Sigil of Souls, Stream of Memories

by Piccolo Sky

Nightwatch: Something in Common

Rainbow Dash woke up to realize rather quickly that her situation hadn’t changed much from how she had left it.

She could still feel herself jostling and shaking from the rhythm of the stagecoach she was in, and the pace had quickened once again; no doubt due to the fact that, as a glance at the door’s window showed, the sun was on its way down. It was that quicker pace that had actually awakened her—for it drove her side into more pain that she struggled to bite back.

Moreover, Rarity was the same as how she left her. Seated across from her and crying into a handkerchief.

Dash winced at the sight, not only at waking up to it but the fact that Rarity’s own weeping and sobbing didn’t seem like that of anyone she had ever known but more like the kind one would see in a stage play or performance.

She mildly groaned as she sat up. “So, how far from the stop?”

Rarity didn’t answer, save to let out another cry into her handkerchief.

Giving her a bit of a deadpan look, she next rapped her knuckle on the back of the stagecoach wall. “Yo!” she called, wincing as raising her voice made her side hurt more. “We almost there or what?”

A loud scoff came from the driver’s seat. “You young people… The moment that second airship landed I should have left you both behind but I stuck around long enough for you both to get in, and since then the only things you’ve said to me are ‘drive now’ and ‘we almost there or what’. How about a ‘thank you’?”

“Ugh…we’re paying you, aren’t we?”

Another scoff. “Bartering again… And what am I supposed to do with this…this thing anyway?”

“Sell it to your government. They’ll pay top dollar, believe me…” Dash shrugged before leaning back against the seat and looking at Rarity. “We’ll have to hang out at the stage stop tonight. They don’t like it and it’s not the best in the world, but it beats the ground or being out in the dark. We’ll be at the Macintosh Hills tomorrow.”

Rarity didn’t respond. She continued to sniffle, even throwing in a bit of a hiccup.

Dash winced. “Are you still crying about that?”

This got Rarity to pause. A moment later, her handkerchief lowered so she could glare at Dash through red, puffy eyes.

“If by ‘that’ you mean the fact I saw my old elementary school teacher and friend get decapitated right in front of me, then yes I am!”

“Well, can’t you dry it up at least? It’s going to be hard to lay low or finish this trip if you’re going to be sobbing like this every step of the way.”

Rarity stared at Dash in open-mouthed surprise a moment, before her jaw clenched and she slapped her handkerchief down on the seat next to her. “How…how dare you! If that’s not the most callous, rude, and insensitive thing I’ve ever heard in my life! I would have died in that town if not for her! And you would have too, for that matter!”

“Well, moping about it isn’t going to help you or me now, is it?” Dash retorted; her own volume rising. “And it’s definitely not going to do her any good!”

Rarity sputtered before growing more incensed. “Alright, I take it back…that was the most callous, rude, and insensitive thing I’ve ever heard in my life!”

“Oh, give me a break!” Dash lashed back. “Until we arrived in that town, you didn’t even know she was living there! You hadn’t seen her in…what? How many years? You could have been back in Manehattan when it happened and you’d never have known one way or the other! Or cared for that matter!”

Rarity let out a mild gasp, leaning back in her seat like she had been struck.

“So your old teacher got killed. I hate to break it to you like this, but you know what? Big deal! Maybe it means something if you’re safe and making piles of money in Manehattan to have some grade school teacher of yours bite the big one, but out here if most people got as worked up as you over something like that they'd never be able to live! There’s a lot worse things you could lose! And a lot of us have! Why don’t you try showing some of us some respect by not rubbing it in our faces with your waterworks?”

Rarity had been caught at first when Dash lashed back with her accusation, but as she went on, her look began to grow furious all over again. Nevertheless, she held until the Huntsman had finished saying her piece, and by then she was quivering. In spite of this, she somehow restrained herself as she spoke in a forced, measured tone.

“Yes, well…I’m terribly sorry that I am apparently not in the category of a ‘lot of us’, as you so put it, and therefore have somehow not ‘earned’ the right to be sad when someone I knew passes on. Please forgive me for such an affront. But I suppose,”

Her tone grew sharper.

“That after I lost both of my parents on the same day and had to fish our family’s company out of bankruptcy, after a few years later I got the news that my little sister had also been killed and I couldn’t even attend a funeral or leave work for one day on learning I was the only member of our family still left in the world, and after I arrived in Flaxonville only to find the one client who almost single-handedly saved my business had died without me even knowing about it, and not from Nighttouched or Light Eaters but from regular people invading Cloudsdale,”

Tears were now flowing from her eyes again as her teeth gnashed.

“That seeing yet another person who had been important to me die right in front of my eyes tends to get me a little emotional!”

Rarity didn’t break into sobs again, but she did slump back in her seat, look at her lap, and continue to let her tears flow. Dash, however, had changed. She had looked a little cowed at Rarity’s long tirade, but one part seemed to have struck her more than the rest.

“Your friend…died when Cloudsdale fell?”

Rarity sniffled and, in a rather unladylike manner, wiped her nose with the back of her hand.

Dash’s head lowered. Her own look became regretful. “I’m…sorry about that.” Her voice was so quiet it was almost a mutter. “I should have…should have done something…”

Rarity scoffed as she leaned back, still not looking at Dash. “Oh, now you’re just being petulant. What could you have done about that?”

“More than I ended up doing. I was there when it happened.”

The designer’s anger broke and she looked up at Dash again. The rainbow-haired woman was still sitting there with head hung. She met Rarity’s gaze, but her look was no longer bold or daring. She hadn't looked so pathetic and small since they met.

“You’re looking at the last Wonderbolt. The last of Cloudsdale’s best defenders.”

Rarity straightened in her seat. “You?”

Her eyes fell to the floor. “Sole survivor. Lucky me, huh?” Nothing but shame hung on those words. “Everyone I ever really cared about…everyone I ever called my friends…they all died that day. I couldn’t help them. I couldn’t save any of them.” She frowned. “I couldn’t even die alongside them. All I could do was survive…”

Her hands clenched.

“Captain Spitfire…she could have made it, but she wanted to save me. Me, of all people. She was ten times the person I was, but she’s dead and I’m here. Here with this…”

She held up the hand with the hexagonal symbol on it.

“This thing that showed up that same day, reminding me each and every time I’m about to bite the big one I have to call her to save me again.”

Rarity’s face had eased; most of her earlier anger forgotten. She looked at Dash far more gently. She finally exhaled and leaned forward. “I suppose neither of us have the right to belittle the other… We’ve both lost those we care about, the same as everyone else in Greater Everfree I suppose…” After a moment, she reached out and put her hand on the Huntsman's knee. “It’s not your fault what happened there, Rainbow. You can’t blame yourself for surviving.”

“I dunno… I think I’ve managed that pretty well so far.” She took in a deep breath and looked up again. “But…just because I don’t like getting hung up on people I’m not getting back doesn’t mean I should have given you a hard time for doing it. I know your teacher saved you and that she saved me too back there. And I really do appreciate it. I’m sorry if it sounds like I don’t. It’s just…”

She winced, nearly looking down again.

“Just I don’t like thinking of someone else dying I couldn’t save…”

Rarity was quiet for a time. Finally, with a bit of effort, she smiled again. “Well, I’m sure she wouldn’t want you to think that way. And…well, if that was an apology just now, I accept it.”

Dash stayed looking morose much longer before she made a weak smile of her own. “Thanks.”

After a moment, Rarity exhaled and leaned back. She dabbed her eyes with her handkerchief again, but had stopped crying. She looked to her own hand instead. It had changed again since initially appearing. While it was at a different point than the one on Dash’s hand, a larger spot-like symbol had appeared on one of the edges.

She sighed as she held it up. “I suppose this is something else we have in common now…and that we shared with Ms. Cheerilee. The question is what in the world is it?”

“Beats me,” Dash shrugged as she leaned up. “I’ll tell you one thing though…those Trottinghamites didn’t like ‘em.”

“No, they certainly didn’t…but that reminds me. You wanted us to leave in a hurry as soon as that airship landed. Did you happen to…?”

She frowned back. “If you’re saying if I knew they were going to try and kill us for having these things on our hand, nope. I keep mine a secret ‘cause I don’t like people asking questions about it and I like keeping that ace in the hole. But…” She leaned back, crossing her arms. “There’s a lot of rumors kicking around in the Huntsman guild about Trottinghamites who do whatever they want whenever they want, and it’s never pretty. Most of them are over on the border with the Dragonlands, but there’s this one story about this one ‘noblewoman’…”

“Who?”

“Dunno. Never paid much attention. They just say she’s got a mess of hair like a fire and this real nasty attitude. A big bully, more or less. Goes around doing what she feels like, and sometimes it involves a lot of fire and people getting hurt. Even killed.”

“Well, that incident certainly fit the bill…” Rarity winced. “That sort of behavior would cause an international conflict though, wouldn’t it?”

Dash waved her hand. “Trottingham thinks it’s such a big shot now that it can actually fly over Equestria without getting torn up by flying Nighttouched that it can do whatever it wants. That being said, this is kind of extreme even for them. I mean, all the other times were just rumors, but there’s no way this didn’t happen. I think it’s probably best that you do what I do from now on.”

“What’s that?”

“Keep it a secret. Don’t offer out any more reasons to stick out.”

Rarity sighed and slumped in her seat. “I suppose you’re right. After this business trip is over, I’ll never want to set foot outside of Manehattan again.”

“Y’know,” Dash spoke up more casually, “I’m not about to raise too much of a stink about it so long as it’s footing my own bill, but you must sure love money a ton if you’re risking all this to get that piece of paper signed. I thought you’d have turned tail by now.”

Rarity frowned a little as she looked back up. “I’ll have you know that this isn’t about lining my pocket. If I can’t get that contract signed, then my company misses out on making those new uniforms.”

She shrugged. “Big deal. You really think that’s worth your life?”

Rarity looked indignant. “Aside from the fact that the fashion industry is my passion, my art form, and my life, this has nothing to do with my own petty pleasures. I…” She suddenly caught herself, looking a bit nervous. “That is…well…I…”

Dash raised an eyebrow. “What?”

Rarity looked to one side. “You see…um…er…”

Dash frowned. “Come on. Spit it out.”

Finally, she groaned. “Alright…the truth of the matter is I’m not a native of Manehattan city proper. I grew up in a much smaller rural community. My family always operated out of Manehattan for greater clientele as well as those who would appreciate our business.”

“I can get that. More people with more money, right?”

Rarity frowned again. “The point being is after the Lunar Fall business dried up in my hometown quickly. Almost every small business was bought out and most of the younger residents went to the cities looking for work. One local establishment after another was shutting down. I had the idea to put most of the city’s displaced workers to work for Carousel Couture and relocate many of the operations there. That way I could help keep the town on its feet.”

Dash raised her head, now seeming honestly interested. “Really?” A pause. “How is it working out?”

“That’s just it… It might not work out at all. Not if this deal doesn’t go through. And if it doesn’t, not only do I lose my business but my hometown loses out as well.” She grimaced, wiping at her brow a little for the mere thought started to make her sweat again. “And if that happens, everyone who was living there loses out along with it.”

The Huntsman was silent, staring at Rarity as she continued to slump in her own seat. After a time, she finally leaned back and tried to relax as well.

“Let’s just worry about getting there for now. We’ll cross the next bridge when we get there. ‘Til then, though…” She tapped her symbol. “Let’s keep these a secret.”

Rarity sighed. “I knew I should have packed my traveling gloves…or at least a strong foundation…”

---

The old man was still looking taken aback, and even sweating a little, when he finally managed to sit down. “I must say, Ms. Rarity, when I thought of the day in which we would finally have a chance to meet face-to-face, this…isn’t quite what I expected.”

Rarity forced herself to give a minor chuckle, hoping it hid her embarrassment. “Yes, well, the feeling is certainly mutual, but these aren’t quite the times I expected either.”

Following one of the more back-jarring nights Rarity had ever been forced to endure, sleeping in total darkness on a hard wooden bench at a stagecoach waystation, she and Dash were up bright and early the next day and walking the last part of the trip to the Macintosh Hills. Rarity was the faster of the two that day, and while she wished it was merely due to her improved footwear she knew part of it was the fact Dash was still sweating and holding her side the whole way. It became clear to both of them that Ms. Cheerilee’s strange move had only partially healed her and she definitely needed rest. She wouldn’t admit it, however, and even after noon she kept herself going.

They arrived at the community soon after and got a wagon ride out to the Fabrichique plantation. She was impressed at the sight of it. Very new, very modern, and just as shiny and upscale as a Manehattan establishment only smaller and in a far more rural area. They definitely took their craft seriously, however. On arrival at the front gates, Dash went off to what Rarity hoped was some rest as she herself tried to ignore the fact she hadn’t had any food for close to 24 hours and stumbled up to the front gate.

Even now, in the cushioned chair she had drawn (and was immensely grateful for along with her legs), she was repressing the urge to stuff her face with a few tea cakes that had been placed between her and Colonel Cotton Gin, the owner of the plantation. Goodness knew it had been hard enough to even get her foot in the door. She nearly got chased off of the property when she introduced herself as Rarity of Carousel Couture, and it took a great deal of convincing to three separate individuals before they finally would let her in.

“I honestly didn’t know whether we’d ever get a response to our solicitation, let alone one that would bring you in person all the way out here at a time like this,” Cotton continued. “Haven’t you heard the news?”

“I, heh, tend to normally keep up on periodicals, but I’m afraid I haven’t had the luxury over the past four days…”

He gestured to the window out in one direction. “The latest surge of Nighttouched is happening on the border that way. They think it’s going to cut off the northernmost railroad route. Maybe as early as this evening. A third of the military is an uproar. Several settlements have already been wiped out overnight.”

In spite of her own concerns, Rarity couldn’t help but go wide-eyed. “Oh my… Are they serious?”

“That isn’t the half of it. Trottingham has been making moves of their own. Just yesterday they hit Flaxonville. I don’t suppose you heard of that one on your way here?”

Rarity suppressed a swallow. “I might have heard a whisper or two…”

“Well, something new came out of that one,” Cotton frowned as he helped himself to his own teacup. “Now the government is telling folks to be on the lookout for anyone who has these weird six-sided symbols on their hands.”

It was a good thing Rarity hadn’t managed to grasp her own teacup when Cotton had said that, or she might have shattered it. Instead, she nearly went rigid as a rail before she caught herself, quickly turning her palm over. In the end, the best she had been able to do to hide her own mark was pretend that her hand was bandaged from an injury, but she didn’t dare even give an inkling of it now. “Wh-why…what a strange thing to suggest! Er, that is, a strange thing for which to be on the lookout. I don’t suppose they mentioned why, did they?”

He shook his head. “Not at all. Something to do with terrorism, supposedly. They say to report to the local authorities as soon as one gets spotted, though.”

Rarity paused only a moment before quickly seizing her teacup and downing a drink to swallow the lump in her throat. “Oh my,” she fanned herself a little, “I’m afraid I’m not used to these Appleloosan summers at all. It’s terribly warm. Anyway, I’ll be very careful. Now then,” Putting the teacup down with a touch of a jingle, she reached for her handbag next. “We’re on the verge of a deal with the Manehattan government that’s worth a considerable sum. If I can just get your signature confirming your willingness to sell to us at your proffered price, we’ll both stand to do very well with our respective businesses.”

“Oh, I’m very much hoping for that,” Cotton smiled as he straightened in his own chair, reaching for his pen. “I was hoping that an up-and-coming designer like you and your company would be willing to help us break into the Manehattan market. And with the way things are going, I hoped to get a signature soon before the next crisis had a chance to break out.”

“Oh yes,” Rarity nervously chuckled, “I can imagine that feeling…” Soon after, she produced the document and placed it on his desk. “Please peruse that to make sure that the arrangement is to your liking. I don’t want to sound like I’m pressuring you by any means but I’m somewhat in earnest to close this deal today…”

He accepted the contract and fixed a pair of spectacles on his nose, beginning to look it over. “I’m sure it will be. I must thank you again for this opportunity, Ms. Rarity. This means a great deal to our emerging industry. Right now, everyone in the industrial portion of Appleloosa craves some stability. Some means of a consistent income. Manehattan’s location offers the best chance at that. And with an upcoming contract like this…”

He trailed off as he continued to look over the document. Rarity’s anxiety, which had just been starting to fade, resurfaced. “Is…is there something wrong?”

“Oh, no, no…” he half-mused, even as he continued to look over the rest of the document. “It all seems fairly well and good…” He trailed off, swishing his lips. “Except for this one detail right here. I’d like to make a proviso, if I might, before I sign.”

She struggled to keep up her business appearance. “What sort of…proviso?”

“I would like this to be amended that this contract is not binding if the deal with the Manehattan government collapses.”

“Excuse me?”

“Well, the truth of the matter is that we received a rather generous offer from another Manehattan company just this morning. One that didn’t quite meet our original quoted offer, but offered us insurance in the case of a national collapse and offered to absorb a portion of the costs of missed shipments. As we’re shipping halfway across Greater Everfree, you can understand why this is so valuable. In fact, most of our local competitors already signed on.”

Rarity’s jaw slowly began to slacken. “Pardon me, but…did you say ‘most of our local competitors’? As in this same company has contracted with multiple suppliers…?”

“However,” Cotton went on, patting the contract, “I may be getting started late in life on my own business, but I like to think I know a thing or two about the market. And I think being guaranteed as an exclusive supplier for a contracted major client is a bonus worth the momentarily lax social security. So that’s why I opted to hold out for a better deal and, lo and behold, here you are.”

Rarity sat there stiff as a board, almost twitching in place.

“…Is something the matter?”

Shaking her head, she snapped out of it. “Oh…oh, of course not, sir. And yes, don’t worry. We’re guaranteed for that contract so long as you place your signature on that slip of paper.”

“Well then, we’re all set,” he smiled back, leaning over and beginning to write in the edit. “I look forward to our business future together, Ms. Rarity.”

She forced a smile. “And I…am quite hopeful about it myself, colonel.”

---

In spite of how many tea cakes she had, Rarity was still wobbling on her feet as she half-stumbled down the road about an hour later. Her eyes stared at the dirt path in front of her wide-lidded; her mind ablaze with all new thoughts and concerns in addition to the ones she had from the disastrous trip there. She barely even noticed where she was walking, let alone how the day was getting late by then.

It wasn’t until she slowly made her way closer toward her scheduled meeting point with Rainbow Dash that she noticed the area around her had changed. She heard the sounds of horses coming down the road and, on looking up, noticed several members of the Appleloosan cavalry running into town. She was a bit nervous at first, putting her bandaged hand to her side and moving out of the way, but soon more followed afterward at the next road. Two different teams came down the road after that; making her increasingly suspicious. She found herself looking skyward and listening for sounds of any airships as she continued.

However, the local clock tower was just chiming seven when she caught a glimpse of Dash with a paper parcel in her hand turning a corner, spotting her, and then moving up to her as quick as she could. She was still trying hard not to wince or grasp for her injured side.

“There you are!" she called on reaching her and moving to her side. "Get your paper signed? Come on…let’s walk and talk.”

Rarity felt a bit stunned to be pushed along, but didn’t question it; especially in light of the current situation. She patted her handbag. “It’s right here.” She sighed soon afterward. “For what it’s worth…”

Dash looked confused. “Huh? What do you mean? I thought that was the whole goal of this trip?”

“I just found out that someone is trying to corner the market on textiles,” she frowned. “And considering how Cotton Gin was eager to get a start in Manehattan, and that I had my own deal pulled out right from under me with Tartan Top, I can bet it’s Suri Polomare. With all this recent business it seems she’s looking to corner the market.”

This puzzled Dash even more. “I’m, uh, not really up on how these things work… Like…she’s going to get the market into an alley and threaten to beat it up or…?”

Rarity sighed. “She’s trying to move up on the Manehattan market. It’s still the biggest garment purchaser in Greater Everfree, and she must be using the latest surge of Nighttouched.”

“How does a bunch of Nighttouched attacking mean her, um, ‘moving up’ in the market?”

“…You really don’t understand macroeconomics, do you?”

Dash only gave her a blank stare back.

She grimaced. “Manehattan may be the bigger garment purchaser in Greater Everfree, meaning they’ve got the largest market share, but many of their textiles come from abroad. With this latest Nighttouched surge affecting the northern part of the country, it’s going to either increase material costs by forcing countries like Appleloosa to go around on a longer train route or get cut off entirely. Are you with me so far?”

“I think…”

“So she’s sequestering all of the smaller suppliers. The ones who need to break into the market and are trying to be alternatives when this happens. By tying them up with contracts of her own, she’s keeping all of her competitors, like Carousel Couture, from being able to make any headway. Normally this would be risky for her as she couldn’t afford to keep all these suppliers, but when the normally-expected deliveries get cut off by the Nighttouched, all of the major suppliers will take a major hit. She’ll be the only one in a position to pick up the slack and won’t leave anything behind for the smaller companies. It’s an aggressive power play, but it could certainly pay off.”

Dash had to take a moment or two to fully absorb this before she looked a little stunned. “And I thought Dragon Folk were cutthroat…”

“And that only adds a higher stake to everything,” Rarity moaned. “I already knew my company would be in trouble if I didn’t get this deal made, but now there’s not even a hope of coming back if I can’t get back in time. Gin forced me to add a provision to the contract that it’s null and void if my main contract with the Manehattan Armed Forces doesn’t go through.”

“Well, what’s the big deal?”

“The ‘big deal’ is I still have no way of getting a wire back to Manehattan, and it’s taken me so long just to get to this point that I only have three days to get back and close the deal or everything will have been for nothing.” She slumped hopelessly. “There’s no way we can be in Manehattan in time. I feel like I’m going to collapse tomorrow even trying to make it back as it is…”

The Huntsman let her sag a moment before looking skyward. “Well, I think I might have that taken care of.”

Rarity looked up somewhat lazily, clearly not in the most believing of moods. “Unless that little paper parcel contains an airship, I’m not sure I trust you.”

“Not exactly…but I do have some good news, some more good news, and…er…just a touch of bad news.”

She exhaled. “Alright, what’s the good news?”

She began to open the paper parcel up. “I managed to get us a bit of food for free. Hope you like ham and cheese.”

She revealed some slabs of both inside. It definitely wasn’t anything out of a five-star dining establishment, but merely looking at it made Rarity’s eyes gleam. “Oh…oh thank you ever so much, darling…” she sighed nearly breathlessly. “I wish I could have saved some of the tea cakes for you but I was afraid I’d look rather uncouth if I shoved the whole tray into my handbag…” She nearly reached for it, but then paused and looked up. “Um, on that note, since I had a little something, you should eat first.”

“Nah, don’t sweat it. Already had my share. I was saving that for you.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive.”

She smiled back. “Ms. Dash, you can be a real gem.” She reached up and took the slabs, held them together, and then took a bite. Her eager look almost immediately diminished, and she struggled to keep from losing her grateful smile as she slowly chewed up and swallowed. After she was done, she moistened her lips once, put a hand to her throat, and then smiled again. “Aheh…quite an interesting local flavor. It would seem just a tad…gamey.”

“Huh? Not a chance,” Dash waved off. “It got thrown out no more than two days ago.”

Rarity’s pupils shrank into pinpricks. Her grip on the ham and cheese began to loosen. “T…two days…?”

“Well you don’t think there was someone out here just giving away fresh food for free, do you? Relax. I’ve eaten stuff two weeks old before with maggots and mold to brush off.”

For a moment, Rarity’s cheeks bulged before she lowered her hands. “Heh, as I said…I already filled up on tea cakes, so I’ll save this for a bit later.” She barely managed to say as she started to sweat all over again. “Now then…as to your second bit of good news?”

“Oh yeah. I checked in with the local Huntsman Guild. Found someone I knew there with some hot tips and, well…” She grinned a bit. “I just might have found a way for you to make it back to Manehattan in time for your contract.”

Rarity, forgetting about the rotting food, lit up in delighted surprise. “Really?!”

She leaned in closer, looking about a bit to make sure no one was out who could possibly overhear, before whispering in her ear. “I got the latest news. That big Nighttouched attack? It was so big that almost all the survivors fled to the one fort out there that’s still standing. They’re having a hard time getting messages to and fro, and this is apparently a big secret they’re trying not to let anyone in on, but they’re going to try and run one last train out there to pick them up and take them to the other side while the lines are still open. It’s an emergency so they’re running it tonight at sundown. We get that far; you can hop a train back to Manehattan no problem.”

Rarity nearly gasped in delight. “That’s…that’s marvelous news! Oh, Ms. Dash, you really are a lifesaver! I’ll be giving you a bonus for all of this, rest assured! You’ve gone above and beyond the call of duty! Let’s not waste another moment! Let’s get there at once!”

Dash leaned back at that, her smile fading into an anxious look. “Uh, yeah…about that… Remember that bad news part?”

---

“What do you mean you won’t let us on the tra-aaaaaaaaain?!”

At her wit’s end, Rarity couldn’t help but degenerate into an almost childish whine as she stamped her feet in front of the almost statuesque Appleloosan guard. For all the good it did. Neither he nor his partner gave an inch as they stood posted in front of the narrow entryway leading to the platform. Just beyond it, the train bound for West Appleloosa sat there, already steaming and being loaded. The tool to her salvation just out of their reach.

“Ma’am,” the soldier on the left calmly addressed, “I’m going to have to ask you to calm down and step away from the platform.”

Rarity, looking almost frantic, nearly gave another desperate response before she remembered herself. She took a few deep breaths to compose herself in the most lady-like manner she could afford before speaking again. “Good sir, I understand that you have a responsibility and I am very impressed at how well you are at keeping it, but this is a matter of grave importance. Is there any way I could negotiate with a higher authority to possibly secure a place on this train?”

His jaw twisted into a hint of a frown. “Ma’am, this train is bound to lift hundreds of Appleloosan refugees who got driven out of their house and home last night by Nighttouched to safety before the next surge strikes. So unless you have something more important than that, I suggest you stop wasting my time.”

“But this is important!” she cried, before quickly composing herself again. “I mean…this is important as well. The livelihood of every employee for my business depends on this as well as the survival of my hometown. If I don’t get back to Manehattan they’ll all be out of work. I’ll sit on top of crates or even in the luggage racks if I absolutely must, but I’m desperate.” She paused a moment, before smiling innocently and batting her eyes. “Couldn’t a kind-hearted, devoted man of the military like yourself see it to help a stranded woman in an hour of need?”

His frown only widened into a scowl. “I’m not about to give an inch of ground on this train, or any train, just to help some Manehattanite line their pockets with a few more bucks. Stranded or not.”

“And if he did,” his partner suddenly spoke up, scowling at Rarity as well after her latest attempt, “I’d have him reprimanded for violating a direct order because some pretty lady asked him to and I’d have you thrown into the stockade. Get lost now. I’ve pulled my rifle on people for less than this.”

Rarity’s innocent look turned into a defeated frown before she turned away. Soon after she started to walk back to Dash; waiting just a short distance away. “Another thing I dislike about Appleloosa…the servicemen and women here are far too chaste…”

The Huntsman could only hopelessly frown back. “If it makes you feel any better, you made out better than I did.”

Before she could say a word in response, she heard one of the soldiers behind her. “Hey there.”

Stopping in her tracks, she turned and looked back. One of them was eyeing her with a hint of suspicion. “How’d you get that injury?”

For a split second, Rarity was confused as to what that meant before she realized she was talking about her hand dressing. As best as she could to not miss a beat, she smiled innocently again. “Oh…that. A bit of a mishap with one of those new sewing machines is all.”

The soldier was silent for a full second. “If you head over to the field infirmary, they can take a look at it. Tell them I sent you.”

A cold shudder ran down Rarity’s spine as she quickly smiled and shook her head. “Oh no-no! I wouldn’t dream of inconveniencing you! I’ve already taken enough of your time! Have a good day!” She quickly turned around and hurriedly walked up to Dash, falling in alongside her. “Let’s get out of here at once. Away from any more of the authorities…”

“Yeah, that’s gonna be a bit hard…” Dash muttered as she looked around. Sure enough, soldiers were pouring in by the troop. Already another dozen had arrived since they had first gotten to the train platform, and now they were setting up everywhere. And that was to say nothing of toward the outskirts of the city, where they were all but erecting a base camp. The few civilians still about, whether on business of running the station or desperate to get on the train like the two of them were, were looking increasingly uncomfortable as some soldiers took positions while others started loitering about the premises. Since all had their weapons, it was nerve-wracking. “This has got to be serious. I’ve never seen so many before outside of a war…”

“Well, we get to share in their misery now,” Rarity sighed, raising her volume as soon as they were far enough away from the two guards, “because now there’s no hope at all of getting back to Manehattan on time. I don’t suppose there’s any way we could at least get to a telegraph?”

She frowned. “Even if we could, do you have any money left for one?”

The designer grimaced back. She reached into her pocket and fished around for a moment before pulling her fist out. She opened it up to reveal three cents.

“I don’t think is even enough to pay the operator to write ‘STOP’."

“They really can’t give you any break at all? Even knowing what you went through to get this contract?”

“With that proviso I was forced to put in, that contract won’t be good for much in three days. I had to get that deal. And we had to get stranded out here halfway across Greater Everfree starving, thirsty, tired, and barely having escaped twice now with our necks.”

Letting out a massive groan, Rarity finally formed a fist, craned her head to the sky, and exclaimed so loud it made Dash snap back in alarm and several surrounding folks stare at her.

“This is, without a doubt, the absolute worst! I feel like I’m cursed by fate! After coming this far and finally getting that signature, everything’s now hopeless! My staff and I had better just get used to limping through dirt and eating garbage because that’s all we have to look forward to in three days! My business is ruined! My hometown’s ruined! Everything’s ruined! Ruined I tell you!”

By now, Rarity’s drama was attracting about a quarter of the people’s attention. Dash herself winced and looked around at all the stares they were getting, before she quickly leaned in. “Well standing out in the middle of public bawling about it isn’t going to help anything!”

“I am emotionally distraught without any sort of outlet, creative or otherwise, to vent my frustrations! And my feet are absolutely killing me! At this point, if my only decent option is to lie down in a gutter and rot, I can at least not suffer in silence!”

Dash moaned and slapped her hand against her face. “This is why I hate Manehattan clients… Look, things aren’t as bleak as they seem. We just have to get creative!”

“Darling, I know all about creativity in my line of work, and this doesn’t need creativity. It needs divine intervention! No one is going to give us any transportation for a hundred miles if the Nighttouched are involved!”

“Well, we can’t just throw in the towel yet! If you said your employees are really counting on you and so’s your town, we got to do something! Maybe we can get horses! Or try stagecoach! Or just something that can get us as far as the Appleloosan mountain range-”

“Excuse me?”

Both woman stopped their respective tasks, Dash talking and Rarity throwing the back of her hand against her forehead, and looked nearby.

A uniformed man was standing there, rifle shouldered and pulling off his hat. He was rather firmly built, but he had a kind, if not somewhat uncertain, face as he offered a smile. Definitely not who one would expect for a soldier type, and totally different from the other Appleloosans. In fact, as they looked over his uniform, they soon saw that was indeed the case. His uniform was for an entirely different country; not a style that Rarity was familiar with.

Both were put on the spot for a moment before Dash gave him a more critical look. “Hey. Can we help you?”

“Oh, sorry. I guess I was a bit too forward,” he answered, blushing a bit as he realized how awkward he had come up to the two of them. “It’s just that I overheard what you were saying from over there.”

“Oh, did you?” Rarity asked. “So sorry. I didn’t realize I was being so loud.”

Dash leveled a stare at her. “…Seriously?”

“It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it. I just happened to hear that you sounded like you were in a bit of trouble. I mean…just about everyone is nowadays, one kind or another. You said something about your business shutting down, though?”

Dash continued to look a bit suspicious, but Rarity eased up and faced him. “Yes…yes I did. I’m afraid we’re in a horribly tight spot. If I want my company to survive until next quarter, I absolutely have to deal this new contract. But I couldn’t unless I first came out here to-”

“Uh,” the Huntsman suddenly cut off, actually extending an arm across Rarity to keep her from saying more, “I can see where you might have overheard a lot, but that’s still eavesdropping. Who are you again?”

“Oh, sorry again,” he apologized, looking over himself, “I hope this uniform doesn’t throw you. Right now I’m not too far removed from a civilian myself. I hail from Hoofheim. Part of the national guard there. Since most Nighttouched don’t come up that far, we have a deal with the Appleloosan government to do ROTC down here where there’s more of them. And I didn’t mean to overhear but the thing is I think I can help you two out.”

Rarity immediately pushed Dash’s arm down. “Oh, really?”

Dash frowned and stepped forward again. “Sorry buddy, but pretty sure that the only way you could help us is if you could get us on that train.”

“That’s just it. I think I can.”

Dash’s jaw dropped while Rarity beamed. “Really?” they both spoke in unison.

“They canceled our training tour and they’re sending us home. They want us out of the way if they’re going to be conducting major operations. Especially if a war could break out in the aftermath. They actually found room to ship us out before they shut down the rail lines, but I ended staying behind with my bunkmate because he came down with influenza.” He began to reach into his jacket. “Just this morning they came in and gave us a couple of passes to get on this train instead as it’s the last one out, but my buddy’s still not back on his feet yet. He told me to take the train without him but I didn’t feel too good about it. No one thinks the Nighttouched will come anywhere near this far anyway…”

He pulled his hand out, grasping a pair of typewritten slips of paper in his hand with an Appleloosan government seal.

“So I figured I’d pass it off to someone here who could use it better than me. You two sound like the best I’ve seen so far.” He held the slips higher, allowing them to see both.

Both Dash and Rarity leaned in closer and looked them over. Sure enough, everything on them was in order. The print looked perfectly legitimate, but more so was that the seal was official for Appleloosa.

After a moment, Dash quirked an eyebrow. “Alright, what’s the catch? What do you get out of it?”

“Seriously, there’s no catch. I really can’t use these right now. Not without leaving my bunkmate behind.”

“But you could get out of here no problem. And you just said you think this place is safe enough, right?”

He winced, running his free hand through his hair. “Yeah, well…it might be safe for right now, but once they shut down these tracks, I don’t think anyone’s going to be going anywhere for a while. And if Trottingham makes a move when the country is split, then he’s going to be in trouble.”

Rarity looked uneasy at that. “Yes, well…as very much as I hate to sound like I would decline such an offer…which I wouldn’t, just to be clear…if what you’re saying is true then you should really be on your way.”

“Like I said, I’m not leaving my bunkmate behind. If I did get out of here, what then? Appleloosa is out one more person who might be able to help. But you said that you’ve got a whole bunch of workers who could be out a job.” He frowned uneasily. “Take it from me. I’ve seen what depression can do to people. That’s all Hoofheim’s had ever since the Lunar Fall. I had to get into the military just to keep my parents fed. This means a lot to me. Please,” He pushed the passes forward. “Take them. I’ll just have to find someone else otherwise, but seeing as this train leaves at sundown…”

He glanced to one side at the sky. By now, the sun was only about three widths from the horizon.

“I don’t think I’ll find anyone.”

Dash held only a moment more, but then finally shrugged. “Well…that’s good enough for me. We got no other options, and if you’re not wanting anything I’m not about to look a gift horse in the mouth.” She nearly reached to take them.

However, this time it was Rarity who reached out and stopped her. “Are you quite certain you don’t want anything for these? If you were to give me your name and address, I’m sure I could find a way to pay you back for them. I know at the moment, considering this is the only train possibly for weeks, these passes are priceless, but I’d be sure to give you something for your troubles.”

He simply smiled back. “Really…if you want to pay me back, then pass it on to the next person in trouble. Otherwise, just make sure you get back to Manehattan.”

Rarity waited a bit longer, but all he did was smile back; not showing any hesitation. Seeing that he wasn’t going to renege or was at all reluctant, she finally smiled back as well. “Thank you, sir.” She reached out and took them from his hand. “Thank you. Fifty times. A hundred times. You have no idea how much this means to me and everything that we’ve been through. I’ll never forget this.”

After a moment, Dash smiled as well at last. “Yeah, you really bailed us out. I owe ya’. Hope you and your friend end out alright.”

“Yeah…and on that note, I should probably head back,” he spoke up nervously again. “If I’m not heading out of here, I think the Appleloosans will start asking what I’m doing on this platform pretty soon. You two have a safe trip back.”

He began to turn to leave, and the two women almost turned a well, when he suddenly stopped.

“Oh! One more thing.”

Both women stopped as he looked back at them. After glancing to either side, he leaned in and whispered to Rarity.

“Walk with one hand folded over the other. The dressing won’t stick out so much.”

The smiles on the women’s faces vanished. Both froze in place. However, the soldier merely smiled and put his hat back on his head, tipping it, before turning to walk back. Rarity had enough presence of mind right before he did to look at his own hands, only to note that his uniform had gloves. It was impossible to tell one way or the other, and soon his back was to them and he was walking away.

She blinked twice. “You…you don’t suppose he…?”

Dash put her hands on Rarity's shoulders and turned her around. “Like I said, no gift horses. Let’s just get on the train and get out of here.”