new authority and the fact that not using it would condemn them all. But he also saw his father happy at how Evidio had grown, as well as his despair when Evidio's sister started heading down a road he had hoped she would avoid. This place had been home for good and bad in equal measure, and Evidio had hoped for it to be the house of his offspring when he finally meet someone he could share his life with.

Things usually don't turn that way, there is no happy ending, not for people like him in any case.

Had it been the time spent learning how to manage his family? Had it been the time he used to read and entertain himself, alone? Could it be the fact that he spent so long taking care of his mother when she was sick, or the distress when she passed away? Evidio didn't know why, but he never found anyone he could relate to. He had money, he had the looks, he had the personality and intellect, but no one, not even gold diggers, came to him. The only woman that approached him did so out of hate, and it was not his own sister, although she could be added to the list for different reasons.

Whereas he had done all he could to learn the right manners, techniques and common knowledge to run a business and take care of his father's legacy, his sister was a brutal woman that lived of envy and anger as well as fights and blood. She had not been like that all her life, much like most other monsters, but she changed young and without apparent reason other than the war raging around them. She was just two years younger than Evidio, and other than for longer hair and the obvious difference in sex, the only thing to mark as unique about her was that she loved to let her nails grow until they were lethal weapons.

You'd think that was a joke, but a simple visit to the hospital and the right treatment made her hands as dangerous as a lion's claw. With her love for poisons added to the mix it was easy to understand how Evidio had a large gash on his forehead, how his right arm had been almost cut open, if not ripped apart, on the underside and why his chest had three long, but luckily not too deep, cuts that did nothing but bleed.

All the while his sister lied in a pool of her own blood, eyeing him in anger, spite, loathing and as many other variations of just plain old hate. She did so with glassy, empty eyes.

His sister, was dead.

Had it been wrong of him to do so? Everyone else, every single member of his organization, had tried to take him alive, they had wanted all but harm the one that was aiming to give them and their own families a good life, only for his sister to 'gently' remind them of who would tell the authorities about them if they failed. That had been underhanded even for her.

With how things were, even so long after the war, criminals were quickly sentenced to death to rid the world of possible dangers. Not only criminal activities but also religions had been literally banned after the war had started some 'crusades', or whatever some nations had called them. There had been so much panic, so much abuse of power and so many idiots that the already waning power of religion and the fear of crime turned into all out hate from the population.

Many families had tried to go back to how things were with them in power, now the graveyard had many more visitors, permanent ones. The law had decided to come down, hard, all over the world, and the peace that had been enjoyed for this long was brought by blood and fear during the beginning.  Now that few criminals remained, and most people had more than enough to survive with almost more than half the world gone, the idea of going back to causing problems was almost taboo, only to be made fearsome when a big enough crime could land you a few feet under without more than a trial and a few hours of wait.

His sister had wanted to go back to what could be called the new dark ages for whatever reason. Evidio didn't know why, Evidio didn't care why, there were just too many things he didn't know, and many more things he didn't give a shit for at the moment.  The only thing that Evidio knew, the one that tried to push everything else away from his mind, was that he had a black band on his hand as he rested against the window, still looking at his sister and wondering what he should do.

The weird man had given him a choice, or so he said. Evidio knew very well how these 'choices' went: They were no choices, they were test, and you had no say in the matter, nor had you a chance of escaping what was planned for you. The one thing you could do is show the one giving you the test how you would react. 

The man in question had arrived after Evidio had killed his sister with those old ornamental swords of his... Ironic when you think that he bought them to remind himself that violence and death was a waste of resources, time, money and an endangerment of the future. He remembered the day he bought them as if it was yesterday, with his little sister asking if he could have her own gladius, like the Romans of old, to fight whoever bothered her gladiator style. At the time he had laughed, now his sister had both weapons deep within her stomach and laughter was the one thing furthest from his mind and body, almost the same as his life if the venom in his wounds ran its course. Strangely, at least for someone who valued life as he did, there was a morbid curiosity calling for him to just wait it out and see what was beyond.

Despite everything that had happened he could not bring himself to cry. Why bother? What the man told him was that either he stayed or died, or he could jump through the window to the portal on the other side. Evidio was no idiot and knew that the choice was not his to make; the man had not left, and he would ensure Evidio survived whether he wanted or not. This was all but one of those tests after all, about how he would react, what he would allow to happen or what he would do himself.

That man... he had arrived, looked around and smirked, at first. When he saw that Evidio's sister was dead instead of simply defeated his smile banished and a frown took its place. He did not elaborate, but it was obvious that he found no displeasure in the carnage if it was not permanent, as Evidio had commented offhandedly to him. Death though... death brought that man from smiles and pleasantries to anger.

Evidio had been sure, he was completely convinced, that the man would have reacted differently in any other situation. There was an air about him that called for mischief, smirks, pranks and many other things, but when he saw the only real casualty of this battle the usual behavior of such a man was destroyed. Evidio did not know why he knew, he just did, and the distress of finding the man's mannerism lacking had been the only respite of his fears, fears that came back crashing and were hurting him right now.

One thing, he had wanted ONE thing his entire life. He had everything that anyone else would've wanted, but all HE wanted was a simple life with someone to care for. Was it such a big thing to ask for? Was it such a damn big thing? Seeing the scenery in front of him told Evidio all he needed to know. For him it was just too much, and there was not enough money in the world to change that fact.

A magic world full of harmony and understanding? What stupidity... But he had been going down the route many others had this past month. That was another choice: The sleeping sickness or dying through the venom within his veins?

The sad part of this all? This was not the worst day he had suffered through this last month.

Many had called him strong, others had called him an idiot. Right now he was not sure if he was either, both or none at all, he was only sure that the only thing that kept him going was his family, his real family, not the thing that had earned such a name back in the day here in Italy. The last remnant of said family had been his sister, and now she was gone after trying to take Evidio down. His father was no more, not in a way that he could take care of everything here anyway, so that left Evidio alone. It hurt more than anything else he could think of, more than the venom should at this point.

As he looked at the window and what was on the other side he felt his chest tighten and his lungs burn. Sadness could kill any human if it hit hard enough, but dying was not part of Evidio's plan. There had been no time to call for an ambulance, nor had there been a chance with his whole house utterly destroyed. The only way that help would come was not the one he needed, mostly because the police wouldn't exactly be fast enough, or gracious enough, for his tastes. They would know nothing of his associates here, and it was that simple thing that made the ghost of a smirk play on his lips. If nothing else, if nothing fucking else, the ones forced to try and hurt him would not be punished too severely, or at least he hope they would not be.

But that was a realistic hope. Was it crazy to hope that a funny looking man and his strange words were a better alternative than waiting for the proper authorities? Well, this world had seen weird things already, just not THAT weird.

Well, the sounds of sirens finally caught up to him. This wasn't such a tall building after all, just fancy, but the time for help had already passed him. The venom was going to mess him up soon enough, in fact nothing sort of a magic touch would help him, and even then it would leave him crippled for a while. His sister loved to talk about all those nasty things her venoms could do to a body, and she had ranted for a few minutes before doing the deed, hoping for Evidio to bleed out just enough for her to finish him off.

Stupid child always thought she could do things fast and efficient. That is not how art works, it usually gets you killed in fact.

"Sad that it is the truth more often than not" Evidio mused to himself as he opened the window and jumped outside.





Whoever thought that creating a blue rippling portal in front of a tree was funny was, indeed, an ass. At any other time he would have thought 'Well, the impact probably rid me of some of the venom', better be positive, right? Well, right now there was blood loss in mind as well as many other ailments coursing through his body. Probably that was the one thing that made him think 'Hey, at least you are alive' instead of 'Less than fifteen seconds for impact against the ground'.

He was dying, what did you think, that he was going to be all smiles?

But there was a very obvious upside after all: There had been a real portal out there for him. Yea, he was messed up, yes, he was probably going to die, but no one would say that he sat idly waiting for death to claim him. He had survived nearly a dozen of his men just because he didn't want to really kill him. He survived his sister because she was beyond impatient and egocentric to the point of being compared to a comic villain. The venom was not intelligent, it would just kill him, so it was either making human pancake or hoping that someone would heal him, and probably help him get the blood out of his eyes if he did survive, because he didn't see sh...

"I paid for you!"

"You paid for my time! You do not ow-AAAAAH!"

If there was one thing Evidio was guilty of, it was his duty. He may have wanted a simple life, but his family, both the real one and the business, came first to ensure everyone else's well being. He grew up and saw how horrid things could go, how much people could suffer, and that was one thing he did not abide under any reasons. He was no hero for he was not above killing who needed to be killed, but he did his best to play the act and talk the talk whenever it came to such a thing. No knight in shining armor for sure, but despite everything he did, and what he could do, Evidio liked to think himself a good man.

Then again being gallant could be considered stupid, and the two voices were female, but sex had nothing to do with good or evil, so gallantly would not do much more than get him in trouble. Still, what did had something to do with being what he considered 'good' was the way of acting, the desires, morality and one's restrain. The sharp cry of pain from the second voice told Evidio what he had to do, and while he knew not of context, while he could hardly see under the crimson veil that was his blood, or the pain clouded his mind, he knew that whatever was happening was something he would not abide for, whether it was a smart choice to get involved or not.

His sight was impaired, his hearing was perfectly functional however, so walking towards the general area was just as hard as his blood decided to make it, because wiping it with a hand wouldn't do much right now. Not only did a bad eyesight make this idea stupid, but the venom decided to overpower what adrenaline was there and make the pain even more obvious as he sprinted towards what he guessed was a house. At this point he didn't give a damn if this was idiotic anymore; if he was going to die, he was going to die doing something good, or trying to at least, it would be good karma after this morning's events if nothing else.

"That will teach you to..." The first voice halted as it noticed Evidio's presence as he managed to finally get to whoever was assaulting the other woman "You were not supposed to be here"

The voice was female indeed, but  it was also incredibly grave, dull, with just anger as a medium if Evidio was to be truthful. He could not see who it was, at best just glancing at what looked like two grey legs, and even that was hard to discern, but she seemed...

His little analysis was stopped as he quickly jumped to the side as best as he could. He was unable to see well, but at least he did notice the knife flying towards his face just in time.

"You were supposed to die! Like the rest of the dark hearts!" The voice hissed "This game with the meddlers... It will end soon enough! Stay put and take this!"

Evading the knife had been pure luck, that it didn't hit him when the knife returned from somewhere else was simply thanks to the first voice's anger forcing a mistake to happen at the right time. Said luck held as a new voice came into the picture as Evidio lunged forward to whoever had tried to kill him.

"Who is there at this hour?! What is that ruckus?!"

A low growl escaped the first voice as the new one came into the picture "More busybodies... This plan is already a bust, all because of you"

A flash of light was the only clear thing Evidio could see before he collided with the ground and all turned to darkness at last.


***





"Wait a second"

The story was paused as Amos let his arms rest on the table. There had been maybe a question or two, as well as their condolences about Evidio's sister, even if Amos felt that the bitch got what was coming to her. This, however, was the first real pause they made.

Evidio, patient for now, gave him an even but questioning look "Yes?"

"It doesn't feel right" Amos clarified without batting an eye "The wounds on you were done back home, but hers?" He waved at Eve with distaste of what had just been told "I may be many things, but unnecessary violence is something I dislike. I had the impression that this place was better than this"

It was Cheerilee whom spoke "As I said before: There is good and evil within Equestria. There is more good than evil of course, and most 'evil' is mostly done in petty and harmless ways" She sighed at that "Bullying, maybe a robbery, some quarrels or a simple bar fight... It is a distasteful thing to be sure, and there is a bit of conflict in there, but everything balances out in the end" She frowned for a second "And yet... lately things had been changing for the worse, something that should not happen... something that..."

A surprising interruption came from the least expected source "Oh yes, Celestia did tell me" Pacho didn't have his usual mirth as he spoke "That the magic that mare left behind was not unlike her own" The others looked at him as if he had grown a new head "So you can imagine it would be better if we, you know, didn't tell others of this, understood?"

This comment made everyone shut up. If there were questions to be formed they would be addressed to the daily monarch. It was one simple way for the usually cheerful brother to bring everyone down to earth and to the tale that had been started already.

"Now" His smile came back shortly after "Do continue"





***


Waking up with something close to a full body hangover was not exactly one of the finest thing in life that Evidio had learned to love. Indeed he hardly drank liquor at all, nor did he enjoy sweets, junk food and many other things that many people had grown accustomed to, and being sick was hardly a thing that happened much, at least to him. He did enjoy commodities and precious things, but for food and drink he needed little more than fruits, vegetables and water as well as some meat or fish from time to time. Maybe his father had drilled too hard the idea of a healthy lifestyle, but it had allowed Evidio to be in a state that could be considered perfect as far as health went for most of his life.

Today that near perfect bill went down the drain as his whole body ached like if he had been trapped within an iron maiden capable of puncturing every single millimeter of his body.

Pain didn't begin to explain how it felt, but it all paled in comparison to the numbness he felt as he found out he was alive.

He was alive, his sister was not.

The previous day was fresh in his mind. No, the MORNING, the damn morning when the bell rang, the morning that got him up earlier than usual dressed in fine clothes, with a smirk on his face to try and greet whoever had decided to come to him at such an ungodly hour, the morning that got him a face full of fist from an apologetic friend that wished this hadn't happened. That morning was going to be burned into his mind, and the happenings before he fainted just there as garnish to it all. 

The pain assured he was conscious and that this was not a dream, something he had wished to believe so much that the hope being shattered only worsened his mental state. With his arm on fire, his chest feeling like a train had trampled him and his head giving him a splitting headache that was inversely proportional to the size of the gash, meaning it hurt all over to the point where Evidio just had no way for it to stop. Even the intact parts of his body were burning thanks to the venom that had coursed through his veins. Whether he wanted it or not this just meant that he was alive, and it had such an air of finality to it that it was not the happy awakening he had desperately hoped for.

Despite this Evidio had been groomed to be someone that let his feelings show only on occasions, which meant something simple: When he was alone or with those he cared for he was willing to show what he felt, even if bottling emotions made them fester it was how he had been taught. Even so, right now he didn't know if he was alone, but he was sure that there was no one to care for, so what was swelling inside him would need to be hidden for as long as Evidio thought necessary. Not like it would be hard to show no emotion anyway, despite how much that one single feeling was killing him from the inside.

He felt dead, completely destroyed, on the inside.

It hurt so damn much.

What reason did his sister have for what she did? How had she been turning worse and worse without apparent reason? At this point... did it... did it even matter anymore? He wanted an answer, any answer, but his mind just conjured more pain, and not the one coming from his wounds.

Despite his wishes and the desire to hold it within his person, Evidio found it hard to not give away as his eyes watered while he did his best to just try and go back to sleep. The only thing that made the silence disperse like a fog was his labored breathing as he tried to hold whatever kind of dignity he still had.

"You are awake"

The voice held no question, it was simply a statement, one that sobered Evidio just enough.

"I would like to give you my thanks, if you can spare a few moments"

Opening his eyes was hard, ensuring that they were dry or that his situation wasn't noticed was equally hard, if not even more so. Despite what was going around his head Evidio did want to see just who he had helped the day before and to make sure that this was not a dream, pain be damned, because he wished so much for this to be a bad joke that it was not even funny. Any ray of sunshine, ANY kind of happiness for a work well done, even if he had been just on autopilot, was going to be welcome.

Sadly, opening his eyes did little more than allow him to gaze at the brown ceiling. Turning his head to the right allowed him to see the wall, turning his head to the left allowed him to see the one he had helped by being rash, stupid and what once upon a time he would've liked to call heroic. At this point in time he would call it 'stupid', maybe 'feverish', or simply 'madness'. If it hadn't been for the adrenaline he would have collapsed and cared for nothing for the rest of his life. As it stood however, there was someone eyeing him with deep blue eyes on the other side of the room.

"Hi" Eve tried to give him a smile, but was unable to do more than grimace "I am Everlasting Embrace, but you can call me Eve if you want"

That she was a little pony did not surprise Evidio as much as it should. Why would it? He got here by something that could be considered magic. More importantly: He didn't feel more than pain and whatever negative feelings were pooling on his mind at the moment. How much would anyone care at this point? The shock of her talking in his own language, the fact that she was intelligent, the bandages that hinted at the wound on her side... they were all just minor things. There would be time for shock or denial later down the road, right now he was searching for that little bit of happiness.

"Evidio Balistreri" He croaked as best as he could "Just Evidio for you"

"Thanks for your help, Evidio" The mare nodded, almost bowed you could say, under the covers of the bed she was occupying "I thought I was dead when that mare pulled out that knife of hers..."

The idea of talking hurt just as much as actually doing it "What did I stumble upon the other night?"

Eve bit her lip at the question. Despite the obvious distaste at the thought it brought, the mare did felt she needed to answer "My... time was acquired by somepony" She said in half a whisper "But they wanted more than what they bought alongside that..."

"I see..."

Both were hurt, Evidio could see it, but the mare was hurt in a different way, much like Evidio. She was not just hurt physically, it was more than that. They both had been hurt recently, but whereas his other pain was fresh the mare's own seemed to be distant, it had festered. Sadness did not come just from an attempt to your life. Worry? Yes, that would indeed happen, much like fear, maybe hate and loathing, but not sadness. Eve was all but radiating it, you just needed to look her in the eyes for a moment to see it, and it was not one pool that Evidio wanted to swim in at the present. He wanted to see someone hurt, but grateful, not another soul looking down, wondering if the abyss would look back. It was better to talk about something else

"Where am I?"

"A little village called Ponyville"

"Figures. What world is this?"

"There is no consensus. Some call it Equis, Equus, Equius or in some other ways. Equis seems to be a popular choice, it is the common language here after all, so it just rolls off the tongue with ease"

"I m not too fond of puns I have to say"

"Neither am I, so I see where you are coming from"

"And yet you seem to be taking this whole bad joke of a day in stride"

"Almost killed by a stranger, saved by a stranger. First time I have seen kindness and ruthlessness in the same day after quite a long time. Finding out that the stranger is not of this land or this world is not as important, nor as surprising, as just getting some help for a change"

"You got saved by a broken man from a broken world, by mere chance mind you, and you do not seem to do much more than being thankful when you do not know me or the reason I saved you"

This time there was a pause on their banter. The mare just looked up, eyes shining brightly. Light was coming through a window between them, but those large orbs of hers were big enough to catch much more than Evidio's own, and the glint on them, albeit sad, made them shine like gems.

"Broken things get discarded, and yet they tend to end up together, fun as it is" This time, even if it was sad, she gave him a little smile "Neither of us is intact, and alien or not, I thank you all the same. Everything else matters little to me and I hardly have a reason to offer gratitude to anypony these days, so you have all of that and more"

That made him sigh as Eve lied back in bed, having said her piece at last. Closing his eyes brought him back to the devoid dreamland for a few hours, granting him rest that he needed more than he thought. What it did not bring was the peace of mind he had hoped for.





The next time he woke up it was still day, but the sun had moved greatly and Evidio found himself alone and with less pain. The fire still burned all over his body, but it was not as crippling as before. As much as it hurt however it was not fatal, and right now the pain had lessened to the point that he could tolerate the idea of moving, and for that reason alone Evidio decided to try and get up, only to notice the bandages that covered his wounds. At least there was not much blood, mostly because the telltale sign of having them removed and applied again a few times, probably because something had gone wrong, it was to be expected if this place had... ponies as people. It was already incredibly surprising that he was still alive at all so being healed without his knowledge, probably by said ponies, was as important and impressive to him as talking with one earlier, comparatively speaking of course.

Wait, not, that was not true now that he was thinking at least a bit more clearly; he simply didn't give a damn. The numbness was still there whether he wanted it or not. Was it silly to mourn for someone that tried to kill you and that probably didn't feel like you were part of her family like you feel she was part of yours? Probably, probably not, it depends on who you ask. He was just angry, incredibly angry, and it was the only feeling, other than sadness, that he could feel at the moment. At one point he would have been impressed, maybe even delighted, to see a new world like this, a new species and only god knows how many chances to make things better for everyone.

Now the most interesting thing he found was the door in front of him and the fact that everything, including his own hands, looked like a damn kids' cartoon show.

Ironic, because those things had a happy ending most times.

What he wanted to do once he got out of the room? He did not know, he only knew that he wanted to get out of here right now, get out of here, go somewhere secluded, ignore the damn pain and scream until his anger went away. For that simple reason he was not ready to deal with what he saw on the other side once he decided to go through with it.

"So you mean to tell me that it is all about love..."

"Of course it is! How would we allow such a thing otherwise? It would be criminal and simply cruel for part of the group, if not the whole lot of them"

A pink mare and a short, bulky and quite rotund man were in the middle of a classroom with floating chairs, chalkboard, books and some other learning devices. Floating just above the man's head, in the middle of this tornado of chaos, was a laughing draconequus that gave Evidio a little wink.

"Well, well, well, the poisoned one is awake" He chuckled, waving a hand and creating a mirror in front of Evidio's face "Like the new look? I think you are even more idealized now that you are saturated with magic, and that is saying something"

The mare turned to give Evidio a gentle smile that replaced what seemed to be indignation "Hello there, I am Cheerilee" The mare gave him a little nod before pointing a hoof at the side "And my rotund friend here is called Pacho, though he seems to prefer the name 'Bender' around me"

"You burst my bubble, you get to call me Bender" He said gruffly.

"I didn't do anything like that" Cheerilee sighed "I told you that herds are not formed as harems just for fun. Yes, you can do it with anypony that is up for it, sex is welcome when two, or more, want it, but you do not make a herd that way. We have rules, both physical, moral and magic ones, that work to ensure everyone's happiness when we form a herd. We teach our children about the birds and the bees early so they know and are prepared, I told you this and you reacted like if I had slapped you"

"Because kids have no place knowing about that!" Pacho retorted.

"Maybe in your culture they don't" Cheerilee shook her head "But here we value knowledge and despise that other ponies get hurt. It is important to show the children everything so they know all about the world and how to not make a mistake. This makes it hard for anyone to do anything to them, anything they don't want in any case" She glared at the man for a moment "Would you prefer they be ignorant of how things really are? You said members of your species is considered adult after eighteen years more or less, but ours is variable from fourteen to twenty one, or sometimes they take longer than that. We can reach adulthood very soon or take a longer time than most. It would be unfair to let hide it from them when they could be considered adults at an early age, only for them to end up hurting themselves and the lives they make if they don't know any better"

The man narrowed his eyes at the mare "And what if those kids did something they would regret with that knowledge? What if they decided to test how those parts work?"

"The world's magic would ensure they don't end up with a burden they cannot lift" Cheerilee said with conviction "If someone does not wish to do such a thing, then they do not, and if the other party tries to force them, then the result is obvious as well as horrible beyond mention" The seemingly endless cheer on the mare's voice ended "Doing such a thing is one of the worst crimes in Equestria. A thousand deaths felt in a split second is but the beginning when it comes to its punishment, one of the few things our princess of the sun carries with gusto when it comes to violence, and the one thing that has ensured no single crime of this magnitude has taken place in hundreds of years"

"She is saying the truth" The draconequus commented as he fixed every chair to the ceiling in a somewhat artistic display, paying only so much attention to what happened under him "No one has ever tried to do such a horrible thing in a long time, the world itself would punish them incredibly. Not even King Sombra was such a monster, though he was... shall we say special, maybe? He had other things in his mind back then in any case and the darkest of creatures I know would never force any creature against their will, it would be simple madness"

"Precisely" Cheerilee smiled "Forcing anypony to do such a thing would be abhorrent beyond belief. I do not mind your questions, but do not suggest such a thing ever again" The mare huffed in indignation "If young ones have somepony they love and want to explore my teachings, no matter who or what they are, they can, and they do so with great care for everypony's safety. Doing anything less than that would mark them within Equestria's history and they would be worse off than a rabid monsters"

"Okay jeez" Pacho growled "Sorry but it just... sounds wrong to know that young ones are taught how to do that, how things work and such things. In my world it is almost taboo to teach that to kids, worse if they explore it, even if many of them still do after a certain age"

Cheerilee shrugged. She knew that different cultures reacted differently and had different customs, but ignoring one's desires and feelings was one of the reasons that explained how things could go downhill and create a monster worse than the animals out there. However in this land feelings were a very powerful force, and love was more important than some petty and stupid things that would cause pain. True that there were laws and morals, but too much of anything was always a bad thing.

"Love trumps all, be it age, social standing, blood relation or species... It is a wonderful feeling that is as strong as the world. If there is love then there is no problem as far as no one gets hurt, unless they desire such a thing as part of their private fun. But it is important to remember that what two ponies, or a group, do behind closed doors is nopony else's business unless someone is being forced to do something they don't like" 

That she was as flippant with that kind of talk surprised even the distant Evidio. The ponies, or at least Cheerilee, were incredibly more open than most humans, in fact most humans would have flipped the lid at this point.

"Love, tolerance, understanding, friendship... those are things I try to teach, but there are still ponies out there that aren't as nice as they could or should be. It is something that the common pony strives to spread, even if sometimes we do not manage to do such a thing, after all everypony is different" Her ears fell for a moment "Sadly it is necessary for harmony to work, so I accept such a thing as much as I accept those that do not share our views and those that look down on other ponies, even myself, just because we think differently" She snorted as she thought of something "It is usually the better off ponies, the rich and famous, the ones that act snobby and uptight. Strange when you think that many of them are related in bloodline to our princesses, the embodiment of harmony and friendship, at least when they are level headed" Cheerilee chuckled "Then again we do have some nobles and important ponies that are incredibly nice, so things even out"

"Leave it to the uptight ones to be disdainful and vain" The chimera chuckled "That is why Tia allows me to mess with them a lot; they need to relax and unwind"

"Maybe, but I don't like rich people in general" This time it was Pacho whom gave the not so amused stare into nothingness "Way too many bad encounters"

"Then I suppose you won't like our little Evidio there" Discord pointed at Evidio, whom had finally decided that his legs were in too much pain to give a damn and had sit down.

Pacho just gave him an inquisitive look "What do you mean, Discord?"

"Evidio Balistreri of the Balistreri family" The draconequus grinned at Pacho as he turned around, having used every piece of furniture within the room to make a giant face to his likeness right on the ceiling "You know, big shot mafia and all"

Evidio did little more than nod in confirmation.

"What is the big guy doing here?"

Discord shrugged at the question "His sister tried to kill him, he didn't exactly meet my criteria but I thought helping would be nice and all. Since this land has some familiarity with that kind of scenario I thought it fitting for him to have a change of residence"

Pacho snorted with a smirk "Sounds about right" He eyed Evidio with suspiciousness however "Going to do something to mess the place?"

"Not really my style, that would be my sister" Evidio didn't even shrug "She will not do such a thing now"

Sensing that it would be better not to ask, Pacho just nodded "Good enough for me"

"Yes, sorry for that little spat" Cheerilee approached Evidio, sitting in front of him "As I said; I am Cheerilee, a teacher here in Ponyville. You are at my school and now home, expanded a few weeks ago courtesy of Twilight Sparkle now that our little village is growing slowly. I hope the guest room was accommodating enough for you?"

"It was alright" Evidio waved her off "Why the spat?" No real curiosity either, but better for them to talk about something else.

"Bender had been touring the village with Princess Celestia before coming here. He asked for some time to learn things about Equestria and I happily obliged" Cheerilee smiled until she gave the other man a deadpan stare "Until he started asking about all the mares around town" Pacho gave her a husky smirk in return "He seems to be worse than the whole of Ponyville in heat, and I have seen most males in town building barricades in my teenage years so I know of what I talk about"

"Now that is something I want to see"

Cheerilee facehoofed at the comment "Why is it so much easier to teach foals than grown colts?" She sighed at the rhetoric question that Pacho almost answered "Don't. You. Dare" He still smirked at her though "Sorry, these are talks I haven't had in a while. The children that live in Ponyville already know of this and I have some problems of my own with a few... things"

"Broken heart?" Pacho did phrase it as a question, but it was more a statement than anything else. When Cheerilee didn't answer he got all he needed "I know about these things, believe it or not" He kneeled to rub the mare's back "How about you tell us more about Equestria, focus on something else, and forgive my rudeness"

Cheerilee nodded with a bit of her smile returning. Pacho hadn't been that bad a person, just... eager in a certain aspect, one that Cheerilee didn't exactly enjoy that much anymore.

As for Evidio? He was just happy to lie where he was, seeing the mad god use the room as his canvas to fight boredom while the pair talked. If Evidio was not the central piece of it all he did not mind others close by as far as he had time to center on his own thoughts with a escape route an earshot away in case that something dark crept into his mind.





Learning that the sun and moon don' work like back home certainly is an eye opener for anyone, and in fact it was quite a distraction to learn of that and of many other things. If this had happened when he was younger he he would have reveled on the idea of more than one mate, at least until he began to search for his significant other as he grew older. Right now it had been just a small push for a smile, something he was thankful for, but he didn't manage to get it to grace his lips.

Tales of adventures, adversities, monsters, villains and heroes had been enthralling and entertaining enough to push him from his brooding for a while, but the feeling of emptiness was still there and it returned as soon as a white alicorn, Princess Celestia, came for the only human that Evidio had hoped to see in this world. She had said that others were already here, and that he would meet them in due time. Firs, as she so elegantly had put it, he had to heal his own wounds, and she didn't mean the physical ones, not like she had to say it because even the most oblivious person would notice.

His problems did hit home when Celestia appointed Cheerilee as his and Eve's caretaker. It was obvious that they were not allowed to go unattended for more than apparent reasons.

The teacher had explained that Evidio had been healed by the local nurses and a doctor that managed to get to him and Eve in time to help, but it had been little more than a patchwork given the depth of his wounds and unknown agent working through his veins as well as his alien physiology, which explained the pain he shouldn't be feeling with appropriate medicine at hand. While Eve would be healed faster with magic and potions, Evidio was going to take longer. 

Considering that the princess didn't beat around the bush as she explained that both of Cheerilee's guests had other wounds to heal that would require some time and peace, Cheerilee was more than happy to lend a hoof and offer them the guest room of the little school. In fact she seemed way too chipper about it, but Evidio didn't comment on that.

This, however, had been plan B. It had been Eve the one to refuse a stay at the hospital, violently in fact.

Eve had more or less a bit of a, shall we call it breakdown? Her wound had been deep, and more concerning than those from Evidio if the venom wasn't took into account. While the deepest of his wounds had almost destroyed his right arm, which did hurt like all hell, Evidio's gut and forehead had been cut long and wide, not as deeply. Eve's own wound had been above the gut, and barely inches away from something that would have made the wound a fatal one, magic healing or not.

The first aid she had received here had been more than enough to help her stave off the initial threat, but for a more serious healing, and one wound that would leave no scar if she was lucky enough, she would need the hospital. Suffice to say that nurse Redheart now required a nurse of her own after she had gently asked for Eve to stay for a while. Eve was sorry, but she had been adamant about leaving the hospital once the mess was cleared.

Cheerilee had been more than gracious accepting after that little tidbit had been shared, in fact Celestia had quickly told her that she could find somepony else to accept these guests, but if there was one thing that Cheerilee had found out by being a teacher it is that foals help mend broken souls more than anything else. Funnily enough Celestia had smiled widely at that, conceding the point to the mare with a little nuzzle that had made Cheerilee blush for a second before Celestia departed, allowing Eve to gain entry to her temporal home.

Once she had accompanied both Evidio and Eve to their respective beds Cheerilee left for food, only to be stopped as both signaled little desire to eat. While still not too late in the day, and with little food on both their bellies (none in case of Evidio), neither seemed willing to just eat, each of them having a different reason to refuse such offer. That had concerned Cheerilee, as it would have concerned any sensitive person, but she did respect the pair's wishes in the end.

Daylight transformed little by little until dusk fell and night came. Cheerilee had been doing her best to visit, having told the pair that classes would be on hold for a while so they could rest, in fact it seemed like the time was scheduled just for comfort as no snow or heavy cold would be present until a week or two this year. She went so far as to invite them out at one point, but neither the human nor the mare cared for a walk, they did accept to go out tomorrow, only because Cheerilee was adamant about it.

Being idle was never a good thing for Evidio, and the less he did the worse it got, mostly because his mind wandered, much like it was doing now. In this stance it was the complete opposite though, for his mind was blank, with just one image in it and no memory coming to haunt him other than the face of his sister. He always thought that if he did something he would regret it would plague his dreams and every thought, instead it was just a still image that brought neither dread nor sorrow.

It just gave him the impression that at some point along the line, he had failed his sister miserably. And yet, despite that horrid fact, he could not bring himself to feel a single damn thing. The hollowness within him was worsening and he didn't find the strength within himself to care.

"You are so quiet" Eve interrupted his stillness and the silence within the room from her spot, lying on her bed as she did during the morning, still looking up at the ceiling, lost within her own mind "I have never been with someone that did not like the sound of their own voice"

Evidio just turned his head enough to look at her. The mare seemed peaceful but resigned as she looked at nowhere in particular.

"I had enough of that for a lifetime" He commented with little care "If I need to talk I talk, if not I will refrain from doing it"

"It is nice" Eve's voice grew slightly warm "To have someone just there... It has been some time without simple company" She looked to the side, her blue eyes beckoning him "Would you stay with me?"

Evidio almost snorted at the thought "We are in no condition to part ways at the moment"

"I do not mean that" Eve shook her head "I mean... would you sit at my side? You do not seem ready to sleep"

"I am not much better than whoever hurt you" The man looked away, strain in his eyes as the hollow feeling broke just enough for sadness to pour through the holes it created in his mind.

"Even about to die" She began, what could pass for a smile on her lips "Even near death, you tried to help me, and you almost got killed too. I have not had any help, any sympathy, in a long time... I think you are a good person" Evidio turned once more to see the pleading eyes of the mare "Please... I just don't want to feel alone tonight"

He did not feel like doing that, he did not want to, but there were worse things to ask "Once you are asleep I will return to my bed"

It was not being insensitive; in truth he just did not feel capable of comforting anyone, and Evidio was pretty sure that the simplest annoyances would make him explode if they came at the wrong moment. Eve did not ask, she just nodded, more than willing to concede such a little thing and visibly brighter now that he had accepted her own little request.

Movement was not as painful as before, yet doing such a simple thing as getting up from his own bed and sitting alongside Eve made his legs and chest ripple with the pinpricks of pain. If Cheerilee and Celestia were right on what they had told him, then this would be gone tomorrow, though it would still hamper his recovery thanks to the foreign materials used in the crafting of what his sister had used. However, much like her memory, the pain would fade, it just required time.

Eve let out a sigh as Evidio sat at her side "Is it... Is this wrong?" She asked, surprising him.

"What is wrong?" Context was needed here.

"I have been on my own with nothing to my name for a long time... I... I have done things I am ashamed of" She looked at her bed sheets as she said that "Now I am afraid of being alone during the night, even after what some people made me do" Eve almost hiccupped, pursing her lips in embarrassment as she looked away "I... I..."

Reassuring her was not in him, but being sincere was something he could do "I promise you I won't do anything of the sort. While I am around I will make sure you are safe" That promise, however, stung more than he let on.

Eve looked at him for a moment, but if she had expected him to smile reassuringly it never came to that. Evidio didn't feel himself capable of such a thing and neither was Eve willing to give one herself to try and bring the man to brighten at least enough to show emotion. The only thing she did was scoot closer and rest her head on his side, tired of everything, loneliness most of all.

If anyone saw this it would have been a tender moment, all things considered, but there was little to consider tender about this. On one side was Eve with her own story and on the other was Evidio, two simple broken toys discarded for different reasons. Neither of them wanted much of anything, or at least Evidio felt like he wanted nothing but for time to go on and see where it would take him. He didn't know what Eve wanted, but she was right about something, that little phrase was always right.

Taking one hand from the bed he gently placed it on the mare's mane, making her gasp for a moment before he petted her with care, brushing with his fingers and simply trying his best to do something that had worked well in the past with a different person and with a different relation, but in a very similar way. The action made Eve relax, no matter how little it did or how surprising the gesture had been. Despite this being a simple thing intended to help, more out of reflex and muscle memory created by the many times he had been in this situation, the scene did little more than bring more grief to the man.

In the end it was indeed true: Broken things did end up together, that fact seemed to care not for what world it was. 


***





"She went to sleep not long after that" Evidio commented with finality.

Part of his little story he had not commented about, of course. The omitted part was mostly made of some of his private thoughts and the fact that he was feeling empty, but it was not a part he needed to speak about after he gave most of the details. No one interrupted him more than the one time Amos felt like asking, and if Eve had anything to say she decided not to add to it, much like Cheerilee.

Everyone knew there were things left unsaid as Evidio went on though "I went to bed after making sure she did not wake up as I left her side. There is little else to tell about that day and the next was spent mainly with our companions here" He waved at Azul and Morrow with a nod.

"Not because you two wanted to move mind you" Cheerilee smirked at the pair.

Evidio just shrugged "I would have gone out sooner or later. It ended up being sooner"

"Later would have been better" And by the looks of it, Eve was only comfortable with Evidio at her side. It was obvious she would have been behaving differently otherwise "At least I did not need to go back to the hospital"

The man at her side rubbed her neck gently. Whether it was simple affection or comfort was all but obvious however, there was not much emotion to go by or to check. Amos was still wondering how he managed to pick on some of that but it was a problem for another time, one he would tackle whenever he caught Chrysalis alone.

"Now, how about we share a much friendlier bit?" Morrow's voice claimed the attention of those around them "Seeing as Eve is not exactly interested on the saucier details thanks to her story we will skip them" The mare eyed Azul with glee before giving Eve a gentle smile "We do have not only our meeting to tell, but also this very day when we all got together, so ours will be longer and I would prefer not to offend anyone if possible"

No one went against that, but much like he had been doing during Evidio's little tale, Amos was looking around as much as he was paying attention to the one person talking. There was someone around that had eyed them in a way that unnerved him.

It had been less than a day of him being awake and something was already not right. He did not know what, he did not know when it would show up, but the bit that his brother had shared made his mind up and told him all he needed to know. The lanky man could be many things, but he was not an idiot and he was sadly used to being, well, used.

Thoughts interrupted by Berry bringing them some water and a smile, Amos let his musings recede to the back of his mind. There would be time for that once whatever had to happen, happened. Then again, and he was aware of this too, it could be that he was simply distrusting of anything and anyone. Whatever the case was it was not him who had to talk, so he was okay for the moment.

Besides... if someone had lied to him or had hidden information he would get to them in time. After all, who was worse than him when it came to holding a grudge?