Under The Moonlight
As the rest of the day went on, the Battle Foals got back to work making a habitable pad for themselves and whoever else might join their ranks. Fire Fight and Shadow Shroud worked on preparing the castle’s kitchen; they thoroughly swept it up and scrubbed it down after throwing away all of the old ingredients that had been left to rot. Said ingredients were thrown into a compost bin to use as fertilizer for the gardens. Afterwards, they restocked the storage cabinets with the fresh herbs and plants they harvested from the gardens, and gathered in the forest; it turned out that much of the plants marked on Quantum’s map were edible, though Quantum wanted to study their biochemistry and any notes left by the wizard and chef to determine how to properly prepare them in case they were otherwise dangerous to consume before letting Fire Fight serve them. Seeing her face light up with so much new research to conduct made Fire Fight happy.
Air Slash forged a couple more of the Battle Foals medallions in case any new foals joined them soon. Afterwards, he prepared a series of reinforced pieces of steel as per the request of Quantum Tech. When asked why she needed them, she simply said that it would be a surprise. Air Slash somewhat hesitantly complied despite such a vague response, but he trusted the brainy filly, so he found himself slightly eager to see what she would construct if her recent projects have been of any note.
Turf War, Kickback and Crazylocks worked on the iron mine. Kickback asked Quantum Tech if it was possible to make another kind of gunpowder out of the pyranium since they didn’t have a source of potassium nitrate apart from the limited supply in the wizards chamber. She said that she’d have to further study the pyranium to determine that since little else was known about its reactive properties due to its sheer rarity. Crazylocks told her an epic tale of how she escaped the maw of a greedy timberwolf that tried to eat her new ‘earrings’, but Turf War corrected her saying that she simply jumped out of the way of a tree that he’d chopped down for firewood as it fell towards her.
Spiral Galaxy used her cosmomancy to carry large quantities of water from the nearby river to be purified, or used to water the gardens. She told Fire Fight and Shadow Shroud that it felt strangely relaxing, and said that she’d like to continue to do so as a form of productive meditation. The two said that they’d monitor her when they could, but said that they should probably use that river as a meditation spot like they did in the forest near Hoofington, to which she happily agreed.
As all of this was happening, Quantum Tech went back and forth moving the steel pieces that Air Slash had prepared for her in clusters as well as some wires into a basement chamber. “What’re you doing, Quantum Tech?” Spiral asked.
Quantum chucked and fixed her glasses. “It’s a surprise, darling!” she said. She continued moving her things.
The other Battle Foals looked at her curiously as she descended into the subterranean parts of the castle. “Did she tell you, Air Slash? She asked you to make those metal pieces, right?” Fire Fight inquired.
“Yes, but she said as much to me when I asked.” Air Slash answered. “Perhaps….she’s building some sort of power generator for our colony?”
“Blech! You guys don’t wanna eat that stuff! Trust me, it tastes like chocolate butterscotch dipped in manticore venom!” Crazylocks blurted.
“I’m…..fairly certain that’s not what Air Slash meant by ‘power’, Crazylocks.” Shadow Shroud said. “In any case, let us respect her privacy. If she wants whatever she’s creating down there to be a surprise, that’s fine. No harm done there.”
“Fo’ real! If it anything like what she did wit our gear, HOOOO BOY!” Turf War commented.
Suddenly, a commotion was heard from outside. When the Battle Foals save for the working Quantum Tech went out to investigate, they found a trio of manticores waiting for them. “Seriously? Well, tarnation! Ah almost feel sorry fer these fellers.” Kickback said as he drew his guns.
Fire Fight ignited his new armaments as the others drew their upgraded weaponry. “I don’t know about you guys, but I’m feeling pretty fired up!”
Air Slash furiously twirled his swords, and then pointed one at the manticores. “Prepare yourselves beasts, for my blades reserve no mercy for the wicked!”
Shadow Shroud drew her kamas. “Nor my own!”
Turf War poised his shield and hammer-axe. “I be lion if I said I was scared! HA!”
Crazylocks began devilishly cackling as she creased another horrific smile. “Come and snuggle with D’HESE LOCKS!!!"
Spiral lit her horn, and the ground began to rumble slightly. “Behold the power of the cosmos!” She tried to sound majestic, but sounded a little silly. The others put that aside as they charged into battle with their bestial opponents.
*****
Night had fallen, and Quantum had yet to emerge from her room in the basement. The fight with the manticores had of course gone without incident as the beasts ran for the hills within minutes of their confrontation; they quickly found that the might of the Battle Foals was truly something to be feared. To say that they were outmatched was akin to pitting a log against a beaver.
All the foals had gone to sleep….except for one. Fire Fight sat on the outdoor balcony outside of his room, and gazed up into the night sky. He couldn’t believe how far he had come in his mission, the very mission that began right in the place where he was now. It had been quite the series of events before getting back here, but it was all worth it in the end. The shining stars looking back at him were cheering him on in their twinkles, and the radiant moon set high by Princess Luna shone its gentle, fervent light upon the fiery colt. He could almost hear it telling him to continue his mission.
He thought about all the friends he had made throughout this heartfelt journey. Turf War…..Fire Fight almost immediately saw a lot of himself in the foul-mouthed gang buster. He almost felt bad taking him from Detrot, a place that Turf War proved that he was able to protect, but when he was brought into the light, Turf War proudly lent his impressive strength and stubborn endurance to the team. He may have a big, dirty mouth and might have let his impulses get the better of him at times, but his even bigger heart and indomitable will to live life to fullest had become the source of morale for the Battle Foals.
Spiral Galaxy…..To think that a foal would be capable of such destructive potential or much less even be able to harness such powerful magic at all was a wish upon a star in of itself- a wish that went horribly wrong. Fire Fight and co. clearly saw her anguish, and solemnly vowed to help her regain the normalcy that she thought she had totally lost. Shadow Shroud had basically become her best friend and something of a mentor despite being an earth pony and thus, knowing nothing about magic. Even if Spiral herself needed some support in the beginning, it was all she needed to start carrying the team with her cosmic might, and to begin repairing her broken soul on her own.
Air Slash…..Things were definitely a little more than shaky in the beginning. It wouldn’t have taken one of his swords to cut the tension between him and Shadow Shroud, but both his swords and his words have cut down numerous obstacles with equal effectiveness. His unwavering warrior’s spirit born of him being a Bladerunner has been his greatest strength, but a weakness as well. But even when confronting his own pride, he never let the flame of battle burning in his heart be quelled, and it’s a shame that his fellow brethren failed to see his true potential, even his own father. It would be a crime not to mention how his skills as a smith have armed the foals to be true warriors indeed.
Kickback…..Even with a tragedy staining his foalhood, the gun-wielding cowpony manages to keep a straight face and calm demeanor for his friends. Fire Fight just hoped that he wasn’t bottling up his emotions, but then again, he thoroughly ripped the sugarcoating off of his normally level head to attack the Sand Vipers, showing that he genuinely acknowledges his feelings. His quiet nature and level head can keep everypony calm, but when he’s not talking loud enough, that’s when he whips out his trusty Sound and Fury to speak the rest. Fire Fight sometimes worried about how long he’d be able to keep this up, because when the going gets really tough, nopony knows to keep calm better than Kickback.
Crazylocks…..Once a filly shrouded in mystery, now revealed to be a filly plagued by tragedy. The only cover she had from what nightmares she must have endured under the care of Professor Gene Splice was her borderline insanity. Even worse, the foals had no idea who her parents were, or where they might be. They were her only salvation from a foalhood of….oh, Celestia! What torture she must have experienced….And yet, in her craziness, genuine emotion and livelihood still managed to thrive. Even if said emotions were the cause of……several ‘what the hell?’ moments, they had to remember that Crazylocks was in agony deep down, and this was the only way she could express anything. Fire Fight prayed that she could be helped through her trauma.
Quantum Tech…..How could such genius, such potential, such brilliance be condemned by strict societal standards!? It was criminal! That aside, Fire Fight was hesitant to rescue her simply for the worry of her welfare throughout a journey that had long before proven to be perilous, but Shadow Shroud firmly reminded him of his solid conviction to save every lost foal that they found from their prison, even those not cut out for fighting. But as soon as she began upgrading their quality of life, namely their gear, Fire Fight regretted ever hesitating at all! She had become a more than valuable member of the team, and something of a big sister to them despite being the youngest. The way she reprimanded Turf War whenever he swore, ordered Fire Fight to go after Crazylocks after he accidently set her off, nagged at them about their injuries after their tussle with the crystal golem, and overall showed a willingness to provide for them with a distinct amount of maturity was akin to a loving parent. While her survivability was still something to be concerned about, her drive to do anything else will truly be the engine that drives the Battle Foals to their goal as well as it drives Kickback mad.
And of course…..How could he possibly forget….. “Can’t sleep?” Fire Fight turned around to see Shadow Shroud standing in the doorway of his balcony wearing a friendly smile. This was the filly that made everything possible. She was mysterious, dangerous, and surely still hiding something from him, but she was nevertheless his friend. The kind of world that Fire Fight wanted to make for the Battle Foals was a world that Shadow Shroud had lived in her whole life, and the two bonded over braving its many obstacles whilst pursuing their goal.
“How did you…?” Fire Fight asked.
“You left your door open, and I grew concerned.” She answered.
Fire Fight chuckled. “Whoops.”
Shroud giggled, and walked up to him. She sat down at his side. “So, what’s up?”
“I’ve just been thinking about how far we’ve come already….I just can’t believe it! Our mission….it’s actually becoming a reality!” Fire Fight said.
“You were still worried? Not the most becoming trait of a leader, now is it?” Shroud sassed.
Fire Fight chuckled. “You’d rather I didn’t worry about you guys?”
“Hmm…Fair point.” Shroud said. The two looked on into the dazzling array of celestial lights above them. The glistening light danced across the forest beyond as it gently shone down. Fate had certainly blessed them with a beautiful reward for all their efforts thus far. “To think it all started right here…..”
“Yeah…..with you and I almost killing each other.” Fire Fight said.
Shroud giggled. “Fun times, right?”
“Pfft! Sure!” Fire Fight said. “Say….why did you attack me that night? If you didn’t want to hurt me, then why did you fight me?”
Shadow Shroud was caught a tiny bit off guard by his question, but answered nonetheless. “I….suppose I thought that it would be polite.”
Fire Fight was befuddled by that answer. “Huh? ‘Polite’? What’s so polite about throwing shurikens at somepony?”
“That’s not what I meant. Seeing as you enjoy fighting like I do, I thought that it would be a good way for us to greet since we’d immediately find common ground.” Shroud said. “In a strange way, you’d ideally be more comfortable around me.”
Fire Fight was still a little befuddled, but began to understand. “Oh….well…..I guess that’s not too crazy……” He chuckled. “The Shadewalkers don’t teach you a lot about social skills, huh?”
Shroud rolled eyes. “Well, excuse me! We’re not exactly meant to be friendly with others.” She said.
The two shared a little laugh. A thought then crossed Fire Fight’s mind, one that made his heart ache a little. “Shroud……when we finally do build our utopia, are……you gonna leave?”
Shroud’s smile slowly disappeared upon hearing that. She sighed. “I wouldn’t have to. The Shadewalkers are free to live as rogues so long as they adhere to their duties and make discreet contact with others if none at all. Why do you ask?”
“I just……You’ve really become a huge part of this whole thing. Not only that, but…..you’re my friend, and….I’d hate to have to say goodbye to you so soon….If you have to leave for some Shadewalker-related business, that’s cool, but still….” Fire Fight answered.
Shroud’s smile returned to her, and she giggled. “Well, I’m not going anywhere anytime soon.” She said. Fire Fight returned the smile, and the two looked into each other’s eyes for a short moment. She then got up. “Well, I’m going to Spiral’s room. She wanted to introduce this ‘sleepover’ ritual that she mentioned to me before. Would you happen to know anything about it?”
Fire Fight shrugged. “It’s pretty much just a filly thing. I wouldn’t know a thing.” He said. “Quantum’s not joining you guys?”
Shroud shook her head. “No. I think she finished whatever it was she was working on down there, but she tired herself considerably, and just wanted to go to bed. Her eyes looked like they were about to bag.”
Fire Fight grimaced. “Jeez…I hope she doesn’t start overworking herself.”
“Indeed…..Well, goodnight.” Shroud said.
“Night. Have fun.” Fire Fight said.
“Y-Yes….” Shroud said. She didn’t quite know what to expect, but opted to humor Spiral nonetheless. She left Fire Fight’s room as the fiery colt himself crawled into bed, letting the celestial radiance lull him to sleep.
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Ah, the half clipshow chapter. Nice to see that we're probably wrapping things up here for the 'foals at their base' arc. I'm guessing next we'll see Quantum's project and then leave to find more foals! HOORAY! That or switch to Twilight and the others still being one step behind.
Anyways, found some errors for ya:
'restocks' should be restocked
First comma is unnecessary.
Whoa! The foals are so good that they turn those monsters into music beats!
Unnecessary first 'and'.
Either the hyphen is unnecessary or bad spacing.
Emotion needs to be plural.
This sentence around the word 'introduce' feels...clunky. Might need to be reworded.
You hit one of the most important mile stones in a story, chapter 69! To keep a story going for this long takes a considerable amount of determination and work. Keep it up!
7920664 You know I will, bro!
7920659 Thanks, man! Fixed them.
7920687 Yeah...you're also still doing ', and' a lot. Need to fix that since it makes a ton of unnecessary commas.
Pre-reading prediction: judging by the title, I'm guessing this chapter either features Luna or romance. ...Or marewolfs. That works too.
Post-reading edit: Romance. It was never explicitly stated, but I knew where it was going as soon as he started with Turf War instead of Shadow Shroud.
7922753 I disagree. I think Fire Fight and Shadow aren't really attracted to each other. I feel that this chapter showed they were true friends even if Shadow will probably leave at some point and Fire knows that.