Fallout Equestria: The Great Hoard

by RuinQueenofOblivion

Chapter 1: At World's End

"It was a sight surpassing all precedent,
and one we never dreamed of seeing."
-Howard Carter.

World’s End, a rather depressing name for a settlement even one at the edge of Equestria.

The settlement was made up of a collection of buildings by an old harbor that had been built sometime before the war. The buildings were old and beaten up with several boats moored in the harbor and others that were wrecks.

“So, this is world’s end huh?” Pure Heart asked as she looked around at the old buildings around us.

Fishy looked around trying to hide how she felt about this. “Uh this looks lovely?” She spoke in a very unsure voice.

“World’s End remained neutral in the Enclave War and refused any aid,” Calypso said with a shrug. “The locals are pretty stubborn and traditional, they don’t usually accept outside help, so it’s still a bit… well, beaten up.”

Crow looked around he stayed in his raven form he was on Fishes head. “I think it might be best then if I stay like this. If they are traditional I doubt they would respect non ponies. Just to be safe of course.”

“Probably a good idea,” I said and gave Crow a nod as I checked the map on my mom’s old PipBuck on my foreleg. “Alright, we need to make sure that we have enough supplies before we leave town. Fish, do you mind coming with me to look into getting a boat?”

Go Fish looked at me with a weak smile. “I.. I of course um.. Crow could you um go with the others please.” Crow gave a quick nod flying off her head to land on Calypso’s shoulder.

“Try to stay out of trouble you too,” Pure Heart said and leaned in and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

“Hey, its me you’re talking about,” I said with a chuckle. “When do I ever get into trouble these days?”

“You don’t want me to answer that,” Pure said with a laugh as she nuzzled me gently. “Like I said stay out of trouble.”

Calypso just laughed as me and Fish headed towards the harbor to look for a captain. I looked back at Pure Heart one more time and she flashed me a smile before going into a nearby store. I smiled and turned my attention forward again.

“Marefriends,” I said with a shake of my head. “Gotta love them anyway.”
“Uh yeah.. Um gotta love them.” Fishy looked around she seemed unsure about being here. I had never seen her so, well, scared?

“Are you okay Fishy?” I asked as I looked at my friend concerned.

Fishy tried to act like her mother. “Of course I am fine!! I am with you after all why wouldn’t I be fine?” She smiled a strained smile

“Go Fish, I lived in a town under siege by Changeling Infiltrators,” I said with a shake of my head. “I figured out a long time ago how to tell when somepony is lying. Now tell me, what’s really wrong?”

She sighed her ears pinned to the back of her head. “Do you... do you trust me Serenity?”

“Of course I do, you’re my friend, I wouldn’t have gone with you if I didn’t trust you,” I said with a smile.

“Callie has feelings for me.” Saying this like I haven’t seen it.

“Really? I hadn’t noticed,” I said sarcastically. “Why’s this a bad thing? She’s cute and friendly, you could do a lot worse.”

Fishy stopped in her tracks looking right at me. “Do you remember who my mother is?”

“I see…” I said and sighed a little. “You’re worried that you’ll mess up any of your relationships like Blackjack did?”

“I care deeply for her Serenity. I even well slept with her when I got drunk... So yes I am like my mother. But I am very worried I will hurt her. I doubt I would forgive myself and well I don’t wish to well do that. Maybe I am being to critical of myself?”

I sighed a little and looked at Go Fish and then back towards where Pure Heart had been. I looked down at the ground and closed my eyes as I thought about exactly what to say next. I took a deep breath and looked back at her and shook my head.

“Look at me Go Fish, don’t you think I was nervous when I started having feelings for Pure Heart?” I asked with a sad smile.

“You did? I had this talk with auntie Scootaloo once.. She told me that It might be best that I talk to somepony she said you, but I was to scared to.” She looked away from me with a sigh. “What should I do you seem to be so good at the game called love.”

“Only because I worked hard at it, and because I have a mare that loves me for all the faults I have,” I admitted and brushed my mane back a little. “I was a Foal Soldier, I ran off to fight in San Prancisco during the Enclave War. I’ve made so many mistakes and sometimes I’m haunted by everything that happened to me and what I did. I was afraid to even spend the night in the same room as Pure Heart at first because I was afraid I’d have nightmares and disturb her, or worse. But, she loves me despite all my mistakes and flaws, and we’ve worked past them, together.”

Fish took a deep breath. “When we are alone I will talk to her about how I feel and the fact.. I need to work on well... The fact I am well.” She looks to me and then around quickly. “The daughter of a crazy mare that has metal legs and used to see some undead thing called the dealer.”

“You’re also the daughter of Morning Glory though,” I pointed out. “Don’t worry Fishy, you’re going to be just fine. Callie’s a great pony, and I have no doubt that she’d be willing to help. Just, give it a chance okay?”

She took a deep breath nodding. “Alright now.. Um is it bad to bring up I um… get sea sick? Is there a way we could um not take a boat?”

“Sure, we can swim across the ocean,” I said with a chuckle.

“Yeah yeah I know you’re joking. Let’s find a boat and pay to take us there.”

“Sorry, even with this necklace I’m not strong enough to carry anything across the ocean,” I said as I lifted up the stone around my neck. “But yeah, let’s get going.”

“I um... I am sorry Serenity for acting so strange. Normally I don’t act this way maybe I am not over being captured like I was during the war.”

“Yeah, I understand…” I said and gave her a hug. “Don’t worry about it, besides, this is just a treasure hunt. At least we’re not going to war, right?”

“Oh yes a treasure hunt in a land were creatures could swallow you in one gulp. Yes good for us it's not a war or I would be worried that a dragon would eat us.” She said with a cocky grin.

“Okay, good point,” I said with a chuckle. “But hey, if it was easy then somepony would’ve found it already and there wouldn’t be stories around it would there?”

“Well maybe we could ask if there is any stories about it. These ponies do live kind of close would it be wise to ask?”

“Maybe… lets try the local tavern, maybe we’ll find some answers there,” I said with a shrug.

“Tavern? Whiskey?! Yes Whiskey?!” Go Fish gave the look of her mother when she said that.

“Go Fish, we are there to get a captain and any information, we’re not there to get drunk,” I said and facehooved.

“Awww. I just wanted a little drink.” She tried giving me puppy eyes.” Pweeese?”

“We’ll see, now come on,” I said and headed towards the harbor.

00000

“So did you have any luck?” I asked as we met back up with Pure Heart and Calypso outside of one of the buildings.

“Yeah, we got everything we needed,” Calypso said with a smile as they took out the gear and we split it among our packs. “So, did you two get us a ride over to the Dragon Lands?”

“Uh yes...after I made a fool of myself.” Go Fish said looking away.

“Yeah, we got a ride aboard an Atori vessel called the Tiger Shark,” I said and glanced at Go Fish for a moment. “We have to leave tomorrow so we’ll be staying in town for the evening, okay?”

“Oh, I’m sure we’ll think of something to pass the time,” Pure Heart said with a chuckle.

Crow flaps his wings getting into the air. landing on my head whispering in my ear. “You need to get those two to talk. Do you know how this weird emotions feel to a changeling?”

“I know, I know,” I whispered back. “She’s afraid and Callie is… well I don’t know why she hasn’t said anything either. Oh where’s Cadance when you need her…”

“She is either the Goddess of Love or the goddess of I shall kill you all.” Crow said jokingly in a whisper.

I just shrugged, I had kind of lost track of Cadance over the years. After the Changeling Invasion ended she had left to search for Flurry Heart, but that had been over 8 years ago now and we hadn’t heard a word from her.

I shook my head and shrugged, guess that meant we had to play matchmaker. I made a motion for Pure Heart to join us and we headed off to the side together to talk.

“What’s up?” Pure Heart asked.

“Well, I’m kinda tired of those two dancing around the feelings they have for each other,” I said with a shake of my head. “So, we need a plan to get them together.”

“Why not just hmm well to a changeling love is strange. We normally don’t breed with a female we allow our Queen to lay eggs for us. So now I have to find a mate myself these days but enough of that. I feel that you need to do something that would trigger it. Maybe music or something.”

“Hey you three what’s wrong we should be getting ready to go.” Go Fish yelled to us.

“We’ll discuss this more later,” I said and gave Pure Heart a quick kiss. “Come on, we still have to find an inn to stay in tonight.”

“Well I did find something like an inn.” Crow added. “But they said no pets. I think I would be labeled as one. Unless..I could change into a pony like you.”

“Just not too much like her, one Serenity is bad enough, we don’t need two ponies getting into trouble,” Pure Heart said with a giggle as she nuzzled me.

“Really funny,” I said with a roll of my eyes.

Crow chuckled. “Well it’s harder than it looks. I was never trained in becoming a pony. I was trained into becoming a dragon or a zebra.” It finally hit him. “ I can be a zebra.” He hopped off my shoulder I could tell he was concentrating very hard. After awhile he finally changed into a mare zebra that had mendi like stripes.

“Why a mare?” Calypso asked as she looked over at us.

“How odd do you think it would look. If a zebra stallion was with a bunch of mares? One some would think a male following a bunch of mares would be a very highly sought question that is one big herd the zebra has. You would be hearing do you wish to suffer through that?”

“She has a point,” I said and added jokingly. “Okay, but if any stallions start hitting on you you’re on your own.”

Crow blinked. “That.. seems a bit weird even to me. I don’t understand you ponies.”

“Anyway, let’s go to that inn,” I said with a nod. “Where is it?”

“It’s near the docks it’s called Fish Bone. It’s built out of bones of sea monsters.”

“Subtle… but it’ll do,” Pure Heart said with a shrug. “Come on, let’s get going.”

I smiled as she took my hoof and pulled me off towards the docks with our friends close behind.

00000

“Well, look who’s up,” Calypso commented as me and Pure Heart met up with the others in the lobby of the inn the next day. “Did you two have fun last night?”

“We’re using that soundproofing spell you told me about from now on…” I whispered to Pure Heart as we both blushed deeply before I spoke up. “Alright, unless Fishy or Crow wants to add anything, we need to get to the Tiger Shark.”

Go Fish looked away from Calypso a moment. “We slept fine. I had to put plugs in my ears, but It might have been best if we had more than one bed.”

“Yeah,” Calypso said as she looked away, I noticed a small blush crossing the light blue Pegasus’ face. “I’m guessing we’re not going to be able to have separate cabins aboard the Tiger Shark either.”

“Yeah… sorry about that,” I said and shook my head. Hopefully we’d be able to figure this out, but for now we just need to get to the ship and I checked the time on my PipBuck. “Come on, we don’t want to be late.”

We headed out of the Fish Bone and down the dock past the local fishing boats. We got a few looks from the locals but they didn’t pay us much attention, right now we just had to worry about finding the Tiger Shark.

We finally found the Atori vessel, it was large and made of rusted metal. There were two large masts that had ribbed sails that looked like they had been sewn and patched together many times over the years. I could see two flags flying from the masts, one was a black flag with a white shark jaw open wide and stripes.

The other flag was familiar to us from the embassy in Crusader Town. The thirteen gold and black stripes along with a single Zebra symbol meaning “People” at the center. The flag of the Free Roam Alliance, I let out a sigh of relief, at least that definitely meant they were friendlies

“Ahoy down there,” a mare’s voice said and we looked up to see the Captain waving down to us. “Welcome to the Tiger Shark, though what’s with your buddy there? Thought you said one of you could sleep anywhere.”

I glanced over at Crow. “Show her.”

Crow turned into his changeling form. “Greetings from a bug.” He waved

“Well I’ll be,” the captain said and rubbed her forehead a little. “Never thought I’d meet a Changeling.”

“I’m the guardian of Crusader Town,” Crow said proudly.

“Really?” She asked and then looked between Crow and me. “Aye, now I see it, I’ve heard the stories from the Zencori, the filly with the heart of a warrior. Welcome aboard all of you, we need to cast off soon so you might want to get up here now.”

We nodded and started up the gangplank onto the Tiger Shark. Sailors were working on getting the ship ready to go, a few of them gave us curious looks, I doubted ponies were a common sight on an Atori ship.

“Welcome aboard the Tiger Shark,” the Captain said with a smile that showed off her sharpened teeth again. “For those who haven’t met me, I’m Captain Tiger Shark, while you’re on my ship you call me Captain. You’re looking at a week’s voyage to the Dragon Lands if we’re lucky and your duties will be assigned to you soon. Are there any questions?”

Crow looked around. “The emotions are high here is this normal?”

“You picked a bad time of year to cross the sea,” Captain Tiger Shark said as her smile finally started to fade. “There’s a lot of bad storms crossing through the area this time of year, and there’s still some remnants of the old Classem Imperratoria that could be in the area. Then there’s the matter of the, local wildlife.”

Something about the way she said that gave me shivers. I had heard stories about what creatures lived in Equestria’s seas, and I didn’t like it.

“Of course nothing really is going to be easy.” Crow saluted Tiger shark in respect.

“Great,” Pure Heart said with a shake of her head. “So, what do we do now?”

“I’ll have you escorted to your cabins,” the Captain said with a nod. “Just stay out of my crew’s way until we’re done and you’re free to do whatever you want until then.”

I nodded and the Captain nodded to one of her sailors who scowled a little before they lead us below deck. I took one last look back towards World’s End, it was the last time I’d see Equestria for awhile and I wanted to get a good look at it.

I just hoped we’d make it back.

00000

“Not exactly the Equestria Grand Hotel is it?” Pure Heart commented as we shut the door to our cabin.

I chuckled a little, the cabin was small with just a pair of hammocks that were secured to the wall so they would sway with the ship.. There was a few small amenities here and there like a desk against the wall, but it wasn’t much.

I chuckled a little and rolled my eyes as I saw that Tiger Shark had laid out some sort of bedding. The Captain had a strange sense of humor apparently.

“Pure, I’ve slept in worse than this, and we’re going to have to sleep in tents most of the time we’re in The Dragon Lands,” I said with a chuckle as I nuzzled my marefriend gently.

“Yeah, I know,” Pure Heart said with a smile as I wrapped my forelegs around the Unicorn gently. “Serenity, I’m just happy to spend time with you whether we’re back home or in the Dragon Lands.”

I smiled a little and looked out the porthole at the ocean beyond as we started to unpack our bags. It was going to take awhile to get to the Dragon Lands, so it was nice to get a place to stay together for now.

“I’m glad you came with me,” I said softly. “I don’t know what I’d do if I didn’t have you with me, I’d probably have stayed home.”

“I dunno, you’ve got an adventurous spirit,” Pure Heart said with a chuckle as she nuzzled me and rested her head on my withers. “I’ll bet you’d have figured something out, its part of the reason I love you so much.

“Oh, you love that I tend to get into trouble?” I asked with a chuckle. “But really Pure, I don’t think I’d be here today if it wasn’t for you. I’m the luckiest mare in Equestria because I have you.”

“I just did what any friend would do,” Pure Heart said and nuzzled me gently. “So, what exactly are we going to do on this ship?”

“I, honestly have no idea,” I said and rubbed the back of my head a little. “Still, whatever we do we’ll do just fine, it’s not like we haven’t figured things out before. Maybe we should see if we can get any information on the Dragon Lands and the treasure of course.”

“Yeah, at least what we can get on this ship,” Pure Heart said with a nod. “But we still have some time before we leave, what are we going to do with that time?”

“Oh… I’m sure we’ll think of something,” I said with a smirk as I leaned in and kissed her. “But really, thank you for everything you’ve ever done for me.”

“You’re welcome Serenity,” Pure Heart said and I wrapped my wings around her gently. “Come on, let’s enjoy the time we have together for now.”

“Heh, yeah, just don’t make too much noise,” I said with a laugh as we laid back on the bedding together and I kissed her deeply.

00000

Okay, got a confession to make, I have no idea how to actually do anything on a ship.

I know, big surprise right? I’ve lived my life on either the land or an airship, but that’s not really the same as working on a sailing ship like the Tiger Shark. Which mostly gave the Zebras a laugh while I tried to actually do any work on it.

Which is how I found myself on top of one of the masts trying to secure a sail while an Atori named Ashi watched me try to secure a knot.

“You’re enjoying this a little too much, you know that right?” I asked as I messed up the knot again and groaned as I tried to secure it again.

“Sorry, we just rarely have ponies on this ship,” Ashi said with a laugh. “Are you sure you don’t want to just help your friends down on the deck and in the hold?”

“Captain Tiger Shark wanted a Pegasus to help with the sails,” I said with a shrug. “I’m just trying to help really, I’m not used to tying these knots.”

“Here, let me help you,” Ashi said with a groan as she crawled over to where I was and showed me how to tie the knot. “There we go.”

“Thanks,” I said and moved over to the next spot and worked on securing the knot, this time more confident in my ability as I worked on it. “Sorry, I’m not really used to doing this, usually Unicorns tie the knots on my team.”

“Don’t worry about it, you’re doing fine you just need to focus on your work,” Ashi said with a chuckle before she looked back at me. “So, do you have a special somepony back in Equestria?”

I stopped and nearly fell off the mast when she asked that before I stopped and looked back at her shocked. “Uh, yeah, the Unicorn that I came with is my marefriend…”

“Oh,”Ashi said and blushed deeply at that. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know, I shouldn’t have said anything…”

“I haven’t met very many Zebras interested in Ponies,” I said and blushed deeply. “Sorry I’m not going to be able to help.”

“Yeah, I’m kind of weird like that I guess,” Ashi said with a shake of her head. “So, why are you going to the Dragon Lands? Even with the FRA and Equestria being on good terms we haven’t had very many Ponies going that way.”

“We’re on something of a treasure hunt,” I said and rubbed the back of my head. “I probably shouldn’t be talking about that. But if you can tell me anything about the Dragon Lands, like, local governments or whatever then that would be helpful.”

Ashi laughed a little at that and shook her head. “There’s not much in the way of government, we’re not talking about Equestria or Zebrica here,” she said with a shake of her head. “Without a Dragon Lord the Dragons are basically in a state of anarchy. Any stable areas are settlements that can fight off the more violent dragons and your occasional, Dragon run areas. The latter is a bit, uh, hit and miss.”

“Great…” I said and shook my head a little. “Of course it’s not going to be easy, actually sounds like Equestria before Littlepip, only with dragons. Why isn’t there a Dragon Lord?”

“The Dragon Lord’s staff is gone,” Ashi said. “The last Dragon Lord hid it away, and you can’t claim the throne without it. They say it’s somewhere with a great treasure or something, but that’s not my business.”

I paused a moment and thought about that for a long moment. It sounded like it was probably in the Great Hoard, and that meant that if we found it we’d literally be able to choose the next ruler of the dragons.

Great, just what we needed to have some pressure put on us in the middle of what was just a treasure hunt.

We finished the rigging on the sail and I looked out at the ocean beyond. There was something relaxing about the ocean, the salt air, the rolling waves, it was like something I hadn’t ever really experienced before.

I closed my eyes and breathed in deeply as I opened them again and looked at Ashi who was watching me curiously.

“Is this your first time on a ship?” The Zebra asked curiously.

“First time on a sailing ship,” I said with a shrug. “I’ve been on cloudships before, and I was on a submarine briefly during the Battle of San Prancisco. But honestly I’ve never been on a ship like the Tiger Shark.”

“I was raised on this ship,” Ashi said with a light smile. “Most Atori are born and raised on the water. We have a few ports like Carthage mind you, and that’s not going into the different branches of the Tribe…”

We climbed down the mast and reached the deck where Pure Heart and Calypso were finishing cleaning. I smiled a little as I leaned on the railing of the ship and looked back out over the ocean.

Somewhere out there was the Dragon Lands, and our ultimate destination. A moment of apprehension crept up, I honestly wasn’t sure what to expect going into the Dragon Lands, but I knew that we were going to face it together as friends.

We just had to make it there is all.

“What are you thinking about?” A familiar voice asked and I smiled as Pure Heart leaned on the railing next to me.

“Just everything that’s ahead of us really,” I said with a sigh as I thought back to the map that we had brought with us that pointed towards Stable 110. “We’ve never really been this far away from Equestria or our families before.”

“True, do you want to turn back though?” Pure Heart asked. “We’re still pretty close to Equestria, I’m sure we can get Captain Tiger Shark to take us back home.”

I paused a moment and thought about it before I looked back out at the ocean. We had come this far and we had a goal, we had left Equestria to try and find a treasure. I wasn’t even sure if we were going to be able to even make it to our goal, wherever that was.

I ruffled my wings a little and then looked back at Pure Heart and smiled softly. We had all agreed to go on this trek together and I knew that I wasn’t going to make us turn around just because of my own unsureness.

This wasn’t my first adventure, but I had only ever been fighting before. This was my chance to do something with my friends and maybe even solve one of the biggest mysteries in Equestria.

“No, we’re going to keep going,” I said softly and gave her a smile and put my wing over her gently. “We’re going into this together as friends. I don’t really care about the treasure, I just want to go on this adventure with my best friends, and my marefriend.”

Pure Heart smiled softly as she nuzzled me gently. “I love you Serenity, and you know I’d do anything for you right?”

“Yeah, I know,” I said with a smile as we looked back out at the ocean. “The ocean is beautiful isn’t it? I kind of have to wonder, what might be under those waves.”

“You never know,” Pure Heart said with a shrug. “I’m not sure what to think of it honestly, but it feels like there’s something out there that we don’t quite understand yet.”

I nodded a little and leaned in and gave Pure a soft kiss on the lips. She returned the kiss after a moment as we stayed close. I was happy to have her here with me, we had a life together and we were going to do everything here together.

“Hey, are you two going to come eat?” A familiar Zebra voice asked and we broke the kiss and saw Ashi looking at us curiously for a moment. “So, you’re her marefriend huh?”

“Uh, yeah,” Pure Heart asked as she looked at me confused for a moment. “Is there something you want to tell me Serenity?”

“You’ve got a good mare here,” Ashi said with a chuckle and shook her head a little. “Don’t worry, I’m not about to steal her away from you. You’re lucky to have a wonderful marefriend.”

She walked away and Pure looked at me confused. “You, uh…”

“We were working together,” I said and rubbed the back of my head a little. “She’s into ponies apparently and didn’t know that we were together.”

“Ah, I see, well…” Pure Heart said with a smirk as she leaned in and kissed me again. “While I’m glad you’re not cheating on me, you’re still going to have to make it up to me later.”

My face turned hot for a moment as I realized just what she meant by that. I just smiled and nodded as I nuzzled her a little. “Lets go get some food then.”

And with that we walked down into the depths of the ship.

00000

We sat in the room set apart for dining aboard the Tiger Shark, I poked lightly at the fish that had been set out in front of me. I had eaten meat before, but I wasn’t really sure about this fish for some reason.

Of course the Zebras around us ate without much question so it was probably fine. I stretched out a bit and looked over at the others who were eating.

“Everything okay Serenity?” Ashi asked.

“Yeah, just, not used to eating fish I guess,” I said with a shrug. “I’m not really used to life on the ocean I guess.”

“Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it,” Ashi said as she gave me a nod and ripped into her own fish with her sharpened teeth. “Come on, it’s not going to hurt you. We fish these up ourselves Skaril is one of the best cooks in the tribe.”

I took a bite of it, it actually wasn’t that bad. Of course we were out here on an adventure, so maybe everything wasn’t so bad. I was going to have to get used to a lot of things I wasn’t familiar with.

The Dragon Lands, this was one of the biggest mysteries in Equestria given that it had been quiet for over 200 years. I just hoped that we were doing the right thing, there was a lot of things we were going to have to get used to and a fish was probably the least of them.

Go Fish stared at the fish. “I’m named Go Fish and I am eating fish this feels strange to me.”

Ashi just chuckled a little. “Sorry, we don’t really have a lot else to eat since we’re on the ocean, unless you want some seaweed.”

“No I’m fine. I am sure Crow loves it.” Fishy chuckled. The changeling seemed to be asleep in his crow form snoring.

“So, you’re with the FRA?” Pure Heart asked as she looked over at Ashi curiously. “I heard there were some Zebra ships that remained independent after the war.”

“Oh sure, the pirates and cannibals mostly,” Ashi said with a shake of her head as she took a bite. “The FRA and the Legion used them as privateers during the war, some of them are still kicking around that didn’t join up with the Alliance. Doesn’t hurt that one of our old port cities is the FRA capital.”

“So I always wanted to ask a Zebra this. How many of them hated the war itself?” Fishy asked.

“The Great War you mean?” Ashi asked and sighed a little. “You’d be surprised actually, a lot of Zebras during the war didn’t like what was going on. There are rumors that a coalition of them were planning to depose the Caesar if the war kept going as it did. Unfortunately, the Day of Burning happened before they got the chance.”

“That happen with my kind to.” Crow spoke up while he slept well pretending to sleep. “We didn’t care for the war ourselves but we felt we had to fight with the ponies. Of course this knowledge was written on the walls of the hive. I’m sadly the last of my hive.”

“I’m sorry,” Ashi said with a shake of her head. “I couldn’t imagine going through something like that.”

“Yes I grew up alone. I did meet others of my kind though but not all of them were very kind.”

“You could try the Hive up in the Crystal Wasteland,” I suggested as I took a bite of fish. “They’ve been a lot better since the end of the last Changeling Invasion. My friend Vex is with them, they’re pretty nice.”

Crow nodded. “Oh FISH!!” He swooped down taking a fish eating it while he pereched on one of the chairs.

“Good thing you grabbed the right fish,” Calypso said with a giggle as she gave Go Fish a smile. “We wouldn’t want you taking away the other one.”

Go Fish cheeks turned bright red. “I hate the fact that.. I am named after a card game.” She used her wings to hide her face from everypony.

“Weren’t you named after your mom who went by a nickname anyway?” Pure Heart asked.

“Yes I was named after BlackJack. I know I’m her daughter because… I have her weird sense of humor when it comes to guns. Normally I have no issue with it. Of course thanks to the constant jokes from Silver when I was growing up. It made it hard for me to be near fishing poles.”

“I like your name though Fish,” Calypso said with a soft smile as she hugged her friend lightly. “I think it fits you perfectly.”

I glanced over at Crow for a moment and noticed that the Changeling was a little closer to the others than I had expected. I could’ve sworn for a moment I saw a bit of energy or something flying into him and I frowned a little.

“Hey Crow, can I talk to you?”

Crow blinked looking at me nodding. “Uh sure I would love to speak to you.”

“In private,” I said and nodded to the door leading out on deck.

Crow landed turning to his full changeling form. “What’s wrong Serenity?”

I sighed as we stepped out onto deck and looked back at him. “How long have you been feeding on our love?”

Crow sighed looking away over the side to the water. “Ever since I met you. Serenity how hard do you think it is to control that side of me?”

“Crow,” I said and let out a groan. “I spent months during the Invasion working with a Changeling named Vex. He had to feed on love too, but he always asked permission first, we were fine with it as long as he didn’t take too much. You’re not helping anything by sneaking around about it.”

“Sneaking around about it? I have no control over it. The other Changelings I know don’t even eat love. They have changed so much that they don’t need it anymore. I have never went through teaching on how to stop it. Now If I am given enough food it doesn't happen. But Fishy and Calie when I am near them… It’s like yeesh. You and your love are open about it. I don’t feed off you those two I can’t stop it.”

“Look, if you ever need to feed on us, at least ask for permission,” I said with a sigh. “I understand what you mean, but just think about it okay? I’m sure it would at least make Callie and Go Fish feel better than if you just fed off them.”

Crow nodded. “I told Scootaloo before I became a guardian of well Crusader town. That this might happen. She didn’t get upset at me she of course did tell me that some might not like it. But I stayed hidden for this reason. To some Serenity I am still a monster even though I did do what I did for Scoots. Some can’t get over the fact that I’m a changeling.”

“Crow, I don’t think you’re a monster, and like I said I understand you have to do it,” I said with a soft smile as I placed a hoof on his shoulder. “If they won’t agree, then you can at least feed on me a little as you need it. Just don’t take too much, okay?”

Crow took a deep breath nodding. “I am not fond of feeding off my friends Serenity but we might have to all agree on this fact. That I’m here and that I may have to feed just in case I need to help protect us.”

“Then promise me one thing, you’ll at least talk to the others about it before we get to the Dragon Lands,” I said with a smile. “Who knows, they might understand.”

“Alright maybe they’re all done eating and we can go into one of our rooms. I doubt the zebras want to hear this.The crazy life of a changeling named Crow.” He chuckled.

“Good idea,” I said with a chuckle. “Yeah, let’s go try and talk to them.”

We headed back into the ship where the Zebras were gathering things up. Pure Heart trotted over to me and gave me a quick kiss on the cheek. “Hey, is everything okay?”

“Yeah, we were just talking about something,” I said and looked back at Crow. “Crow, do you want to say something?”

“A place that is private would be better.” Crow nodded to me.

“Sure, lets go to our cabin,” Pure Heart said as we started into the depths of the ship and pushed the door open.

“Alright what’s up that we have to force ourselves in here like sardines?” Fishy asked with a snort.

Crow sighed looking over to me. “I have been well feeding off you all.”

Fishy blinked staring at Crow then back at me. Then back at Crow. “How do I taste?”

Crow stared at Fishy like she was crazy.

“Wait, you mean you’ve been feeding off our love?” Pure Heart asked.

“Yes I have been I don’t mean to do it miss Heart. It’s I can’t control it when there is so much. You and Serenity I have no issues. But those two.” He pointed his hoof to Go Fish and Calypso. “It’s like an endless torrent.”.

Calypso blinked as she blushed a little and looked away. “Well, umm… er…”

Fishy did her best not to blush but acted dumb. “Endless torent really?”

Crow sighed “Okay you two need to work out your issues here or I am going to be feeding off you two for awhile. You hide it to much that’s why I feed on it. Serenity and Pure Heart are open, its why I don’t get nothing from them.”

“Another reason for you two to finally admit your feelings,” I said with a chuckle as I wrapped my wing around Pure Heart.

Go Fish groaned. “I know we hide it and yes we can’t hide it from you two. It’s the fact I don’t want to.”

Crow grew upset. “You aren’t Blackjack!! Get that through your damn thick head!! You’re lucky to even have someone who would love you. I’m a creature that will never find that love. So don’t pretend that you feel that you will hurt her. Because it’s what your mother did. You’re your own pony.”

“And even then, your mom found love,” I pointed out. “You’re going to be just fine, both of you are.”

“Alright I felt that sooner or later I would have to be open. But Crow what does feeding off of love do for you?”

Crow sighed. “It helps me heal my body. It also makes me strong enough to protect you. But I will only do it if the need is dire.”

“If you need to, you can feed on us but…” Calypso said and paused a moment. “But, I mean Fishy is cute…”

“And I love what Callie does with her nose when she is blushing.”

Crow groaned “What are you two so scared about?!”

“The fact who her mother is and who her father is.” Fishy finally said

“Fishy, my parents like you, and they trust my judgment,” Calypso said with a roll of her eyes. “Besides, we’re on a ship heading to the Dragon Lands, do you think they’re going to fly out here to yell at you?”

Go Fish groans “Fine I will finally say it. Calie I love you okay. Just it’s hard to be me at times. Now is that all I needed to do Crow?”
Crow sighed deeply. He looked over to me. “Could you smack her for me please?”

“Sure,” I said and smacked Go Fish upside the head.

“No that is not all that is needed. You need to show it you need to not treat her like you have been. You need to just allow whatever love is..to come to you how it is. I wish I could be like Silver and Just turn off my emotions.” Crow said softly

Fishy sighed. “Alright Callie Lets go to our room and have a long talk. A talk I think we have been needing to do for years now.”

Calypso nodded a little and smiled. “Okay Fishy, lets go.”

She turned and headed for the door, surprisingly enough she didn’t do anything to tease her. I smiled a little and gave them a nod. “I’m sure you two will figure it out.”

“Now I shall take my leave again. I will be around if you need me.” Crow smiled turning into a small mouse and skittered out of the room. Fishy watched all this looking back at me with a large smile following Calypso.

“It's about time if you ask me,” Pure Heart said with a chuckle as she kissed me softly on the lips.

“I know, it's been obvious ever since we met them,” I said with a chuckle as I nuzzled Pure gently.

“Well, while they talk, what do you say we talk about a few things ourselves,” Pure said with a smile, I was about to say something when I felt a light caress of my tail thanks to her magic. “Come on Serenity.”

I smiled a little and let her pull me off towards where we’d be sleeping.

00000

It was a few years ago and a few months after Vanilla had died. I had moved in with Pure Heart and her moms on Nomad City by this point and, honestly I was in a bad place back then. Vanilla was the only mother I had ever known, and I had a hard time getting over it.

I sighed and rolled over in my bed as I looked out the window. I could make out the taller buildings and the dome of Nomad City from here, it was a nice view but somehow I just didn’t feel like getting out of bed.

I had lost every family I ever had. My birth parents had died when I was a baby, the Crusaders had to go back to their home world, and then Vanilla died of cancer. I felt like I was cursed more than anything else, I’d probably never have a family that loved me like Pure Heart did.

I sighed and rolled over onto my stomach and just laid there for awhile. There wasn’t much point to getting up today, I was just going to stay there.

“Serenity?” A soft voice said as there was a knocking on the door.

“Go away,” I said just barely loud enough to be heard. “I don’t want to talk to anypony right now.”

I heard the door open and the sound of hooves on the floor. Before I knew what was happening a pony had jumped up on the bed and I looked over to see the green eyes of Pure Heart looking at me worriedly.

“What do you want Pure?” I asked with a groan. “I don’t want to get out of bed right now.”

“Okay, well I’m not getting out of your bed either,” Pure said with a shake of her head. “Not until you talk to me. We’re worried about you Serenity, you’ve been like this for awhile.”

“How am I supposed to act? I lost my mom,” I said and just buried my face back in the pillow. “I’ve lost everypony that I’ve ever cared about in one way or another.”

“That’s not true,” Pure Heart said as she placed her hoof gently on my shoulder. “What about us? Or Scootaloo? We care about you more than you can ever imagine.”

“Yeah, I know…” I said softly and shook my head a little. “But still, its not the same without Vanilla. We may have fought sometimes, but she raised me like I was her own daughter… I feel like we didn’t have enough time together.”

“Serenity, Vanilla loved you very much,” Pure said as she turned me around and looked at me in the eye. “She wouldn’t want you acting like this. You don’t have to focus on the bad times, focus on the good times you two had together. She was your mother and a wonderful one at that, you should remember her as that and that she loved you so very much.”

I blinked a little and looked up into the white Unicorn’s eyes. She had a point, was I really just beating myself up over all of this because I focused too much on the negative? She had been there for me whenever I needed her, every time I had gotten hurt, every time I cried, she was always there to pick me up and make me feel better.

I wished that I could see her again, but I couldn’t ever forget her.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” I said with a weak smile as I looked up at Pure Heart. “Thanks Pure, you don’t know how much this means to me. You’re the best friend I could ever ask for.”

“You’re welcome Serenity,” she replied and looked away and blushed a little. “Serenity I…”

“What is it?” I asked as I tilted my head a little. “Pure, you know you can tell me anything right?”

“No, no its silly, you’re still getting over everything, I shouldn’t pile this on you too,” Pure said with a shake of her head. “Come on, we have to get breakfast.”

“Oh, okay,” I said and blinked a little in surprise, but I got up and we started to walk to the door when Pure Heart stopped in front of me, I nearly ran into her flank at that. “What?”

“Oh who am I kidding, there’s no point in putting it off…” she said and turned around and kissed me on the lips.

My eyes went wide as my wings shot up a little. I blushed a little, it wasn’t an unpleasant kiss, it was, actually really nice. I closed my eyes and just enjoyed the kiss for a long moment as I felt Pure wrap her forelegs around me.

We were interrupted by the sound of the door shutting. I chuckled a little as we broke the kiss, interrupted by her parents of course.

“Does this mean what I think it means?” I asked as I looked at her in the eyes.

“I’ve had feelings for you for awhile Serenity,” Pure Heart said softly. “I’m not sure if you feel the same about me though. I just, wanted a chance to tell you, you know?”

“Its okay,” I said with a soft smile as I nuzzled her gently. “I feel the same way about you Pure Heart. I love you, would you be my special somepony?”

“Of course,” Pure said with a smile as she kissed my nose. “But my parents are probably waiting downstairs to give you trouble you know.”

“Oh I know,” I said with a laugh. “But it’s worth it for you.”

I wrapped my wings gently around her and we stayed like that for the longest moment. I didn’t want to let her go.

00000

“What’s got you smiling?” Pure asked as she looked up at me. She was snuggled up to me as she rested her head on my chest.

“Oh, nothing, I’m just thinking about when you became my marefriend,” I said and stroked her green mane gently. “And how lucky I am to have you.”

“Thanks Serenity,” Pure said as she snuggled with me. “I’m lucky to have you too.”

I smiled and leaned back as we just layed there. The ship swayed beneath us as we moved on towards the Dragon Lands, we had quite the adventure ahead of us, but we weren’t about to back down.

Not as long as I had my friends with me.

“Heh, you remember how much of a chewing out my moms gave you?” Pure Heart asked with a chuckle. “You were almost too scared to actually ask me out on our first date.”

“Yeah, but I still did,” I said with a smile. “And I’ve never regretted it, your parents came around too.”

“True, we needed a new kitchen table anyway,” Pure said with a laugh as she snuggled with me more. “Good night Serenity.”

“Good night Pure,” I said with a smile as we snuggled together and drifted off to sleep.

00000

The ship sailed on for a few more days until finally we could see the shoreline of the Dragon Lands ahead of us. The ship made port in a small port town on the edge of the Dragon Lands called Water Dragon Bay.

“Alright you five, good luck with your treasure hunt,” Captain Tiger Shark said as she and Ashi waved to us. “If you don’t get killed maybe we can give you a ride back.”

“Yeah, thanks for filling us with such confidence,” Pure Heart said with a roll of her eyes and I just chuckled a little.

“Oh thank you for being so kind.” Crow laughed

Go Fish just looked to Calie with a smirk. “As long as I have you Calypso I can do anything.” She spreads her wings. “But first let’s get off this boat. I feel a bit sick after being on it for so long.”

“Yeah, agreed,” I said as we walked down the gangplank and onto the dock.

I got my first look at the Dragon Lands here. I was a bit surprised to see the settlement looked a lot like any settlement back home, though some of the buildings were much, much larger, probably for dragons.

Beyond that though we could see desert sands and tall mountains. I took out the map and looked back out at the desert for a long moment.

“Alright, according to the map we’re a few days walk from the mountain range we need to get to,” I said as I folded it back up and put it away. “If we need any more supplies right now would be a good time.”

“This place is very overwhelming.” Go Fish lifted herself into the air flapping her wings taking a deep breath. “But I love the scent of the air.”

“Serenity...” Crow was in a zebra form. “This place from what I have learned from the writing’s of my hive. It wasn’t a pleasant place.”

“Yeah, well let’s just finish up here as soon as possible and…” I said walking forward when I nearly ran into another pony.

“Watch where you’re going,” he snapped, he was a tall Unicorn with a dark grey coat and a sandy brown mane.

He walked away and I paused a moment, something about this felt, off to me as he walked off to another group nearby. I frowned a little and looked back at my friends.

“Serenity, you really should watch where you’re going, we don’t know anything about this place,” Pure Heart said with a shake of her head.

“Yeah, you’re right,” I said with a shake of my head. “Come on, let's get going.”

“Serenity.” Go Fish landed and whispered in my ear. “Look at the Zebra.”

I looked back and narrowed my eyes a little. The Zebra mare in the group had circular stripes around her muzzle and was dressed in a cloak with a strange clasp on it.

I knew what that meant, Scootaloo had fought one of these Zebras during the Enclave War. And Riva had told me stories from back in Zebrica.

“I see what you mean…” I said quietly. “She’s a Starkatteri.”

“Um… Why is she staring us?” Crow asked.

“I don’t know, but I don’t like it,” Pure Heart said. “I think we need to get out of here.”

“Yeah, lets get going,” I said with a nod as we started out into the town.

LEVEL UP!

Perk Received: Adventure Archeologist.
Details: You’ve set out on an adventure through unknown lands and untold dangers like Daring Do before you. You get an extra 5 points in your barter skill and your Luck stat is increased by one while in any pre-war structures.

Comments

[The Bricklayer]

You know, as plenty of them have already been made and referenced, I'm going to avoid the obvious Pirates of the Caribbean jokes here and just say... good work. Serenity and her marefriend? So cute.