Devil's Regret

by All American

The Stowaway

I felt the sun beat down on my face, waking me up. I reached up with my left hand and rubbed my face before cracking my eyes and peeking at my watch. It was almost 10am now. I groaned and slowly leaned upwards, my back cracking with every degree. The floor was not fun to wake up from. I sat up and stretched out my arms and back. I think I was almost 35 miles out of Ponyville and maybe 60 out of Canterlot. From there it would be a 200 mile drive and boom; diplomatic immunity for a while. Zebra country wasn’t that far from here. I took confidence in the thought.

I quickly noticed that Field was gone now, probably out tilling fields like yesterday. Oh, I see what you did there, Fate. I slipped my faded Timberlands on and set my Stetson on my head before looking around the room for a moment, just letting my senses come back naturally to me. I missed caffeine. All those years of two or three cans of soda a day would bring a dependence out in you. I reached over and grabbed the rifle and placed the stock against the floor, using it as a crutch to stand up. My joints popped back into place, making me wish I had slept in the Hummer almost. I slung the rifle over my shoulder and walked around the house’s first floor for a few minutes before finding a bathroom and stepping inside.

I reached down for the tap and turned on some cold water. I held out my hands and let it create a small pool before splashing it in my face. I braced my hands against the sink as I watched the water turn a brownish color and drain away. I looked up into the vanity mirror and saw that the area I had splashed water on was the only part of me that wasn’t covered in dust. It was like the water carried away the weight of it as well. I felt a bit lighter than usual. Maybe it was the fact I was living like a human being for once. I splashed some more water on my face and scrubbed some of the dirt out of my hair and beard that had accumulated over time. I looked ragged to say the least. Homeless would probably be a better word for it. I’m so glad I had that ward casted on me in Fishtail on the western coast. Keeps me from smelling like death. I’m sure I would be able to incinerate nose hairs by this point.

I shaved myself with my KA-Bar that had been with me all these years, leaving a thin layer of shadow on my face. The blade started out coated in black paint but was now so worn that most of it was scraped off. I slipped the blade back into its sheath on my bandolier and walked out of the bathroom. I stepped out of the house and onto the porch. Today was actually a little bit cold from the wind. It seemed that winter hadn’t left this place like I did. I walked around the house and back towards where the barn was. I had to check on the H2 just to make sure it was still there. This was more of a habit than a feeling. I saw no sign of Field or Row as I walked over to the barn doors and pulled them open.

The Hummer sat inside like I had left it with the front end facing the inside of the barn. The spare tire stared at me as I walked in. It wasn’t like I needed it anymore but I wasn’t going to just abandon it somewhere. I looked over the SUV before stopping in front of the ram. I stared down at it before looking to my right, seeing some old red house paint. A grin formed over my face as an idea came to mind. I waltzed over to the paint, picked it up and brought it back to the ram.

-

Using my hand as a brush, I painted ‘Road Warrior’ in bold letters across the front of the ram. It made me chuckle, in a way. It wasn’t like anyone but me would get the reference. The Hummer even looked like something out of Mad Max. I capped the paint and wiped my hand off on some hay, leaving a red tint on it and my hand. I tossed the can back where I found it before seeing Row standing at the doorway to the barn. He walked in, pulling a cart behind him full of radishes from the looks of it. He released it near the door and looked over at me.

“Glad to see you are finally up. Your friends still sleeping?” He asked with sweat running off of his face.

“As far as I know.” I said as I walked around the H2 and leaned against it, “I’m not their babysitter.”

“Their what?”

“Not important.” I said with a dismissive wave as I walked over to the door and looked out, checking the skies for griffons.

“Hey,” He started “What was with you and Field last night?”

I looked down at him, confused for a moment before remembering, “Oh, she came over to me in the middle of the night and crashed on top of me.”

“No, I mean why is she so close to you? She still won’t let me touch her.” He informed with no sign of strain or emotional distraught to his tone.

“I used a trick I learned for getting on the good side of guard dogs.” I played off with a laugh as I looked over the clouds and saw one move.

I panicked for a moment before seeing a pegasus jump out from it and gave it a hard shunt, producing a bit of rain, leaving me with a puzzled look. It was like watching a mechanic in a way.

“Nice to know my daughter is like a dog.” Row said with some annoyance

“Hey, it worked didn’t it?” I asked as I took a few steps back inside the barn.

“That isn’t the point.” He said with a scowl at me, “But what did you do to get her to come forward?”

“Ancient Chinese secret.” I said as I walked over to the H2’s trunk and opened it up.

I slipped the Dragunov on the rack before closing the door. After carrying that rifle for so long, you forget how heavy it really is.

“Wha-“

“Just ignore most of what I say.” I said as I closed the door and looked back at him.

“You haven’t been straightforward with me.” He said, calling me out.

“What do you mean?” I asked, playing dumb.

He walked over to the cart and pulled a paper from it with his teeth. He then tossed it over to me, letting it land in front of my feet. It was a standard wanted poster of Dallas, Atlanta, and me. Dallas and Atlanta were both fetching a 500,000 bit bounty while I was rocking 2,000,000 one on my head. Least I was popular.

“This is what. I found it in my newspaper this morning.” Row said as he looked me over, “I know who you are. I should have
sent you on your way or called the griffons. It is no wonder you’re heading to Zebra country.”

“Look, not all of that is my-“

“Get off my farm.” He growled at me as he took on an aggressive stance, “Get your friends and leave.”

“I just love the hospitality.” I remarked as I crossed my arms and stared him down, “Consider opening a bed n’ breakfast with that attitude?”

“Don’t get smart with me. You lied.”

“I never lied; I only told you half the truth.” I pointed out as he took a step forward like he was going to charge.

“I don’t care. Get your friends and leave or I call the Guard.” He said before walking out of the barn.

“Yeah, I’ll visit again.” I said with a snide tone before following him out, closing the barn doors halfway.
I followed him back into the farm house and walked up the small stairs. I saw an open door and stepped inside. The room was a pale blue with two beds hugging the adjacent walls. Dallas and Atlanta were still out cold on the beds. I kicked the frames of their beds, waking them.

Atlanta slowly awoke, cracking an eye, “Five more minutes…”

“I’m not your fucking snooze button, get up.” I said before walking over to him and placed a boot on his chest. I vibrated my leg to shake him awake before stepping back, “Row found out who we are. Gotta leave before we have a whole damn battalion on us.”

“Can you just shoot him?” Atlanta asked as Dallas got up and threw his armor back on, “Then we get to sleep…”

“I don’t shoot people who don’t have it coming.” I said as I placed my left hand on my hip, just above one of the Sigs.

“You and your fluctuating morality.” Atlanta remarked as he got up and yawned.

I heard a knock come from downstairs and watched as Field and Row walked past the open door and down the stairs. I reached into my coat and pulled out my Model 29. The .44 Magnum round from this thing could take down almost anything this world has to offer. I pulled the hammer back, giving a soft pair of clicks. I walked over to the door and looked down the stairs. Row opened the door and a pair of griffons stood on the porch. Row whispered something and the pair stepped inside.

“Two downstairs.” I said as I held up two fingers with my free hand at Dallas and Atlanta.

So much for a healthy relationship with the locals. Dallas took position behind me and Atlanta flew out a window and over towards the barn. I stepped in front of the top of the stairs and looked down at the griffons. The pair looked at me with crossbows in their claws. They never seemed to learn. As one attempted to speak, I jerked the revolver up and fired. The gunshot rocked the entire house, deafening everyone inside. The round hit center mass on the griffon to the right and he dropped down like a deadweight. Smoke poured from the six inch barrel of the revolver as I moved it to my next target and pulled the hammer back. The gun gave another faint pair of clicks that seemed to echo and drown out all other noise. I held the revolver with one hand towards the griffon as he looked in shock at his friend. I fired the next round, hitting him in the chest plate. When were they going to learn that this was a pointless game? The griffon dropped next to his friend, landing on top of him with a metal clank.

I casually walked downstairs and stepped over them. I looked over into the living room to see Row who was holding onto Field. I chuckled for a moment before motioning with the gun for Dallas to come downstairs.

I turned back to Row, “You didn’t actually read the bio, did you?”

Field fidgeted for a moment before breaking free from Row and ran into the other room.

“Field!” Row shouted in her direction before looking back at me.

“What? I’m not the one you should be worried about.” I said as I motioned for him to follow Field.

He gave an awkward nod before taking off after Field. I holstered the Model 29 and yanked out both of my Sigs. I walked in front of the door towards the porch and Dallas pushed it open. I stepped out and lifted my guns to see no griffons in the immediate vicinity. I motioned for Dallas to follow me before breaking into a jog for the barn. As I ran through across the property, Row stood in the center.

“I can’t find Field!” He shot at me.

“Solve your own damn problems!” I shouted back as I busted into the barn shoulder first.
The door flung open with Atlanta sitting on the roof, “We got to go, now!”

I gave a nod and ran over to my door, hopping in and starting up the Hummer. The dials returned to life as Dallas took his seat. I slammed it into reverse and backed out of the barn, kicking dirt in all directions from spinning tires. I stopped and jammed it back into drive, bailing over the property, slamming a wheelbarrow out of the way with the ram before turning back onto the road and sped off southbound. I figured it would be only a matter of minutes before we had griffons on us. My Sigs sat in my lap and I carefully placed one back in the holster and the other in a cupholder with my free hand. The farm was turning into a speck in the rearview as we sped away with my foot planting the gas against the floor.

The H2 roared down the road as we moved into an area with cloud coverage. This was a godsend for us. Most griffons and pegasui would stay above the coverage to avoid bad weather, giving us camouflage in a way. I kept my foot planted for a while before pulling off of the road and into a spot under some trees, keeping us from sight. I took a deep breath before turning off the engine and leaned forward, resting my head against the steering wheel.

“That’s it?” Atlanta asked as if disappointed from the roof, “I was thinking they’d send more after us.”

“Let’s be glad they didn’t, Atlanta.” Dallas said, trying to instill some wisdom in him.

“Let’s just… I don’t know. Fuck!” I said as I punched the wheel, “We were going to be able to just roll through but no. It can’t be that easy.”

Dallas shook his head “Just get the doors back on this thing. We’ll need them for this season.”

I nodded before looking up in the rearview and saw a pair of big purple eyes staring back at me “FUCK!”

I jerked and grabbed my P226 out of the cupholder via instinct. I spun around before sticking the gun in Field’s face. I was breathing heavy from the shock as she stared right through the gun at me. It was like she wasn’t even afraid of me. Dallas looked back with a puzzled expression.

Atlanta poked his head down through the sunroof, “What happ- oh…”

Atlanta caught sight of her and looked over at me. I just shrugged, almost as confused as she was.

“What is she doing here?” Dallas asked, keeping his distance from her.

“What makes you think I know?” I fired right back at him before looking at Atlanta, “You were supposed to be watching the car.”

“Don’t look at me! I was keeping my eyes on the skies for griffons.” He defended, “Not my fault she is quieter than a royal passing gas.”

Field just sort of watched us as we argued. I took a deep breath before lowering the Sig. I wasn’t ready to have another damn tagalong.

“How are we going to get her back?” Dallas asked me as he watched her.

“We are not going back to that farm!” Atlanta exclaimed as he watched the clouds above for activity.

“I don’t know.” I said as I looked up at him.

I looked back down at Field and tried to think of why she was doing any of this. In retrospect, she just met me. All I really did was give her a piece of candy and try to talk to her… well that is creepy when you put it like that. Now that I think about it, her father didn’t really try to talk to her. She cocked her head at me, watching with those big eyes that seemed to be a characteristic off all the things on this planet.

“Can you walk back from here?” I asked before she shook her head at me, “Do I have to set you on the side of the road?” She clamped down around the seatbelt to her right, “We’re fugitives… you can’t come with us.” She just nodded at me like I would understand and refused to let go.

“This is going to get annoying.” Atlanta said from the roof, “Wait, doesn’t she have family in Canterlot?”
Dallas nodded “I remember Row saying that.”

“Fine.” I declared as I stared her down, “She can stay with us as far as Canterlot.”

“Are you sure?” Dallas asked me as he looked at Field, “She can’t exactly fight.”
I stared into her eyes with my bit of time as a general coming back to me “You will stay with the car, understand me? My word is law.”

Field nodded quickly before releasing the seatbelt. There was silence in the H2 for a moment before what sounded like a whip crack erupted from the sky.

“You better put the doors back on. I’m not getting wet.” Atlanta said as he climbed down into the cab and into the backseat with Field.

“I’ll get right on it, your excellence.” I said with a snide tone before jumping out and releasing the bungee cords that were holding the doors to the roof.

Comments

[stormkiller74]

Nice chapter

[shirotora]

Now their stuck foalsitting. That CAN'T end badly.

[Vonglory]

Sweet chapter man

[GodOFInsaNity666]

i just cant get my mind off of Ryan seeing ponyville again

[All American]

1978167

Neither can I but I must pace this properly...