Linkin Pony Recharge: Chasing the Sun

by Kaciekk

First published 20th of May, 2015

The not so distant future, where Equestria has been neglected, a young Unicorn trys to understand the way the world is while maturing and trying to make his father proud.

EDIT: This story is several years old, and was never finished. I do not plan to finish it because it's in an outdated AU. But It came to my attention that I never uploaded the last chapters I had made, and that bothered me. I am rewriting the AU here: Revamped

In the not so distant future, ponies have mistreated the world. One pony alone can't do much to change it, but can dream big. In this story, that pony is GentleSketch, a unicorn colt. His father is a part of the famous Linkin Ponies, who not just go around trying to help ponies, but make music.
GentleSketch still can't use magic, and beats himself up for that reason. He just wants to show his father that hes good for something, while maturing, learning about the world,other ponies and forgiveness. Can he make is father proud, or will he just mess up big time?

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Sequel/Spin off of Linkin Pony- Recharge but it is not necessary to read it before. This one introduces itself and is better written.

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Rated Teen for some foul language, and some gore later in the story
Fun fact: "Chasing The Sun" is a working title
There are many categories for this story, including sad and comedy, which are conflicting.

Introduction and Chapter I:Morning

Author's Notes:

Since I started this story over a year ago, the first couple of chapters are not that great. I promise, it will get better, and chapters will get longer.

(It's the not so distant future, probably eight years from the stories told of the adventures of the Linkin Ponies.)

Introduction

You would think the world would have gotten better by now. But it hasn't. Hybrids still roam and the sky is full of pollution. The latter may have partly to do with the Pegasi not trying to move the clouds. Though who would want to breath in what the clouds have soaked up? And there wouldn't be enough of Pegasi to fix that problem anyway; there are some who are Hybrids or will be turned into Hybrids. Yet the Hybrids are the reason pollution is still in the sky; their citadels pump out fumes.

The world started going downhill before I was born. There were changes that many ponies didn't notice, changes that were not drastic enough to notice. But then when the changes became extreme, they seemed to happen all at once, and there was nothing to stop them. It was the Catalyst. Ponies tried to save the world but it was no use. The majority of ponies ignored or went along with the changes thinking that technology would save them again. Hybrids, ponies with implanted metal parts and mechanical limbs, were meant to save ponykind. Hell that did, it just screwed everypony.

It's not like there is anything I can do. I'm a thirteen-year-old Unicorn colt who still can not use magic. Unicorns younger than me master in basic magic while I still struggle to levitate a pencil. And my talent is drawing? What good that would do in this world.

My father is one of those ponies who try to help the world. He's been pretty successful, along with his friends. But even if one group of ponies influence some, it's not enough to change the world. There are some places where things are so bad. Where I live is the safe place, but it's really the only safe place in the land. The places out there are where the Hybrids originated. Those places are where before the Catalyst things were going downhill. But nopony now wants to try to go out there, they would die.

Chapter I: Morning

I woke up to a normal day. I came out of my apartment in the camp. It was the biggest camp, probably the most known and important camp in the west land. It was just north of Los Pegasus, a city, strangely, that was not a Hybrid Citadel. This camp was built up over time. They brought parts of other building to place here, to make it a larger neighborhood to support more ponies. It's strange what they did; they did not want to change locations. I guess that's because there is a energy crystal mill here. But how long would that last?

What day was it today? Was it a day that I’d be testing on thing? My mom was my teacher, because she said education was important. She wanted to make sure I knew basic things to get me through life. She said that math and stuff like that wasn’t something I’d be using anytime soon(except basic math was good to know). So instead, she taught me language, so I could ‘speak in a correct way’ and ‘be impressive when I needed to find a job’. My mom was good with teaching language, for she was a writer, and she was really good with words.

My mother would probably be somewhere around the camp. My father was out now, he went to Los Pegasus. He always goes, as if it’s going to make a difference. There are other cities and camps that he and others could go to discuss things. I think of these things much, but nevertheless, I’m a colt and my opinion doesn’t matter

I stepped into the dirt road and looked left. At that same moment an orange figure zoomed between two buildings. I knew that figure. It was of my best friend, who I had known for as long as I could remember. We had grown up together, and he was like a brother to me. He was sixteen, a colt that was a young stallion, but I preferred to think of him as a colt by how he acted.

I went to the space where he had just been. I looked to the left. I watched the Earth-pony give frantic movements as he looked back and forth between others. He raised one hoof which was covered by an EPD. ‘EPD’ stands for ‘Energy Power Device’. It’s where we can have an energy crystal anytime we need it. Most ponies call it ‘hoof cover’ but I think that sounds stupid because there are more kinds of EPDs(Like wings).

My friend’s brown eyes shot towards me. He gave me a beam as he approached.

“Hey!”

“Good morning,” I replied.

“You woke up late again.”

“I did?” I said while blinking my eyes.

“Yeah, it’s after 10:00.”

I dropped my head. “Dang.”

My friend rubbed his hoof on his black mohawk mane. “At least your dad’s not here to lecture you.”

My father was always one who wanted to conserve time. I respect him and understand what he is getting at, but my adultescent mind sometimes throws me off.

I retorted back to my orange friend. “Yeah. But I need to stop sleeping in. I keep having strange dreams.”

The Earth-pony cocked his head. “Strange? How?”

“Well-”

Suddenly we heard a voice in the distance. It came from the sky. It was a very distinguishable voice, one that anyone could recognize. It was powerful but lite, high but masculine. It was the voice of the pony that I’d call ‘Uncle’ even when he wasn’t slightly related to me.

The yellow Pegasus came down to the camp clearing. Surprisingly, he landed without trouble. He closed his wings, one of them being mechanical. He was a stallion who appeared much older than he was. Ponies came to greet him.

My friend and I moved toward him, my friend going at a quicker pace. He then broke into a small canter. His face gave off a large beam, his eyes glowing.

“Dad! You’re back!”

“Hey, JumpingJolt,” The Pegasus said with a slight crack in his voice, trying to adjust his volume. He put his tattooed foreleg around my friend and rubbed the back of his head. The yellow stallion gave a smile that brought out lines on his face, but his expression was one of a happy colt.

“I’m back, but the other guys are back at the city. I just came to report stuff.” He stated.

“You’re not going back, are you?” JumpingJolt asked.

“Hell no! Once I get back they’ll be ready to go.”

A mare came up to the stallion. She shook her head to get ruby hair out of her view. “HyperBlitz, what do you have to report?”

“No ‘hello?’, ThunderCharm?” HyperBlitz teased.

The purple mare gave an irritated expression. She puffed a low response. “Hello, HyperBlitz.”

He laughed. “Well,” he went on from what ThunderCharm had first asked “There have been some reports of rogues,”

“Uhg, rogues?” Another pony said from the crowd.

“There’s always gonna be rogues. But some of them came into the city and raided some shops. I’ve never heard of them doing that.”

“Aren’t they usually independent, and isolated?” ThunderCharm mused.

“Most of the time.” HyperBlitz shrugged his shoulders and his wings shrugged with them. “But I’m guessing they weren’t getting what they wanted because one shot a pony.”

“With a gun?!” JumpingJolt barked.

“Yes, with a gun. Rogue ponies like guns.”

I thought about the stories I was told, stories about rogues. They were the ponies that weren’t part of the Resistance. They lived alone in their camps, raided old neighborhoods. They used energy crystals, but not on Hybrids. They thought of using energy as a weapon was wasteful, so they used guns. My parents and their friends have ran into rogues, but I never have.

“Oh yeah,” HyperBlitz let out. His left wing opened up his saddlebag and he grabbed something out with his mouth. His hoof took it and showed it to JumpingJolt. “I got something for you.”

“Ooo.” My friend’s red hoof scooped up the flat plastic square. “Oh cool, a CD.” Scanning the case, his brown eyes grew large.

HyperBlitz glanced at me. “And GentleSketch, your dad said he’d bring something back for you.”

“Okay.” I wasn’t one to say much. There wasn’t much to say anyway. My father would probably bring back some sort of art supply, like he always does.

Maybe art is all I’ll ever be good at.

Chapter II: Dream

Evening had arrived quickly. Entering into the livingroom, I found my mother doing what she was normal found doing: reading a book. I turn into the kitchen and reached for a glass, placing in below the sink faucet. My elbows balancing on the counter, I used my two hooves to sip from the glace. It was an Earth-pony type of move. Not that there’s anything wrong with Earth-ponies, but I’m a Unicorn who cannot use magic!

My ears twitched as the front door opened. I heard my father’s voice give a greeting. I stepped up to the door frame. Mom stood up and gave the other Unicorn a kiss.

“Rogues?” She tilted her head.

“Yeah, they're stepping over their boundaries.” Dad replied. He rubbed his face with his blue hoof. It was easy to tell he hadn’t shaved in a few days because his black beard was thicker than usually(which really bothers me for some reason).

His dark eyes glanced over to me. “Good evening, GentleSketch.”

“Hey, Dad.” I waved my hoof.

The grayish blue Unicorn looked back to Mom. “I brought back something for you.” His light blue magic levitated something out of his saddlebag to the mint green mare. Of course, it was book. “You better finish that one before you start this one.” Dad pointed to the book on the couch.

“It’s only the fifth time I’ve read it.” Mom smirked.

I waited for a pause to speak. “Uncle Hyper said that you had something for me?” I said it in the most unselfish voice ever. I have no idea if that was a real question or not.

Dad squinted his eyes. “Hmm. I think I’ll give it to you tomorrow.”

“Okay,” I replied without enthusiasm.

I sat in my bed waiting to fall asleep. Why was it so hard to fall asleep? Maybe I just let my brain work too much. I thought of calming things. I thought of just sleep, nothing else. I pulled my blanket up and pushed my muzzle into the material.

And I must have fallen asleep some time.

There was a strange wind that blew threw my hair. It was not cold, but not warm. It did not blow from in front or from behind. I looked around the camp. It was altered. That detail did not stay in my mind. I took one step, and it was like walking through water. Airy water.

I walked a path that was not really there. I followed it out of the camp. Across the rocky field, I saw large boulders. Behind the forest of boulders, I saw an old machine. It was for getting oil out of the ground, something that Hybrids had used. So many pieces of rusted metal were spread around it. Broken barrels were stacked up.

I stared up and saw shadowy figures moving across the sky. One came down and landed on a boulder. She scraped her purple hoof on the surface.

“Lets do this one next.” ThunderCharm said. But she did not look at anypony when saying it. Her aqua eyes stared past nothingness and her right hoof was on her headphones. She was speaking into a microphone, but there was no reason to be doing that, for the microphone would connect back to the camp, and microphones were barely used.

Earth-ponies came around the large boulder and the purple Pegasus jumped off of it. They latched strange metal things and chains around the boulder.The other end of the chains were attached to devices that were on the Earth-ponies’ waist. They started walking, their steps in sync. Unicorns had used magic on either the devices or the Earth-ponies, but it seemed to make them move quicker than one-mile-an-hour.

I knew this had to be a dream. It was an odd dream. One of those that the ponies are working towards a goal that is pointless. They were moving the boulders to the west.

I turned around and saw a silhouette on top of another boulder. Everyone else was gone. The small pony jumped down to the ground. It was such a long way for a little pony. It- she, was a Unicorn filly. I had never seen here before. Her forest green coat was made darker in the shadow of the rock.

“Yes?” I said unconsciously.

The filly didn’t respond. Her head turned to the left. I looked over there too. But I saw nothing significant.

“What’s your name?” I asked.

She still did not answer. Maybe she couldn’t talk.

The filly started to walk to the left. It was almost as if her hooves were not touching the ground. I followed behind her. We arrived at the oil machine. She put her little hoof on it. Tapping it, she looked straight ahead. Was she telling me something?

“I don’t understand,” I told her blankly.

She tapped it again, but now with a rhythm. Tap, tap, tap. Pause. Tap, tap. Pause. Tap, Tap, Tap.

“What are you...” I couldn’t think of what to say.

In the light, I could tell her fur was more of a deep aqua green. I could not see her eyes, for she was looking away from me.

Suddenly, she started to walk again. I quickly moved. She crawled underneath the machine. I looked into the dark space. There was no way I could go under there. I guess I wouldn’t see that filly again.

Or at least it’s the last time this dream.

I awoke to pale light slipping through the window. I sat up and thought about the dream I had. That must have been the strangest so far. I thought that you could see ponies you had seen before. But I had never seen this filly before. Or maybe I have and I could not remember.

Maybe that dream meant sometime. My parents told me that sometimes dreams could mean something. Something subconsciously, but something that can mean something for the future. It had to do with the magic in the world. But what magic was left? I know I don’t have any.

If the dream does mean something, what was that filly trying to tell me? Why did she go under the machine. I don’t even think that’s possible, that machine looks much different. But for sure the boulders mean nothing, that just came from randomness in dreams.

Chapter III: The Book

I stepped from the living room into the kitchen. I saw my father sitting at the table, a cup next to his hoof. He also had some sort of paper.

I stood there aimlessly for a moment, then finally spoke. “Good Morning.”

“Good morning,” Dad replied without turning his head.

“Where’s Mom?” I asked.

“She went out to get some foods.” He said it in a way that wasn’t serious, I could mostly tell this by the way he said ‘foods’, with a long ‘S’ (and also, that sentence did not need an ‘S’ on ‘food’).

I spotted the digital clock on the microwave. “Eeh, it’s after nine.”

“Is that a problem?” Dad questioning my thoughts I had said out loud.

“I don’t know. I don’t like getting up so late.” I sat down in a chair.

I glanced at my father. His left cheek laid on his hoof. His beard was now cut cleanly(which gave me relief for, again, some reason I did not understand). His eyes looked downward at his paper. A pen was being levitated by magic, and sketched some lines on the paper. He was drawing, but I could not recognize what it was.

The grayish blue stallion lifted his head, and his eyes slid to my direction. He was studying me, just as I was studying him. But this time it was a staring contest. When he placed the pen to the side, he tilted his head slightly.

“Would you like your…. thing now?” He did not know what to call it.

“I guess so.”

“ ‘Kay.” He pushed the chair out and got up. After circling around, he exited through the door frame.

I waited a couple of seconds, which existed in my mind longer than they were. I glared at his cup of coffee. I reached over for it with both hooves. Placing it to my lips, I sipped the bittersweet drink.

“What are you doing?”

I jumped quickly and stood up straight in my chair. My father gave me an expression that read ‘really?’.

“Sorry. You never let me have any coffee.”

“You can get a cup, just don’t tell your mom.” He pointed to the counter.

It was not that my mother thought coffee was bad for me, it was just that she did not want me stay up to late(and coffee was more of a luxury than a necessity).

I stood up and pulled the coffee pot out. Steadily, I raised it up and let the dark liquid pour into my cup. I carried it carefully over to the table in one hoof.

“So what did you get for me?” I asked.

Dad pushed a book to the center of the table. “This.”

Immediately I thought that he should have given this to Mom, since it was a book. He must have raided a book store. I took the book and scanned it. It was a hard cover and had stars on the cover. It read ‘Magic for Beginning Unicorns’.

“What is this?!” I said with a raised voice. I may have overreacted. I glared up at my dad.

“It's too help you… because… you know. You need help practicing magic.” He said with a meek voice.

“But this book would be for young ponies! I’m not a foal!” I was overreacting. I guess I gave away the idea that I thought that Dad thought that I was a baby. This may have been, because Dad’s face looked as if he was hurt. But this was not true. I was not upset at him, I was upset with myself, because I cannot perform magic.

“I’m sorry Dad,” I sighed. “I’m not angry at you. I just wish that I could use magic like every Unicorn my age.”

“It’s alright,” Retorted the stallion. “I know you’re sensitive about that, but I think maybe you should just look at the book. I’m sure your mother has given you books like this before, but you never know if there’s an extra hint in one.

I drank a little bit of coffee, but I suddenly did not feel like drinking anymore. “Alright, I’ll look at it.” Just to make Dad happy, but I doubt there was anything in this book to help me. If both my parents, and their Unicorn friends cannot help me, then what use is there?

The book was sitting on the ground of my room, opened. I paced for a few moments before consulting myself to the book. I glared down at the first pages.

It was everything I already knew. The introduction explained how energy worked, and that Unicorns converted their energy into magic. Using too much magic would leave them exhausted.

The first section declared ‘Let’s start with simple levitation! Turn the page!’. And there were instructions on how to do simple magic. The things I had been told a million times. Concentrate. Think clearly about what you want to do. Just ‘believe’ as the book states, naively. ‘Be still and dip your head down so your horn points to the page’. Focus, keep your eyes on target.

The page lifted up, and it was surprisingly easy to turn. That must have been because I have been practicing forever, and a page turn was simple. But the next page read ‘now, try the next page, it is made much heavier than the first’. Well, thank you book for making me seem like a weakling!

I did as the book told me, but the next page was more of a challenge. The page almost reached the midpoint, but then my magic slipped. Damn it! It fell back in place. Frustrated, I threw my hoof up in anger. But my hoof slid across the page and there was a ripping sound following the paper flying across the room.

“Shoot!” I said aloud.

Coming upon the ripped page, I grumbled under my breath. I would have been more angry with myself, but the book was probably old anyway. I decided the answer would be tape.

I exited my room and went to the closet(which was more of a storage shelf). I browsed the shelves up and down until the tape caught my eyes. I picked up the roll with my mouth and headed back to my room. The page having been put back in place, I ripped off a pieces of tap to re-mend the book. I flipped the page to do the other side.

When that task was finished, I grabbed the tape roll and went back to the closet. Before I got to the shelves, I was halted by my father.

“What did you do?” He questioned.

I leaned over and placed the tape down. Then I retorted, “Nothing…” Ha, what an obvious answer. Dad lowered his brow, flustered. I huffed. “Okay. I ripped a page-accidentally- out of that book you got me.”

“Did you do it with magic?” The stallion curiously asked.

I glanced down. “No…”

Dad’s eye’s lost their glow and he said disappointed “Oh.”

“That book is old anyways…” I added.

Damn it, why did things have to be this way? I just wish my father could be happy with something I did. Ripping out a page isn’t something to be proud of, but of I would have done it with magic, my father would have been so excited.

Author's Notes:

You may not notice, but I do go back and forth between tenses. Originally I wanted this story to be in present tense, but I realized how hard that is to do in first person(GentleSketch's mom did it in her book :P ). Instead, it is in past tense like usual. But there is some present tense, thoughts. Most thoughts should be in present tense, and actions are in past, as if GentleSketch is looking to what happened in the past, maybe only a few seconds ago. Anyway, with thoughts, it describes what is currently happening, so if he describes a character, he is not describing what they use to be like, but how they still are.
You will probably see more of present tense thoughts in the following chapters.

Chapter IV: Watching The Town

Author's Notes:

There will always be a lot of characters in my stories. In this chapter many characters will be introduced, but you do not need to remember them. They are minor characters and are not significant to the story, if anything, they show how tight the community is in the camp.
The only ponies you really need to remember are the main characters: GentleSketch(well of course), JumpingJolt, Sketch's Dad(CharmingRhythm), HyperBlitz, and for the secondary characters: Sketch's Mom(HeartFelt), and possibly SweetHooves.

I sat on the floor staring at a low table piled with several books. Lime green magic lifted a notebook. floating to my mother, it was opened by her and the pen danced around.

“Alright, we worked on sentence structure today…” She thought aloud.

“Mom,” I murmured, placing my chin on the table, “Why do I have to do this? I’m thirteen, I’ve been learning things forever.”

The mint green Unicorn looked at me blankly. “There are still things you can learn. And practicing will make you better.”

“But I basically know everything.”

“It’s impossible to know everything.” I glanced away as she spoke. I have trouble making eye contact when someone was talking. I could do it if I was speaking as long as it wasn't awkward, but not when the conversation was on the opposite end.

“I know practicing is important but…”

Mom shot out a question randomly: “How do you know whether to use ‘I’ or ‘Me’ in a sentence.”

I answered just as quickly. “‘I’ is a subject, and ‘me’ is an objective pronoun.” I wondered if ponies my age usually knew all of these things. It was possible that I was smarter than the average thirteen year old only because of my parents.

“Very good.” Mom smiled.

I sighed and I stared off to the wall.

“GentleSketch, you usually love learning. Why all of the sudden you do not want to?” Mom questioned.

I shrugged and hummed “I don’t know.”

The mare paused to think, then continued. “What’s gotten into you lately? You’ve been acting odd.”

I shrugged again and repeated “I don’t know,” but with actually moving my mouth this time. “Puberty?” I have felt strange recently and accepted that. Puberty may as well be a reason I was off, but I could not tell if my mother agreed.

Squinting her eyes, Mom examined me thoroughly. “Has something been bothering you?”

My shoulders lifted once more. I hated myself for shrugging so much. I wish I could answer my mother’s questions.

Mom sat up. “Okay. You can go. I think that’s enough for today. I’m not going to keep you stuck here forever.”

I closed the books and placed them in a neat pile before leaving. While deciding to take a walk around the camp, I wondered if Mom let me go to make me feel better. Perhaps she wanted to avoid an awkward conversation of not make me sit through one.

I stepped outside on a small path that lead to a main path. I was stepping into a community where everybody knew everybody. It may have grown since it first began, but it is quite easy to know everybody.

Why walking towards the center of the camp, my vision shifted to study several groups of ponies. Some talked, some worked some rested, others planned. Many times I pondered really what there was to do in the North Hills camp, but I realized as life goes on, more problems will come up

A purple mare skipped up to me. She pushed her brown hair out of here face and prompted herself. “GentleSketh, have you seen Cherry?”

I shook my head. “No, sorry AgileArrow.”

Almost ignoring me, her eyes shot past my shoulders. “Oh, nevermind, there she is.”

Twisting my neck around, I observed AgileArrow trot over to a burgundy mare. She kissed Cherry on the nose and they started chatting. My ears could not adjust to whatever they were saying, so I went on with my business.

The route below me brought me towards the center of the camp. Pausing, my ears twitched. I went to a section that was covered by a cloth. Slipping between two support beams( not the correct entrance), I placed myself in front of a wooden table. Pink hooves sorted vegetables on the table.

“Good afternoon, GentleSketch,” a tan Earth-pony greeted me.

“Hello, Aunt SweetHooves,” I replied.

SweetHooves may not be my real aunt, but she is pretty close. Really, she is like a second mom to me. She took care of me when I was younger and my parents had no room for me anywhere(also the reason JumpingJolt and I are like brothers).

I continued to watch the black maned mare place different types of food into categories. I sought a stray carrot and my hoof slide it over with the rest. “Thank you,” SweetHooves said with a kind smile.

I stood there for a moment. I felt a tingle in my nose and breathed out a sneeze . Great, SweetHooves is the last pony anybody would want to sneeze next to. It is not that she is a germaphobe, it is that she does not like sickness for her husband always gets sick(and she’s the one to take care of him).

“Don’t sneeze on the food!” SweetHooves snapped, her face scrunching up and bringing out the scar on her eye.

“Sorry,” I murmured meekly, pushing my ears back. “But I sort of did it to the side.”

“I’m going to have to clean all of these off again.” SweetHooves shook her head.

“I really didn’t sneeze on them,” I said but I guess she did not hear me.

“I don’t want the whole camp getting sick.”

“It’s not like I’m sick. It was just a little sneeze.”

I cannot believe I was continuing to talk about a sneeze.SweetHooves glared at me for a second and then sighed. I found myself stepping away for I probably was no help for the mare.

Before I could complete my next stride, an off-white pony broke my path. The young mare held a bag of herbs in her mouth. She set it in her hoof and looked at me.

“Oh hi, GentleSketch.”

“Hi, LilyMist.” I responded. I glanced at the herbs. “Can I help you maybe?”

“No, I think I’m fine, but thank you anyway.” LilyMist shook her red and pink mane and was on her way.

Strolling deeper into the tent where the ceiling rose, I observed ponies working together. They stood on crates trying to fix a wooden beam above them. One pony grunted a few words while another was asking for help.

“Where did Sun go?” Said one. “We need a unicorn.”

A teal stallion spotted me and called over. “Hey, GentleSketch, could you h-” He hesitated. “Oh wait, nevermind.”

When I realized he was about to ask me to help them, I slumped down quickly. I am a Unicorn, but I could not use magic. I had the horn, but not the ability. Although I was weak, I desperately wanted to help. I feel humiliated knowing that ponies overlook me as a Unicorn.

I swayed my head down and started shuffling away. I heard the voice of the stallion. “Wait! GentleSketch, could you find SunSwirl, or AgileArrow or some Unicorn maybe?”

“Sure…” I said between my teeth without turning my head.

Chapter V: Practicing Magic

Author's Notes:

Yeah! I'm trying to work out the double spacing between paragraphs. I realize it's probably easier to read that way. But I originally wrote them with only 1 space. And the only way I'm doing this is taking it from Deviant Art, but I haven't uploaded later chapter on there , so they may be hard to make double spaced. Or at least they'll take a while. I'm also trying to figure out the tabs. Formatting is not a skill of mine.

JumpingJolt sat down at a wooden table across from me. He placed down a plate filled with his lunch, his brown eyes gleaming, eager to eat. Then his eyes became attentive as they casted to me.

“Do you want some?” JumpingJolt offered.

“No,” I said, my head lifting from my jaw pushing off the table.

The Earth-pony tilted his head. “You ‘kay?”

I glanced up at him. I looked away again.

“GentleSketch, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing…” I whispered.

“C’mon, Sketchy,” He called me by my nickname from when we were younger. “Tell me what’s wrong.” He leaned over and tapped me on my foreleg.

“It’s just,” I repositioned my head to have my cheek on the table, “ I wish I could use magic.”

“Oh,” Jolt said with a light tone, “You’ll get the hang of it someday.”

“Yeah, but Unicorns are supposed to start using magic the same time Pegasi start flying.”

“I’m not a Unicorn or a Pegasus, so I dunno how that works.” JumpingJolt lowered his head and took a bite of his food. “Maybe,” he continued, muffled by a full mouth, “One day when you get magic, you’ll be super powerful.”

“Yeah, right. I doubt it.” I pushed myself off the table and bench. “But thanks anyway.”

Being overlooked as a Unicorn just put me in a crappy mood. I never want to be reminded that I cannot use magic, but that is impossible. No, I can use magic, it just is not strong enough to do anything.

I roamed the camp while staring at the ground. A rock appeared in from of me at some point and I started kicking it with my forehooves. I threw the rock too far to the side and lost it. Right after that I heard a voice.

“Hey, Sketch.”

I peered up to see a silver coated Unicorn. “Hi, Uncle SilverFlash.”

This stallion actually is my uncle, my father’s brother. He sometimes is found in the camp, other times he would be adventuring somewhere else. He wandered to Los Pegasus, other camps, and many different places to bring news to us(Although we could connect to others through the internet, yet he insisted on doing it).

“What’s goin’ on kid? You look kinda down,” He observed.

I bobbed my head to the side. “I just want to use magic.” I felt like I was repeating myself for the thousandth time.

“That still bothers you, huh?” SilverFlash placed his hoof around my shoulder.

“I’m thirteen: shouldn’t I be able to use magic by now?” I inquired my uncle.

“Hmm.” He paused, his dark eyes wandering around. “Why don’t I help you practice?”

“We have tried before,” I sighed. “Practicing doesn’t help.”

“Sure it does,” the stallion said and took his hoof off my shoulder. “Why don’t we practice some light magic?” SilverFlash glanced up at the sky. “But let’s do it at night, when we can see light better,” He added with a smile. “M’kay?”

“Okay," I replied.

Darkness replaced the day. There was a dim spot in the sky where the moon was concealed by the foggy clouds. I followed the path that was slightly lit by lights from windows. I found my uncle and he greeted me warmly as if he did not see me earlier.

“Alrighty,” SilverFlash turned toward a wall. A purple aura originating from his horn lifted up a pen from a window ledge. He watched it float and juggled it a bit.

“I thought we were doing light magic,” I said, discouraged.

“We will,” The Unicorn assured, looking at me. He placed the pen down. “Now try to lift this pen,” He prompted.

I eyed the pen, disappointed that I was being tested with such a meager object. Tightening my brow, I concentrated on the utensil. Everything became stiff. I bared my teeth as I tilted my head down. Small gleams of light flickered around the pen. The tip of the pen spun my direction. It rolled over and jumped off the ledge, my magic letting go.

“Well…” SilverFlash idled. “At one point you couldn’t have moved that pen at all.”

“This is magic I should have been doing a long time ago,” I complained. “Uncle Flash, when did you start using magic, huh?”

“I-” He thought for a second. He tapped his chin with a hoof. “I started mastering basic magic by eight… or nine.” By ‘mastering’ I know he meant being able to lift several books at once and creating light bright as a torch.

“But-but,” Flash extended his hoof to me, “That’s just me. Everypony is different. I’ve always been good with magic. I’m made for magic, if you will.”

“But,” I frowned, “My mom and dad are both good at magic too. If my family is good at magic, doesn’t that mean I should be too?”

“Like I said, everyone is different,” He restated.

He went on,“Why don’t we go on with light?” Illumination appeared from SilverFlash’s horn, it was brightest at the tip. The brilliance faded when we heard a call.

“Hey, SilverFlash.” I twisted my head and saw my father. He beamed at his brother as he approached.

“‘Sup, bro.” The silver Unicorn placed his hoof out and dad responded by bumping hooves.

“Whatchya doing?” He asked, glancing at me, then back to SilverFlash.

“I’m helping GentleSketch with Unicorn stuff,” Flash reported.

“Oh good. Mind if I watch?” Dad looked at me and gave a comforting smile. Except I did not feel comfortable. I did not want my father to watch me fail(and I will never want that).

“Sure. Okay, Sketch,” SilverFlash continued his lesson. The illumination around his horn returned. “How about you show us your light spell?”

I faced the wall and tried to shake off the peer pressure. I stiffened again and closed my eyes. Blood rushed to my head.

“Maybe,” I heard my uncle’s voice, “ It would be better if you have you eyes open, so you can see.”

I did as he said. My eyes were barely open when I restarted my struggle. I focused on only my magic, blurring the world out. The wall around me became slightly more visible, being painted with a soft layer of orange. It was the most light I had ever saw come from my horn. The wall went back to black when I gasped for air.

“That was good,” SilverFlash exclaimed.

“No it wasn’t. Don’t lie…” I tried to argue.

“You’re just being hard on yourself. C’mon, let’s try it again.”

“I… I feel light headed” (Pun not intended). I placed my hoof below my horn.

Dad came up to me and let me lean on him. “Aw, Sketch, it’s probably time to go to bed.”

The night was an illusion. I could see through the dark. I roamed around an old fence that barricaded a higher plateau. I looked out to the forest and saw a shape move. Someone called my name.

I hopped over and realized it was JumpingJolt. “Hey! Come here!” He commanded with enthusiasm.

I followed him into the forest.

“Look at this!” The colt said.

“What?” I pondered, still chasing after him.

The trees created shadows that engulfed my vision. I could only see a few inches past my muzzle. “Jolt?” I spoke, my mouth feeling numb.

“Over here! Look, look, look!”

I went to the location of his call, yet did not find him. Stepping forward, I felt something prickly dig into my coat. A wall of brambles and branches cut me off. I heard hooves.

“JumpingJolt?” But it wasn’t him. A small figure gave off yellow light. It was a filly, the one I saw in my dream before. She lifted up a branch with her magic.

“What?” I groaned. “Are you here to mock me? How old are you, like ten? And how can you do magic like that?”

Then I realized this was probably a dream, so maybe I could make myself think I can use magic. I tried to raise the branches from their place, but they did not budge. The filly did what I desired to do, and lifted the branch with her magic. She separated them and hopped inside. Before I could follow, things faded.

Chapter VI: A Colt Trying To Help

A calm breeze shifted the curtains on the window. I lay on my bed drawing random scribbles. The door creaked open and my mother slid in. She approached me and glanced down to where I was looking.

“What are you drawing?” She asked.

“I don’t know,” I admitted.

Mom peered around my room for a moment and then back to me. “Would you like to help me with something in the camp?”

I puffed my cheeks out then replied. “Okay.” After straightening the papers onto my nightstand, I was guided by Mom.

As our paces match, Mom began a conversation. “So, I heard you were practicing magic last night.” I nodded. “You were doing good, huh?”

“Yeah, I guess. I can kind of do magic, but only for a short time. And I almost passed out,” I explained.

“It’s a good start,” Mom soothed.

We headed into the gardening tent where I was the day before. I analyzed the area and noted there were less ponies than yesterday. Mom’s head shifted upward. I copied her and spotted ponies working on beams above.

“Were’nt they working on that yesterday?” I questioned.

“Yeah,” Mom confirmed. “It’s about time it needs to be fixed up. They want to work with the sprinklers that water the plants.”

I cocked my head. “What am I supposed to do? If I try to help, I’ll step on the plants.”

“We’ll stay out of the garden. We’re going to work on setting up this station.” She gestured to a support beam.“Give me that wrench thing over there.” Her hoof pointed to a box.

I went to it and shuffled the tools. I saw one. “Is it this thing that turns?”

Mom hesitated.”Uh… yeah.”

I picked it up in my teeth and brought it to her. Magic lifted the tool above her brown mane and unscrewed a bolt. Mom’s magic held the beam tight. Her warm brown eyes glanced around.

“CharmingRhythm!” She shouted across the tent.

Dad’s head popped up and his eyes were huge. He cantered carefully between the rows of plants.

“What, what, what?”

“Keep this in place.” Mom pointed upward with her muzzle. Mom’s lime green magic was replaced with light blue. “Sketch, get me that pipe.”

I saw a thin pipe and grabbed it just like the tool. The mint green Unicorn took it and lined it against the beam perpendicularly. It was interesting to work as a family.

Mom bared her teeth. “I need glue.”

I found a tube of adhesive glue. I handed it over with my hoof. “Thanks,” my mother said. The mare did the work to put the glue behind the pipe.

“How are you going to hold it there while it dries?” I speculated, sounding naive.

“The clampy thing.” Dad waved his blue hoof around.

I located what he was talking about. When Mom received it, she tightened it over the pipe and the beam.

“Then when it dries you take it off,” I said. “And you connect more pipes on it.”

“Mm-hmm,” Dad validated.

“Thanks for helping,” Mom announced.

“That’s all?” I stated.

“Yes, for now.”

“If you want to do some other stuff,” Dad brought forth, “You can go find SpinningNote.” He really did not explain much.

I left the tent and searched around the clearing. I spied a red-violet Unicorn speaking among other ponies.

I trotted up to him. “Uncle Spinning, you need some help?”

Greyish brown eyes looked to me and lit up. “Ya, ya!” He gave a smirk. “C’mon.”

I questioned if he specifically wanted me to assist him. “What am I helping you with?”

“Super cool stuff,” SpinningNote told me. “Have you ever been in the energy mill?”

“Maybe once,” I answered. The energy mill was where most (probably 99%) of our energy and crystals came from. “You want me to help you in there?”

“Sure. I don’t know what you can do, but I want you to see it.”

The black maned stallion escorted me through a fence before a cellar door that was on an angle with the ground. After opening it, he hopped inside. “Watch your step,” Spinning warned.

Entering, my entire setting transformed to shades of blue. Columns of energy stretched from the floor to the ceiling. It amazed me how stable they were, and how the energy was not lost. The walls and ground were lined with clusters of blue crystals. They did not shine as bright as the energy beams.

“How long will this energy last?” I mused.

“Oh gosh,” SpinningNote bellowed. “Probably two hundred years, maybe more. Three hundred years? A really long time.”

“It’s crazy to think these have been in Equestria for thousands of years.”

“Yep. They showed up when we needed them the most,” Spinning narrated. “The oldest known energy crystal is the Crystal Heart. Nopony knew it was an energy crystal until we discovered them.”

The Crystal Heart was a large gem that was over a thousand years old. It gifted positive energy for an entire empire. But it had some sort of magic that made it act different than any other crystal. It was able to give energy to ponies, not only products. Possibly the princess that protected the Crystal Heart long ago gave it her own magic. That could even be the reason it has stayed alive for so long.

“Isn’t this place dangerous?” I cautioned.

“Yeaah,” SpinningNote advised. “Sometimes we have to wear special suits but that's only if the energy becomes unstable. That has only happened a couple of times. Stay on the path and don’t get too close to the wells and you will be fine.”

We met up with a fluffy cream Pegasus who’s bushy brown mane reminded me of a cloud. The Pegasus faced the other way.

“FeatherTune,” Spinning said. “FeatherTune! Feather! FluffButt!”

“Huh?” He finally turned around and removed the headphones from his ears. I believed he was more spacing out than he was unable to hear from his headphones.

“Where’s EchoBeat?” Spinning requested.

“Over here.” A red Earth-pony appeared from behind an energy well. His eyes were covered by goggles that gleamed blue.

“What are we doing?” I queried, although I worried if ‘we’ was the correct word to use.

“We are collecting crystals,” EchoBeat informed.

“That’s it?” I pouted.

SpinningNote slapped my shoulder playfully. “Hey, don’t be disappointed. This place is more exciting than out in the camp.” He probably was thinking that was how it was for me, for Spinning had been in the mill several times.

“Look for some that aren’t super glowy,” The Unicorn acknowledged.

“Do we ever use these laser things?” I asked.

“We use them all the time,” EchoBeat informed. “They are our main power supply, used for charging lighting and electric devices. We need crystals for EPDs.”

I strolled on the path around the wells. I watched how the shadows shifted from all of the different light sources. Passing by, I saw a cluster of crystals by a well, but decided they were too ‘glowy’. My posture tilted as the ground dipped down. A feel pieces of metal that appeared to be Hybrid parts were scattered across the floor. I am not sure why they have not collected them yet.

I focused down where the terrain sloped into a well. Dark red stained the ground. I heard hooves come up behind me. “You guys fought a lot of Hybrids here,” I stated.

“Oh,” SpinningNote said, slightly surprised. He looked at the blood stains. “Actually, that’s where you dad lost his leg.”

Backing away, my eyes widened with horror. Spinning lifted his chin and gave an evil laugh. EchoBeat moved next to the Unicorn.

“Are you trying to traumatize him?” The Earth-pony scorned.

SpinningNote stared. He laughed again. Marching away, Echo rolled his eyes. He summoned me to follow him. He showed me a cluster of energy crystals.

FeatherTune fluttered to us and set down a bucket and tools. EchoBeat used the tools to shovel the gems out of the earth. I sat and watched. It seemed I was no use to them, I could not help at all. They had everything under control. Why did Spinning even bring me here?

Author's Notes:

Okay please bare with me here with the indents... I tabbed them in Google Docs, but some of it didn't show up on here. I'll try to keep it more organized

Chapter VII: The Strangest Little Filly

It was time for dinner when the sky grew several shades darker. I stared down at my plate of salad and potatoes. My parents held a conversation, but my ears adjusted to every other indistinct noise from ponies walking outside to the wind taping on the window.

Mom gazed at me. “GentleSketch, are you not hungry? You should eat something. You’re a colt, you need to eat.”

I shifted slightly.

“Maybe,” Dad said, “He’s not to that stage yet.”

“Stage?” Mom cocked her head.

“Yeah. Like teens start eating a lot, I guess around fourteen. I know JumpingJolt has done that.”

Mom shook her head with a grin. “He eats anything.”

I smiled a bit, thinking about how Jolt gobbles down all of his food at once. I’m glad I wasn’t like that (yet), I would want better manners than that.

Dad noticed my smile. Then it faded. For some reason, I wanted to hide my emotions. Dad was thinking.

“You just need to get out of the camp,” Dad finally spoke. “We should go to the city sometime. You need to socialize with other ponies, huh?”

“I guess.”

“You think that sounds good, HeartFelt?”

“Yeah, sure,” Mom responded.

Dad repositioned himself. “Ah. Well, we’ll have to see when we can go. Maybe we can do a mission.”

Black surrounded me just like the night before. I returned to a world of confusion. I understood there were towering trees around, but I did not understand direction. The smallest glimpse of light appeared. I attempted to pursue it, but brambles condemned me.

The glowing dot came from a hole in the brambled. My eye hovered over the opening but no shapes were definite. Both hooves covered the space as I made an effort to pry it open. Slowly, light flooded the area as my hooves ripped the fabric brambles.

Instinctively, my body went in. The light dimmed. Wood still housed me. Figures were now cognitive. One figure stood out. It was that filly, it had to be.

“What do you want?” I demanded. The only sound that filled my ears was of creaking branches. “Who are you? Why have you been following me? Do you even have a name?”

The filly moved. Her tail flowed gracefully almost as a paint stroke. Hooves below me pounded against the soil racing after the filly.

As the woods commenced to thin, the surrounding changed to concrete and brick walls.A street became my throne while shops were my kingdom. My mind built a section of Los Pegasus, most likely altered from the real thing. Twenty yards away, a small silhouette was present.

“Why are you doing this to me?” My voice echoed off the walls.

The small Unicorn turned the corner. Around the curb was a decline. A city skyline leveled my vision. Limbs surged and my body glided down the hill. Where was she leading me?

Something else hindered my quest: a crowd. Faces of camp ponies were everywhere yet my brain did not analyze their details. My head was placed low as I maneuvered through the crowd. One pony confronted me saying something but I replied “No, I don’t have time!”

When the crowd started to disperse, blaring sounds filled the air. It sounded like it should have been music, thrashing guitars and clattering drums. My ears pressed against my head as the “music” rumbled like neverending thunder. I could not identify the source of the noise. the filly must have been distracting me.

I halted. I had lost her in all of this chaos.

The bursting sounds shook me to the bone. I needed to escape.I flew into a building.

The area was much larger on the inside than it seemed on the outside. The floor dropped with many rows of seats that lead to a stage. I think I have seen this pace before, anyway, if I had not, my mind would not have been able to produce it.

The sounds from the outside were more tolerable now and grew quieter as I trotted up an aisle. The slope became even towards the stage. On the stage was- the filly!

Her dark aqua fur glistened a million different hues as spot lights from all around danced. I climbed onto the stage with ease, something that would have been very difficult in real life. I established myself in front of the filly. Thankfully, she did not flee.

“Why did you bring me here?” I asked almost immediately. Of course, she did not speak. “Why can’t you talk?”

She looked out to the arena. I looked there too and took in the knowledge of how big the place was.

“So,” My head pivoted to her. “Are you going to tell me- why you brought me here?”

She glanced at something on the stage. They appeared to be musical instruments. And coincidentally, the sounds outside became more harmonious. The music then felt as if it came from the theater, but the volume stayed low. The tune was familiar, presumably something Dad had played.

The filly stared at me with huge, warm brown eyes.

“What?” I shook my head for emphasis. “What do you want from me?!”

The little pony furrowed her brow as I raised my voice.

“I don’t get it!” I stomped my hoof. She grew angrier as I did. “What the hell am I supposed to do?”

She really didn’t like that. She leaned forward and stiffened her mouth. Her eyes appeared almost glowing yellow. Bringing a black hoof up, she placed it on my chest.

“What? What?!”

And the world around me collapsed. My mouth moved continuously as her glowing eyes faded. Everything was shaking so I shook myself to work to counteract it.

“What? What?” I continued to speak when I broke into the waking world.

My mother stood over me. Pushing her ears down, she took her hoof off my shoulder. She stepped back in reaction to my calling.

I halted for a second. I rubbed my eyes and said. “I’m sorry. I was in the middle of a dream.”

Mom stood up straight. “Oh.” She was less alarmed. “Was it a good dream?”

I let a hoof hang off the bed. “I… don’t know.”

“Hmm,” The mint green mare hummed. “Just a dream, then?”

“Yeah,” I replied, practically senselessly.

“Sorry to wake you, but I just wanted to know if you would like some breakfast.

I moved my hoof to my cheek. “Sure. I’ll be up in a bit,” I answered while moving my numb, dry mouth to get the feeling back.

“Okay,” Mom said. Her body turned as she went out but her eyes stayed on me until she reached the doorway. When the door closed behind her, my eyes fixed on the ceiling.

What does that filly want from me? Why does she keep coming back? It’s not like I have ever seen her before in my life. Why was she angry at me? Was she angry because I was angry? I growled behind bared teeth and slapped hooves onto my temples.

Chapter VIII: Mending and Breaking

Early afternoon spread across the North Hills camp. I sat on the ground with a sketchpad and pencil in my mouth. I often muse how much better my art would look if I used magic. Two times better? Five times?

Bang. Bang. Bang. My ears fluttered as a hammer clanged against a nail. I looked over to the construction, not exactly able to identify what the teal stallion was trying to accomplish. There was always construction in the camp.

“Hey, keep it down!” HyperBlitz shouted from a picnic table.

“You keep it down!” The stallion waved the hammer strapped to his hoof.

HyperBlitz gaped with offense. Then his mouth broke into a grin. “Heh. The only volume button on me is up.” His hoof rose, pointing to the sky.

The Pegasus and some others went on with stories about the past. They chatted about travels and even before the camp. There were so many stories repeated and some sounded different every time. By now I can practically imagine how my father lived before I was born.

HyperBlitz was going on with some tale about one of the many times he hurt himself. He is always so clumsy, on occasion, he fails to land correctly. I wonder how many times Hyper has gotten injured. I asked him just this question.

The stallion stared at me for a second, blinking. “Ah-” He glanced up and put his hoof behind his neck. “Well, um,” Hyper idled, not knowing where to start. “Well, I broke his wrist,” he showed his right foreleg, “That was during a concert. I had both arms in casts at one point, that was before that.” He lifted his hind leg. “I broke this ankle.”

“You tripped on that one,” SpinningNote added, smirking.

“Shh! I’m the one talking,” Hyper snapped, although I believe that was more of an excuse so he wouldn’t be embarrassed.

“Oh,” Hyper squinted his eyes. “I pulled my ankle getting caught on a stair in concert.”

“You almost got burned by the pyrotechnics in concert too,” Spinning commented once more.

This time Hyper smiled. “Heh… Burn It Down.”

His eyes slipped back to me. “I’m sure I’ve sprained everything a couple of times. I’ve pulled this wing, the muscle,” He showed his right wing, the mechanical one, and pointed to the base. “I’ve pulled that several times. I also got it ripped off but that was a Hybrid, not self injury.

“I’ve injured my back carrying luggage. I cut a hole in my cheek playing tennis.”

I gaped with huge eyes as he listed his injuries.

SpinningNote’s eyes became flat. “With all that plus getting sick all the time, I have no idea how you are still alive.”

HyperBlitz shrugged for Spinning and spoke for me “Yeah, that’s pretty much what I can remember now, I’m sure there’s a bunch more.”

“Wow,” I said, all of that collecting into my brain.

A shape in the corner of my vision caught my attention. A tan pegasus descended from the sky. Hooves handed on the ground and skipped a bit before coming to a complete halt. The stallion puffed out his chest as he took in air.

“Sup, Jet,” Hyper greeted.

Jet saluted the older Pegasus instead of wasting his air on words. He found a seat at the table to rest and straightened in black bangs. He must have flown for a long time to be this exhausted.

“So what do you got?” HyperBlitz leaned forward to Jet, giving him his full attention.

Jet twisted his body, his back against the table and his elbows on it. “Okay,” Jet said after being situated, “So like, you know how we get reports online, from other ponies. Some of us go to different places, different camps. I was at other camps too” The way he spoke annoyed me, he was not getting to the point. “They said the exact same thing as reports. There are like, rogues. They have a camp and are bothering ponies in Haythorn.”

The name of Haythorn struck a spot in my chamber of memories. It was a town I lived in for a while. I do not believe I had any memories of actually being there, I only knew that I was there. My mother left me there with some ponies, only for she was traveling alone and though she was a bad mother(which is completely wrong).

“Did you go to Haythorn?” HyperBlitz asked.

“Ah, no.” Jet shook his head. “I promised Ash I wouldn't be gone for more than a day.”

Hyper smirked with a slight shake of the head.

“What?” Jet puzzled.

“Heh.” Hyper crossed his forelegs “You let Ash have too much control. You can’t have her making all of the decisions. You are your own pony.”

“I know,” Jet admitted. “ But you need to have trust in a relationship.”

“I understand,” Hyper said looking at the younger Pegasus with empathy in his eyes and voice.

“So,” SpinningNote joined the conversation, “Should we send someone to Haythorn to help them? We help ponies.”

“Yes,” HyperBlitz stated, “But the Resistance was made to fight off Hybrids.”

“And to restore the resources of the world,” SpinningNote included. “We know that rogues like to take and hoard resources.”

“Hmm, especially when they are territorial, they guard rivers and land,” Hyper said. “Most of the time they invade towns to take food and supplies.” Hyper looked to Jet. “Do you know why the rogues are messing with Haythorn?”

The tan stallion rubbed the back of his black mane. “No, I didn’t get any information on that.”

“Jet!” A low female voice called from the side. A red maned Unicorn trotted up to Jet and placed her muzzle under his chin. “I saw you fly in. But you didn’t come to me first?”

“I-”

The younger Pegasus was interrupted by HyperBlitz “Hey! Give him a break. You’re always on his back."

Ash lowered her brow and glared at Hyper. “Excuse me. This has nothing to do with you.”

“I’m trying to help him.”

“Help him?”

Jet put his forelegs to his side and slumped down. “Shit.”

“What’s he talking about, Jet?”

“He-”

Again, Jet was cut off. “You are too controlling. Sometimes that’s good, to be caring, to show you care about your partner, but that doesn’t mean that you have to know his every move.”

“I do not-”

“You do. You want things your way. You need to give him space.”

Jet groaned. “HyperBlitz, I think I can-”

“No, Jet, you don’t get it. You need to be happy in a relationship.”

“Are you saying he’s not happy with me?” Ash inquired bitterly.

Hyper exhaled. “Ash, you have to understand that you can be controlling.” He paused, but the grey mare didn’t break into his speech. “You need to not just think about what you want, but what he wants.”

Ash looked to the other Pegasus. “Do you think I’m controlling?”

“I,” Jet was uneasy. “I think you can be… sometimes. But more recently, not the whole time we’ve been together.”

“Why haven’t you told me?”

Jet peered away. “I was afraid you wouldn't be happy with me.”

The Unicorn sighed and rubbed her nose to Jet’s cheek. “At least you’re honest.”

“As I was saying,” SpinningNote chimed in. “Should we send someone to Haythorn?”

“We can talk about it with the guys,” HyperBlitz said. “I may like to go. I haven’t been on an adventure in a while."

Suddenly I heard a shout. I swirled around and saw JumpingJolt galloping with a ball the size of his head in front of him. He attempted to stop it by placing it under his red hoof, but instead his hold slipped, leaving the ball flying upward. I quickly ducked my head down, wrapping my forelegs over my mane, although the ball was not exactly heading in my direction.

SpinningNote’s magic grasped the soaring ball like a bag. Jet motioned the unicorn to pass the ball over. The sphere bounced between the top of Jet’s forehooves. He then pushed the ball to his wings, juggling it between them. The ball swooped down the edge of Jet’s wing while he stood up migrated to his back hoof. He kicked it over his head to JumpingJolt.

Jolt had a huge grin when he caught the ball. “Wow, awesome! You’re really good!”

Jet shrugged and giggled. “Heh, well…”

“That better have a lot of charge in it now.” HyperBlitz remarked. He was referring to how the ball gained potential energy from kinetic energy. We could use it to power appliances so we don’t have to completely depend on energy crystals.

JumpingJolt kicked the ball to some other ponies who were playing.

Just then, the whole terrain shifted. The ground below me vibrated. I thought I was delusional or having a spasm, but that idea was banished when I saw my comrades react fearfully.

“What’s going on?!” JumpingJolt yelled.

“Fuck!” HyperBlitz cursed. “Earthquake!”

“What?!” Jolt squawked.

My body sprang up almost immediately, although it was difficult to stay standing. Jet embraced Ash in his wings and got down low. JumpingJolt and I flew underneath the table. I very briefly saw the image of blue flames and red hooves raise up into the sky.

“Dad!” JumpingJolt gasped.

With our coats pressed against each other, the colt wrapped his foreleg around my back just as if he was my real big brother. My mind raced as I imagined all the possibilities while the world around me quaked.

I never had experienced a real earthquake before. If anything, it would have been while I was asleep, which my dad told me about. Well, maybe that was not completely true. It must have been young the last time I experienced one. But now as it happened, I felt snatched out of reality as if some catastrophe was weighing on my shoulders. Nevertheless, when the earth calmed the only thing on my shoulder’s was my friend’s grasp.

It seemed so fast yet going on for a lifetime. Even though the floor stopped shaking, my body shivered, giving me the feeling the quake had continued.

“You boys okay?” I heard Jet holler.

“Y-yeah,” JumpingJolt retorted.

We crawled out from under the wooden structure, my belly sliding against the dirt. When I stood up, I stumbled, still shaken. Jolt caught me by pressing his hoof on my back. I guess Earth-ponies had a more natural ability of finding balance on the ground.

A mostly yellow shape fell from the air. HyperBlitz landed by his hooves sliding separate from one another, his body dipping low. The Pegasus stallion regained footing and recovered from his awkward landing.

“Dad!” JumpingJolt stomped his hoof. His father gave an expression of startled concern. “Why did you fly away?”

“I-I… the best thing to do during an earthquake is to get off the ground,” Hyper defended himself.

“Why didn’t you stay with us? You should have been protecting us!”

“J-Jolt, I’m sorry. I was thinking about that when I was up there but… I was already there.”

Jolt turned away from his father.

“I’m sorry. You’re right: I should have been here with you. I’m so sorry.” Hyper’s eyes filled with emotion. When HyperBlitz apologizes, I know he does it with the most heart anypony ever could have. He truly regrets any mistake makes.

He came over and stroked his son’s mane, but did not receive an answer.

SpinningNote swiftly came over. I had not seen where he had gone or appeared from. “We need to check and see if everything is okay in the camp. Especially make sure the energy mill isn’t affected.”

Hyper dipped his head to the red-violet Unicorn.Then the Pegasus followed his friend but his eyes locked on his son. HyperBlitz made a bad choice of looking away while cantering because he slammed his chest and cheek into a pole. He did not make a sound, but backed away and shook off the pain before catching up with SpinningNote.

Chapter IX: Things Don't Fix Themselves

The earthquake had stirred the ponies of the camp. It was not a large one as my father told me, but it still caused a commotion. Ponies rushed around making sure their loved ones were okay. SweetHooves ran up to JumpingJolt, putting her hooves on his cheeks as she asked over and over again if he was okay. Jolt kept saying “Mom, Mom, I’m okay.” They both continued that for a minute or two. Then SweetHooves did the same to me, being like my second mother.

I now shadowed Dad, observing how he coped with this event. There were a few things in the camp that were knocked over, but no significant damage. My father looked to clean up. I could make him happy by helping.

“How’s the energy mill,” I asked Dad, remembering the last thing SpinningNote said.

“It’s fine,” Dad told, “There was well that was off balance, but we fixed it.”

“What hap-” I stopped.

Dad raised a brow. “‘What’ what?” That sounded funny.

“N-nothing. It’s stupid. I shouldn’t ask so many questions.”

“No, no, go ahead!” Dad insisted. “Asking questions is how you learn.” He motioned his blue hoof.

I paused. “What happens when a well becomes unbalanced?”

Dad straightened up. “That’s not a stupid question.” He reassured me, confidence in his voice. “If a well becomes unbalanced we could lose energy. And it’s dangerous. If energy is not controlled, it can hurt someone who comes near it. An unstable well could set off other wells, and things would go boom.” He waved his hoof outward.

“Hmm.” I frowned, not liking that idea.

Dad studied me for a second, and then he carried on, my hoof steps sequencing his. When he stopped, he took in a deep breath, yet exhaled quite silently.From my angle, I could barely see brown eyes swerving around, scanning the damage. A few crates scattered the area, some broken, one empty.

“What’s-” I corrected myself, “What are these?”

“Supplies,” Dad said, “Like tools and stuff. Things we can keep away.” His magic lifted up a side of broken wood, revealing an object that look like one we used in the gardening tent. Dad gave a questioning glance at the empty crate. “It must have fallen from the top,” He concluded. The stallion turned to me. “Can you help me collect the tools and put the crates back up?” I nodded.

My attention glued to the ground, I scavenged for lost tools. A long green figure was unraveled about the dirt. I picked the hose up in my mouth, the dirt tasting dry (one of the reasons why I seriously need magic). Pulling my head up and walking, I felt the hose tug behind me. I glanced to observe the object unraveling even more, the other end staying in place. I grumbled behind the grasp of my teeth.

“Here, let me get that.”

A blue aura spread from the hose’s tip in my mouth to all the way to the opposite end. It telekinetically rolled up and hovered to my father. I felt a pinch of jealousy. Dad adjusted the hose and placed it at the bottom of the empty crate.

I continued the task. I found a green watering can that was a few shades brighter than the hose. Grasping it, I was satisfied that I could actually lift this one, and with my hoof for that matter. I brought it to my father.

“This must have been gardening supplies,” Dad remarked while depositing the watering can in the crate. “I bet there are some shovels and hoes and stuff.” His eyes wandered, yet I knew he left this job to me.

I went back to the place I found the other objects. Unexpectedly, something metal pressed into my underhoof. Whinnying, I whipped my hoof up as a cultivator flung a few feet in front of me. Bringing my foreleg up, I watched the soft part of my hoof turn red from a dent. My vision becoming misty, I put my hoof to my mouth as pain shot through my nerves.

Dad trotted up next to me. “What’s wrong?” He asked with concern. “Let me see.”

I presented my hoof to him. He held and examined it. He smirked a bit. “Oh this is nothing.” But that didn’t make me feel better. “It’s not bleeding badly. You’ll be fine.” My hoof felt like the cultivator was still being jabbed into it, ever so deeper.

I looked at my wound again. “Are you sure, Dad? It looks bad.”

He lowered his head. “I’ve had worse.”

Glancing at his right leg, I think he expected me to look at it.

I tried to ignore the pain as I watched Dad gather a few more tools and set them into the crate. As he shut the container he said, “If you find more, let me know.” He levitated the box over two more and set it there.

When he walked away, I noticed the crate was not completely aligned. It was over the edge slightly. I am not OCD, but I want to help make things better. Maybe I could use my magic for this. Yeah! It’s only a little shove right?

So I positioned myself on the right side of the crates. I concentrated on the top one, my head tilting. All the pain in my hoof completely vanished as my head and shoulders scrunched up. I attempted to peel open my eyes, but it was difficult. Magic is a strange phenomenon. It was if I could feel the crate with my mind and soul. I felt no temperature, no texture, but yet a surface.

My magic wasn’t strong enough push the wooden object in the right direction. It let go, and in a split second I attempted to regain control, only making my magic spasm. The crate tipped over with gravity and brought the other crates below with it. My body froze as the containers clattered on the ground, the contents spilling.

“GentleSketch!” My father yelled. Fear pounded in my veins. The stallion stood tall in front of me abruptly. I could not breath. “What did you do?”

“I-I,” Panicking, I sought the right words. “ The-the crate wasn’t straight. I-I”... I have a problem with stuttering when under pressure. “I wanted to fix it. Bu-but, m-my magic-wa-was,” It wasn’t strong enough.

“You know you don’t have strong magic,” Dad said firmly. He did not raise his voice and his posture was poised. He breathed as calmly as possible. Dad’s brow barely tightened, his mouth was straight. My father was not one to show anger, it took a lot to break. This occasion was not enough to make his break but I knew he wasn’t happy.

“D-Dad. I wanted to help. I… I wanted to see if I could try with m-my mag-”

“No,” Dad interrupted. “GentleSketch, you knew you couldn’t do that. If you can use magic, use it, if not, don’t use it at all."

A thorn pierced into my chest and trailed down into my stomach. It was one hundred times more painful than the cultivator in my hoof.

Dad’s face muscles didn’t move even slightly, but there was something in his eyes that showed he knew he had just hurt me. He did not take back what he said, only remained silent.

My mouth trembled as if it wanted to say something more, although I knew this wasn’t the case. My eyes casted down and I turned my body away from my father.

The rest of the day I just layed on my bed, my chin sunk into my pillow as I stared off to something past the wall. During my time I was going through sets of on and off sobbing. I was thinking of not only earlier, but every other time I tried to use magic. I had to desperately tried, and failed.

I thought of how useless I am. I thought of how weak I am, how much I cry. Do other’s silently judge me? Am I a burden to my parents? So many thoughts collecting at once lead to a sobbing fit. That happened several times.

Now I sat with tired, dry eyes that itched from lack of moisture. I violently blinked and squinted but nothing got rid of the feeling.

There was a knock on the door and after that the door opened. I did not turn my head but I knew it was my mother for she had a certain style of door opening. I heard her hooves quietly approach me.

“Hey,” her voice was soft. “I haven’t seen you all day. Did the earthquake freak you out?”

I shifted, but did not speak. I sensed the mare lean towards me. “What’s wrong? Why are you so quiet, acting asocial?”

Glancing up at her, I supported my head with a hoof. “I just,” I sighed, “I wanted to help Dad and… I messed up.”

“Oh,” Mom sung with sympathy. “Well, if it makes feel any better, Dad was talking about maybe bringing you on a trip.”

I sat up giving a questioning face.

“I don’t know much,” Mom responded to the question I did not need to ask, “But he was saying he was talking to HyperBlitz about going to- Haythorn I think. He said bringing you may be a good experience.”

I pondered what time Dad had spoken to HyperBlitz. I remember Hyper had gotten information about Haythorn right before the earthquake. About an hour later, I had been with my father. Did Dad speak with HyperBlitz before or after I failed at cleaning?

I must have been making a strange thinking face for Mom appeared to be defending herself. “I don’t want to give you false information. You can ask Dad yourself. Why don’t you ask him at dinner?”

And so dinner came. I sat quietly, struggling on whether or not I should ask my father. What if he spoke to HyperBlitz before my mistake? Then was Dad still upset and changed his mind about the trip. Even so, when could he have spoken to Mom about it? More likely after the mishap because that was the only logical time slot.

I glanced at Mom, my eyes wide. I reckon she took that as a signal to bring up the topic. She cleared her throat and stared at her husband. “So, CharmingRhythm…”

“Yes, HeartFelt?” He did some strange look with raised brows but squinted eyes.

“You were talking about a trip with GentleSketch?”

Dad straightened his back, his face stunned. He glanced at me. My eyes darted back and forth before he went back to the mare. “Aw, did you already tell him?” How could he have possibly known that? “You ruined the surprise!”

Mom shrugged. “I wanted to cheer him up. He seemed- he was upset.”

“Upset?” That question was for me.

“Um.” I failed to make eye contact. “I was upset because I… I was being stupid trying to use magic. I made you angry, and I… don’t like doing that.”

Dad’s posture loosened. “Oh, Sketch. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said what I did. I should have known that would have hurt you.”

“No, how could you have known?” I mumbled.

“Because you are sensitive.” His mouth tightened. “But I wanted to bring you on a trip to make you feel better. You need to get out of the camp and experience something else.”

“To Haythorn, right?" Mom said at just the right moment so that it was not considered an interruption.

“Yep,” Dad confirmed. “ HyperBlitz explained how there’s a problem with rogues in Haythorn. We were going to send someone to see if we can help. Hyper said he would go, and I was like ‘hey, I should go too!’ We do make a good team and we haven’t done a mission in forever.”

“But aren’t rogues dangerous,” I expressed as I peered over to Mom. I was not trying to back out, I wanted to know what Mom thought.

“I thought about that,” Dad addressed. “I was-when we got to Haythorn I’d leave you there and go find the rogues… no offense. I just want to protect you. You may not be able to fight rogues, but being around different ponies is still good. I don’t want you to think I’m just going to leave you behind. I- I don’t want anything happening to you.”

“I understand,” I said. “But what does Mom think?”

All attention was on the mint green mare now. She inhaled and froze, processing the ideas in her mind. “I suppose, It would be a good father/son bonding experience, as well Sketch getting out of the camp.”

“We could be gone for up to a week,” Dad warned his wife. “ Can you live without us for that long?” I believe he was teasing her.

“I’ve been without you guys for much longer. I’ll be fine knowing you are together, or at least know where each other are,” warm brown eyes fell on me, “With good ponies.”

“Awesome,” Dad said, a grin on his muzzle. “I’ll speak with HyperBlitz and we can sort out when we can go.”

Chapter X: The Games We Play Part 1

It was what one would call a pleasant day in south-east Equestria. It was not too humid and there was a timid wind in the air. Ponies were in favor of this weather and worked and played outside today.

I watched two orange ponies play ball together: JumpingJolt and a stallion who was a lighter and more yellow shade or orange. JumpingJolt chased the stallion, his eyes on the ball. The stallion smacked the ball with one golden hoof sending the object flying. Jolt’s head followed the ball which hit a wall. The colt pivoted his body to kick the ball back into the open area. The stallion lept with his hind limbs and hit the ball down with his forehooves.

After running past me, JumpingJolt skidded to a halt. He looked to me. “Oh, GentleSketch! Would you like to play?”

“Sure,” I said, although I am not big into sports nor am I any good at them.

I stood in the middle planning where I would go. Orange kept zooming past me and I failed to find my place. I was not good at keeping up for they were Earth-ponies, so they had a natural ability to run fast.

I saw the ball and headed towards it but gold hooves scooped it up before me. I ceased running and slumped down. Sports were no fun.

“Hey, Uncle BlazingFlair, could I have the ball?” I asked politely.

The stallion stared at me with green eyes. A forehoof flicked the ball in my direction. JumpingJolt raced in front of me and seized my prize right before my eyes. “Too slow!” He mocked.

“JumpingJolt! It’s my turn!” I pouted.

“There are no turns in this game!”

“C’mon, give him the ball,” BlazingFlair told Jolt.

“Fine.”

The ball rolled to me and I held it with a hoof. “What is the point of this game?”

“Pretty much taking the ball from your opponent,” Jolt said.

“And maybe get a goal,” BlazingFlair added.

After examining the area I asked, “What would a goal be?”

The stallion responded,“I dunno. Make one up. Use your imagination.”

Okay, I can do that. I shoved the sphere forward and succeeded after it. I was horrible at sustaining a straight path. The ball curved to the side and JumpingJolt kicked it up on an angle. It repealed off a wall, flying backwards.

BlazingFlair let go of his footing and landed on the ball. He wrapped his hooves towards his chest, tucking the ball under his belly. I trotted next to him. I poked his side. The stallion stuck his tongue out and shut his eyes forcefully as if he was in pain. I laughed. BlazingFlair always knows how to make me laugh.

“Come on Uncle blazing, get off the ball!” I requested, smiling.

“Yeah, Uncle Blazing,” A voice from the right repeated me.

A blue aura surrounded BlazingFlair and lifted him from the ground. His limbs flailed around helplessly. JumpingJolt swooped under the hovering Earth-pony and snatched the ball. He scurried away mischievously. The glow around Blazing faded and he dropped with a soft thud.

“Hey!” He said to the grayish-blue Unicorn standing before him.

“Sorry,” Dad apologized, “You’re kinda heavy”

Blazing stood up and brushed the dirt from his chest. He continued playing with JumpingJolt. I looked to my father.

“Having fun?”

“Yeah, sure.” BlazingFlair made things fun, the sport itself was not entertaining.

“I’m sorry to interrupt you but-”

“No, it’s okay.” I realized I was interrupting him. My head dropped down with embarrassment.

Dad did not mind. I glanced back up and he was smirking. “ I was going to talk with HyperBlitz about the trip and-”

Just then he was cut off again, this time by the sound of shattering glass and JumpingJolt’s shouting. We turned in sync. JumpingJolt stared at a broken window. BlazingFlair trotted to his side, He placed a hoof on the colt’s shoulder saying ,"That’s a goal!” Not even one bit angry. But the pony who showed herself on the other side of the window was angry.

“Sorry!” Jolt called.

I heard Dad chuckle. “As I was saying.I am going to talk with HyperBlitz about the trip and I wanted to know if you would like to come. It looks like your game is canceled anyway.”

“Okay,” I responded to Dad.

When we met with the yellow Pegasus he gave us a very loud “hi.”

“So about the trip…” Dad started.

“Yeah. It may take a couple of days to get there,” Hyper explained. “We could take the train, but we need to find out where the track goes. We’ll have to go to the Los Pegasus station.”

“And how are we going to negotiate with the rogues?”

“We gotta to the ponies in Haythorn, figure out what the problem is.”

“It’s kind of stupid going so blindly,” Dad pointed out.

“Ah, that’s part of the fun! We’ll probably run into Hybrids along the way.”

“Do we make them a priority? The resistance is built on fighting Hybrids.”

“Depends on how much of an obstacle they are. You’re bringing GentleSketch, right?” The stallion mentioned me.

“Indeed. I thought an adventure would be a good experience for him. He needs to get out of the camp and socialize with other ponies. A trip would also offer us some father/son bonding time.”

“Sounds good!” Hyper exclaimed. “I think that’s-” Suddenly he gave a huge gasp of excitement. It was much larger than I thought was possible, most likely because he is a Pegasus, a species with larger lungs for flying.

“What if,” He said with emphasis, “I brought JumoingJolt! You bring your son, I bring mine! A father/son trip!”

“What’s SweetHooves going to think about that?”

“I can ask her,” HyperBlitz stated. “I can do that now!”

Without our approval, he decided to canter away. Dad paced after him. We weaved through apartments and fences. We saw the mare in front of a door.

“SweetHooves! SweetHooves! SweetHooves!” HyperBlitz chanted his wife’s name.

The mare turned. She was holding a bucket in her teeth. The bucket having been set down, she said “Yes?”

“You know that trip I was talking about with CharmingRhythm.” A look at Dad. “I was- well he’s bringing GentleSketch.” A look at me. “I thought it would be cool, as a father/son trip, I brought JumpingJolt.” The way he said it made it sound like a statement instead of a request(I’m not sure if that was what he intended).

SweetHooves frowned. “There are going to be rogues. Rogues are dangerous.”

“Rhythm was saying he’d leave GentleSketch in Haythorn, I could leave Jolt there too. It’d be better is Sketch wasn’t alone.”

“You don’t know if that will happen. You guys always get into ridiculous situations.”

“Does that mean he can go?”

“No!”

I do not know how her statement could have made HyperBlitz think she meant Jolt could go. “Why not?” Hyper whinnied.

“Did you even ask him?” SweetHooves asked.

“No, but I know he’ll want to go.”

“I don’t want him too.”

“What about what Jolt wants?”

I questioned in my head why HyperBlitz needed approval from SweetHooves. Then I remembered how much he has agreed on having trust in a relationship.

“Oh boy,” Dad said, taking a step back.

“It’s too dangerous,” Insisted SweetHooves. “ I don’t want my little boy around rogues. I shouldn’t even let you around them.”

“Oh come on, SweetHooves. Please,” Hyper whined like a tiny colt.

“I said no!”

I spoke to my father, “Can you stop them?”

Dad shook his head. “When they start, there is no stopping them.”

“It would be good father/son bonding.” Hyper said.

SweetHooves argued, “If anything, JumpingJolt should stay here and bond with me! He bonds with you all the time.”

HyperBlitz grunted, “Ugh, that’s the problem? Why can’t you just let him go?”

“Because it’s going to be dangerous.”

“Fuck that! No it’s not. We will stay in Haythorn, and go negotiate with the rogues.”

“What if it doesn’t work out?”

“It’s going to!”

“You’re going to be gone for a while,” SweetHooves stated, mockingly.

“Only for a week or so.” Hyper’s voice had bounced from enraged to dismal.

“I’m going to be lonely when you are gone.”

“Gosh. Don’t you ever think about anypony but yourself?!” HyperBlitz snapped with a growl in his throat. “Selfish!” He finished and stomped away.

SweetHooves looked down in emotional pain, her mane falling over her scarred eye. “I do think about other ponies. I think about others a lot.” I nodded, knowing this is true. SweetHooves is one of the most caring ponies I know. “I just couldn’t say the right thing.”

Dad stepped up. “ I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry you had to see that.” She gazed to the direction her husband marched off to. “He doesn’t think before he acts. I guess I didn’t think before acting either.”

“It’s just,” The mare grimaced. “He’s going to go complain to JumpingJolt and then Jolt will come complain to me. Why do they have to make me the bad guy?”

“HyperBlitz will come around sometime,” Dad told her. “He’ll apologize and forgive you, but you need to forgive him.”

That evening, I sat with Dad as he showed what we would bring. I examined several different saddlebags, some were for me, some were for him

“How much are we bringing? Is it going to be heavy?” I asked.

“You’re probably going the lightest of all of us since you’re no use to carrying a lot.” He could have said I am not strong. “There are many necessities we need. Although it’s going to be mostly water and food. I’m bringing a blanket but I’m gonna wear it on my back like a cape.” He raised his arms up in the shape of a ‘V’.

“Wouldn’t that get hot?” I pointed out.

“Hmm, maybe,” Dad took in account. “I could always ball it up and carry it on my back if I’m not already carrying something there. You can do that with a blanket too.

I don’t want to carry too much, but we need to be prepared for the in between trips. We can get supplies from Haythorn, but I don’t want to bother them more than having to sleep there. That’s why we are bringing extra food.” Dad took a break to breath and think. “We’re going to have more supplies on the train, but we’ll have to leave them because we can’t take all of them.”

His eyes leveled with mine. “You will have to sleep in some uncomfortable places, that is why we are bringing blankets.” My eyes drifted away and I shrugged. “I do know how long we will be walking. I want to be on the train as much as possible but we never know when the track may be out of leads us in the wrong direction.”

“We have a map right?” I surmised.

“Yep! And a compass.”

“When are we leaving?”

“I don’t know. HyperBlitz says he’s not going until SweetHooves lets JumpingJolt come."

I hummed and look at the items on the floor.

Author's Notes:

I decided to make this into two chapters. It was going to be one, because it all has the same idea and plot, but it ended up way too long

Chapter XI: The Games We Play Part 2

The next day was slightly more humid than the previous. Nevertheless, it was not the kind of conditions that made one’s coat stick to their skin.

On my daily stroll around the camp, I caught SweetHooves conversing with my mother. Her face gave the expression of distress. Although I could not make out words, the tone in her voice was also distressed. I came around the back of my mother for a better listen. I ducked down behind a bench. I immediately knew they were talking about HyperBlitz.

“ … He’s so upset with me that, I believe, he went to go sleep at the base. He never does that. He’s acting like a child. He wanted my opinion you know,” Mom nodded to SweetHooves, “And now he’s not happy with it.

“ And it hurts. He said I’m selfish. Then Jolt came to be and told me I never let him do anything fun. What they said is hurtful.”

“Well I think,” Mom began, “You should let Hyper cool down a bit, give him some time. He’ll come running to you with an apology like always.”

“Yeah but… this feels different. He really is upset with me. Jolt too.”

“Maybe you should let Jolt go. He’s sixteen:It’s time for him to do some adventuring. It’s in his blood, like his father. And I’ll admit you are a bit overprotective.”

I thought of anypony would could persuade SweetHooves it would have to be Mom. SweetHooves is a defiant mare, but she has to break at some point. My mother has such charisma and a very good way with words that it is almost impossible to say no(I know that by experience).

SweetHooves sighed, “I know but… I don’t want anything happening to them.”

“I think they’ll be fine. It sounds like a good plan.”

“They always get into crazy situations. They’ve almost died several times. We thought HyperBlitz was dead once.”

“But they never did die. They know how to get out of things. They have luck and brains. Hype and Rhyth are a good team.”

“It still seems like a risk. It’s that-” Just when I thought mom was getting to her, SweetHooves glanced past the Unicorn’s shoulder. I froze. “I think somepony is listening to us.”

I was walking away timidly when I heard Mom say, “GentleSketch?” I swirled around and faced her.

“Hi, Mom…” I fake smiled.

“Were you listening to us?” She quizzed.

“Um.” I couldn’t lie now, for my mother is a living lie detector. Somehow she knows if someone is lying. She also has a spell that can make one tell the truth, but that is a little extreme.

“I… I was listening,” I confessed.

“Why?”

“Because,” I gathered my words, “SweetHooves looked and sounded upset. I wanted to know what was wrong.” That actually was the truth. I hoped mom could see that with her lie detector eyes.

“Okay,” She said, to my relief.

“I probably already knew what was wrong, but I couldn’t help but to listen.”

“It’s okay,” SweetHooves cooed.

“Aunt SweetHooves,” I spoke in a very innocent voice, “Maybe you could let JumpingJolt go? He really wants to go and Uncle Hyper really wants him to go. I want him to go too.” If Mom could not persuade her, then maybe I can. I am a cute colt who is sensitive. My faux-aunt wouldn’t risk making me upset, now would she?

“I think another pony on the team would be great. And I’d like to have a pony my age around. I mean, I like my dad and Uncle Hyper but sometimes it can be awkward. I want someone around my age to talk too. Jolt is like a big brother.”

SweetHooves was contemplating. “I… will think about it.”

“Thank you.” Score!

Later that afternoon I settle down for lunch. JumpingJolt was with me too but he was abnormally quiet. Jolt is always the one to bring up a conversation, comment a pony walking by, or ramble nonsense words. This time, there was none of that. I’m not a good conversation started, so it was difficult to break the awkward silence.

“So,um,” I thought of a topic that did not have to do with his parents, “what happened with your ballgame yesterday?”

The colt’s eyes finally light up. “Oh. I kinda kicked the ball into a window.”

“I know.” That sounded offensive.

“Rain really wasn’t happy with me. It’s not like anything she isn’t use too with Zapp.”

“Yeah,” I giggled.

“BlazingFlair tried talking her out of being all pissy with me. Blaze said I won because that was the perfect goal.”

“So is Rain gonna make you fix her window?”

“I don’t think she trusts me with glass!” He laughed.

“I wouldn’t trust you either!” I teased.

JumpingJolt’s face suddenly became dark and sad. “I wish Mom trusted me to go on a trip.

Great, this is exactly where I did not want this conversation to fall.

“Oh…” I strayed for a distraction

“But you get to go, and you younger than me.”

“That… that’s not my decision, it’s-”

“Just not fair. I’m old enough. I want to go on an adventure,” He grumped.

“Well, um…” I spotted my father walking around the camp clearing. “I’m going to go see what my dad is up to. Okay? Can you clean up for me?” I gestured to the plate.

“Sure,” The Earth-pony groaned.

I swiftly trotted away and placed myself next to Dad. “Hey Dad.”

“Oh, hey buddy!” He ruffled the back of my mane.

“What are you doing?”

“I am going to find HyperBlitz and talk with him.”

I did not want to hear HyperBitz complain any more but I was already following dad so it was inevitable(unless I wished to rudely walk away).

We continued to the edge of the clearing. HyperBlitz was sitting alone on a concrete block. Seeing Hyper alone is a very rare sight, given he is so dependent and loyal to other ponies.

Dad stood in front of him. Hyper picked up his head and pushed up a pair of glasses on his muzzle.

“CharmingRhythm…"

“Whadya doing, sittin’ here?”

“Just sitting.” The Pegasus tilted his head. “Thinking... Have you seen SweetHooves?”

“No,” Dad rolled his eyes, “And you’re not going to go bitch at her. I don’t want to see any more HyperBitch.”

Hyper sighed,“No, no, I want to apologize to her.” He stood up. “I shouldn’t have gotten so upset. I was being an ass to her. She didn’t deserve that. I understand she wants to protect us. I… I really wanted Jolt to come.”

“Are you still coming on the trip?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“‘Cause we are going to need to set a date to leave.”

“Well at least I got you to to be with.” Hyper’s eyes bounced between me and Dad. “I guess one less pony to look after is a good thing, right?” He said a little unconfident and insecure.

Dad was glancing away when he stated, “I see your wife now.”

Hyper’s ears perked up as he sought for SweetHooves. She came from the way Dad came from. The mare saw HyperBlitz and met with him as if she was look for him too. Dad and I drifted behind.

The couple started to speak, both at once:

“SweetHooves, I just wa-”

“Hype, I need to let-”

The stopped at the same time, bewildered.

SweetHooves bowed, ladylike. “You go first.”

HyperBlitz took a deep breath. “ I just want to apologize for yesterday. I was… I was being stupid, a bitch,” His eyes slipped to Dad for a second. “You… you didn’t deserve me yelling at you like that. I should have like… shunned you or something. I was an asshole, and I made it seem like you were the asshole. But you’re not. You… just want what’s best for us. I appreciate that. I’m truly sorry, especially if I hurt your feelings.”

That was the longest freaking apology I ever heard. But it was also the most sincere.

SweetHooves made a soft expression. “Oh Hyper, baby.”She placed a pink hoof on his cheek.

“Do you forgive me?”

The mare nodded very slowly.

HyperBlitz smiled weakly. “What were you going to tell me? Were you going to apologize to me? Because you shouldn’t do that. I was the asshole.”

SweetHooves hummed. “HyperBlitz…. sometimes I’m too over protective. I just want you safe, since you can’t ever seem to keep yourself safe. I don’t ever want to hold you back. I love you, and want you to be happy.

I’ve been thinking… about that trip… maybe… I could let JumpingJolt go.”

Suddenly HyperBlitz dumbfoundedly gaped with wide eyes. “Are… are you serious? SweetHooves! Are you for real!?”

“Yes.”

“What wh-. You’re gonna let him go?!” Hyper’s emotion was between extremely happy and extremely confused. “Are you seriosus? Are you serious!?!”

“Yes! Yes!” SweetHooves laughed.

“Oh my gosh!” HyperBlitz pulled her close and gave a brief but forceful kiss.

“What changed your mind?”

The mare’s eyes wandered. “I… I saw you were upset… and I am too overprotective. I just want to see you happy. That’s one of my favorite things, making you and Jolt happy.”

“Aw, SweetHooves. You’re the best!”

“Well…” She chuckled slyly.

I bet that I was one of the reasons SweetHooves let Jolt go. Surely so many ponies getting on her would have made her give in. Although, I felt kind of bad for her, but she seemed happy now.

HyperBlitz kissed his wife again and gave her a huge hug. My shoulders hurt just looking at how tight he was squeezing her. SweetHooves accepted his embraced and patted his back.

When the Pegasus let go, SweetHooves said, “You two do need to get out of the camp… even if that means I’m going to be alone.”

Hyper made pouty lips.

“I am going to be really bored and lonely…”

“Well,” HyperBlitz pressed his nose to the Earth-pony’s nose, “I’ll have to give you lots of lovin’ before I go so you can last some time.”

She giggled coyly, “HyperBlitz… GentleSketch is here.”

Hyper shot a glance at me. “Oh.” I have no idea what that had to do with anything. Hyper whispered, “I’m still gonna give you lovin’.”

The yellow stallion quickly snapped his head back. “Oh my gosh! I should tell JumpingJolt! Have you told him?” He received a head shake. “I gotta tell him! He’s gonna be so excited! Oh thank you so much Sweet!” Hyper gave the tan mare one more hug before racing off.

SweetHooves gazed at Dad and smiled. Dad smiled back.

“You really changed your mind?” Dad question.

“Yes. Like I said, I love seeing him happy,” The mare looked the other way. “And he’s definitely happy now.”

Chapter XII: Final Preperations

At last it was time to go on the trip! Well, it will be tomorrow. We were still preparing. Dad told me the ‘to-do’s’ and the ‘what-not-to-do’s’ while on a mission. I was so excited yet nervous at the same time. Dad and I went around collecting many supplies(okay, I was watching). We got a bunch of food from our apartment and the camp.

“Won’t this food bad?” I asked.

“Yeah. Some of this will go bad after a couple of days. We have to wrap it up really well. Stuff that doesn’t go bad is dried stuff. Dried apples, potato crisps, raisins… I do hope we have enough that doesn’t go bad so we don’t have to get food from Haythorn.”

After dinner Dad got out saddlebags out. He decided between what was for him and for me. He demonstrated how to roll up a blanket to but in a bag for over the back. The bag has clips that kept in on the saddlebags. I saw all of the wrapped food and water bottles.

“Do we really need this many bottles?”

“Definitely!” Dad exclaimed. “We’re not going to find clean water between here and Haythorn. We have water bottles with filters on the lid. HyperBlitz and I will both have one. They can’t get rid of all the crap is some water, so we have to be careful. It’s better than boiling water because that takes forever and we really don't want warm water.”

A knock sounded from the door. When Dad said “come in”, it slide open. Light flooding on BlazingFlair’s orange coat made him stand out against the darkening outside.

“Hello!” He mumbled behind some papers. He dropped the papers on the floor. “I go you some maps.”

“Awesome.” Dad levitated them over.

“There’s one of south-west Equestria, and one of the Haythorn area. The both show the train tracks, but they are outdated so any of those tracks could be out,” The Earth-pony explained.

“This is per-”

Blazing interrupted Dad. “Oh yeah! ElectricTone says he has this special compass. It tells you your longitude and latitude. I’ll get that too you, but he says he needs to find it.”

“That sounds great. We can plot our coordinates so we can find the train again.”

“That’s what I was thinking.”

I studied everything. “Are we going to be ready by tomorrow? Do we just get up and leave?”

“Probably not. We’ll do some final-final preparation. And I doubt HyperBlitz and JumpingJolt are going to be ready.”

“Are you ready, lil’ stal’?” BlazingFlair inquire to me. “Are you excited?!”

“Yeah,” I beamed, “But I’m a bit nervous.”

Blazing came over and hugged me, practically lifting me off the ground. “Ah, you’re nervouscited! You don’t have to be nervous, you got your dad. He’ll make sure everything's goes right. Right?”

Dad gave one quick nod.

“Yeah. Your dad is smart and perfect.”

“I don’t know about perfect,” Dad said, abashed.

“CharmingRhythm, you’ve always been the best of us.”

Dad rolled his eyes and shook his head.

I brought up another question. “Do wee need extra energy crystals?”

“Nah. I think we have enough with our EPD and limbs.” For a second I was confused why he made ‘limb’ plural but I quickly remembered HyperBlitz has a mechanical wing.

“I’m gonna come with you to the station to help you carry stuff,” Blazing told us. “And so we can have a train back here.”

“Sounds good,” Dad affirmed.

A dark ceiling was above me as I restlessly layed on my back waiting for my body to fall asleep. I was anxious. I was thinking about the next day, and the next week. Although truthfully I was most anxious when I was not thinking about it, or not thinking at all. My mind raced with ambiguous words and thoughts. Nothing brought a clear image. My mind was blank with static.

Frustrated with my lack of sleep, I threw my back up vertically. After using the bathroom I flicked on the light and tossed a sketchpad on my bed. I began to sketch. And what did I draw? I created the envisioning of myself adventuring…

I imagined myself alongside my comrades trekking to help the word. We would go help ponies, they would love us. We would continue and have fun with one another all at the same time. We stood in the wasteland looking for our next mission.

But I knew this could never be true. I was romanticizing this trip. WAY too much. I looked into the future and knew we would be down on our luck. We’d be exhausted, moody. I’d be so uncomfortable, afraid of the world and every unknowing corner that lied ahead.

I was so caught up in my thoughts I almost did not notice the door opening. I heard Dad say my name. I looked to him. His bedhead hair looked a bit silly and his eyes expressed sleeplessness.

“What are you doing up?” He asked.

I shot the question back,“What are you doing up?”

“I can’t sleep. You?”

I shook my head.

“I heard you moving around and saw your light on. I decided to see what you were up to.” He glanced at my sketchpad. I flipped it over and pulled it to my side. Dad sat down on the bed which creaked when he did. “Thinking about the trip?”

I nodded. “Mm-hmm. I’m anxious.”

“Yeah, me too.”

“You too?”

“Yep. I’m worried that things aren’t gonna go right.”

“But you said you’d make sure things would go right.”

Dad swayed his head. “I can try my best. No promises. I… earlier I was so sure about this, that it would be a good experience for all of us, meet some new ponies, maybe fight some Hybrids… but now… when I should be sleeping… I’m freaking out. I keep thinking something wrong is going to happen. Sometimes that happens.” He took his hoof and stroked back his mane, a couple strands of hair popping back forward. “What if… we do run out of food. What if the rogues are hostile. I really want to help ponies.”

“Like you always do.”

“Hmm, yeah.” He glanced at me. “I… I don’t want to freak you out.. I promise I’ll do my best. To make sure you don’t get hurt.”

“Is that what you are most afraid of?” I stared at the floor. “Me being hurt?”

“No parent wants anything to happen to their child. But Sketch, that doesn’t mean I’m going to spend every second trying to protect you. I’ll let you stand up for yourself. I’ll let you make your own decisions.”

I leaned on his shoulder. “I don’t mind if you protect me.”

Dad wrapped his foreleg around to slowly pet my arm. “You should try to get some sleep. ‘Kay?”

“Okay. You too.”

In the morning I was awoken by Mom. I stepped into the kitchen and gave a big yawn.

“Looks like somepony is still tired,” Mom pointed out the obvious.

Dad chuckled. “Him and I didn’t get as much sleep last night as we wanted to.” He played with my bangs. I pulled away and rattled my head. “Ah, you can sleep on the train.”

“Or maybe make some coffee?” I invoked.

“We only have coffee on special occasions.”

“You had some the other week. Was that a special occasion?”

“Yeeeeah.”

“Really? What?” I quizzed.

Dad hesitated.“Uh… Hanukkah?”

“No it wasn't! Hanukkah isn’t until the end of the year!”

“Haha, I know!” He covered my head with his forelegs.

“FeatherTune would hit you for saying that!” I poked his chest.

“He wouldn’t hit that hard!”

Dad swung his body around as he pushed my head down with his chin. I slapped him playfully with my hooves.

“Looks like you two are bonding already,” Mom observed with a smirk.

Dad responded, “Ha, yep. We got all that anticipation in us!”

“Oh GentleSketch,” Mom said, “I know you may be on the train a while, so I was wondering if you would like to bring a book.” She roamed into the living room, while Dad prepared breakfast.

“Could I read your book?” I asked.

The mare delayed. “Um… well. I think maybe it’s a bit mature for you,” She acknowledged. “I’m sure you could handle it, but there are some topics that you may not understand.”

I frowned. “What wouldn’t I understand in it. I’m smart.”

“I’m not doubting that,” She rubbed my head.

“Are there dirty things?”

“No,not much, just… things about crime. You don’t know about a lot of those thing yet.” Mom sighed,“I’m sorry. Maybe another time.”

Maybe after this trip I would be more experienced. I heard rogues are full of crime.

“I have some of these other books you may like,” She indicated to the table.

We gathered at the end of the camp when HyperBlitz and JumpingJolt said they were ready. Mom, SweetHooves and BlazingFlair followed behind up. BlazingFlair carried many of our bags, he definitely was stronger than he looked. The luggage on my back already felt abnormal.

The stallion popped up next to Dad. “Oh yeah! Here!” He pulled a watch-like object off his wrist with his mouth. He showed it to Dad, who then levitated it. “It’s the compass!” Blazing informed. “It somehow tells you your coordinates. It’s solar powered, so that’s pretty neat.”

“Nice.” Dad slipped it on is non-mechanical leg. There already was a watch on that leg. He glanced at it.

“Well, it looks like we better get moving.”

SweetHooves came up to HyperBlitz and nuzzled her nose under his chin. “Please be safe.”

“You’re telling that to me? I’m never safe.”

The tan mare breathed. “At least keep the kids safe.” She looked at Dad. “You too.”

He nodded with a slight tilt.

My mother came up to Dad to talk and give him a hug but I was more interested in SweetHooves and HyperBlitz for some reason.

“Please try not to be gone too long,” SweetHooves prayed.

“I promise we’ll only be gone for five or six days at most.”

Dad objected, “Eh, make it six or seven to be safe.”

Hyper spoke again, “Okay…six to seven days, tops!”

“You promise?” SweetHooves inquired.

“Promise.”

I thought I heard Dad say “He shouldn’t be making promises.”

When SweetHooves and HyperBlitz were about to caress and make out, Mom obscured my vision and hugged me. After cherishing me for a few seconds, she placed a kiss below my horn.

“Have fun and learn some things,” The mint green mare told me.

“Mm-hmm. I love you, Mom.”

“I love you too, GentleSketch.”

SweetHooves was holding JumpingJolt and after a moment passed, Dad said, “Okay, I think.”

“Wait!” SweetHooves cut him off.

She hopped over to me and scooped me up. She embraced me for maybe one second less than Mom. The Earth-pony traveled to my father. She placed a hoof behind his shoulder and gave him a quick one-armed hug.

“I couldn’t let you guys go without a hug,” SweetHooves said.

“No hugs for me?” BlazingFlair whined.

“You’re not going to be gone for a week,” Dad sneered, but was playful about it.

“Haha, I know.”

“Well, good luck to you adventures!” SweetHooves cheered.

“Thanks, we’re gonna need it.” Dad responded.

We all waved and said our final goodbyes before heading out.

Chapter XIII: Setting Out on a Journey

Aboard the train a landscape glided past much faster than I can run. I had been in the train before, but it had been a while. BlazingFlair studied out the front window and operated the controls. HyperBlitz and JumpingJolt sat on a bench that was aligned against the wall.

I heard hooves approach me with a couple clops and a clank.

“This is cool huh? We’re finally going,” Dad said as he watched out the window. “These trains use t go faster. This actually is pretty slow, but we have to keep it that way to be safe. We don’t know if there is something wrong with the track or the energy running the train.”

“Also since we are not going far there is no need to speed up,” BlazingFlair added.

“The ride to the city isn’t that long,” Dad confirmed.

“Oh gosh, we’ve had some crazy experiences on train rides,” HyperBlitz brought up as he crossed his legs.

“Like what?” JumpingJolt asked, enthusiastically.

“I’m sure I’ve told you about them before-”

“I think we should leave the stories for the next ride, since it will be much longer,” Dad suggested.

“That sounds like a good idea,” HyperBlitz affirmed.

We had arrived at the Los Pegasus station. When we got out, BlazingFlair placed the extra luggage on the ground.

“Okay, you guys stay here. I’m gonna go talk with some ponies and see what track you should take,” The Earth-pony announced

I stood on the platform adjacent to the engine we had just been on. It was partially rusted, but a section that was not reflected the light blue of my coat. My mother told me I am the color of the sky beyond the clouds. She describe this in a memory of when she was a filly on a clear summer day. It was a color much more beautiful than the sky today. But I have never seen the true color of the sky. Even when there was a break in the clouds, the sky appeared as dull blue. For this reason, I could never call my fur “sky blue”. I preferred to call it light blue or as an artist, pale cyan.

When I looked back I noticed JumpingJolt had left to do his own thing. I brought this to the stallions’ attention, “Um, JumpingJolt just ran away.”

“Yeah, I told him it was okay to look around,” HyperBlitz informed.

I repositioned myself next to Dad. I was considering to ask if I could explore with Jolt, but I did not feel brave enough. Instead, I listened in on the friends’ conversation.

“So we have to talk to ponies in Haythorn,” Dad started, “Figure out the problem and… talk to the rogues?” He eyed HyperBlitz

“I guess so.” The yellow stallion said.

“We don’t know if the camp is close to Haythorn or in Haythorn.”

“I can do a fly over.”

“And what if the rogues are hostile?”

“I dunno. I’m just gonna ‘wing’ it.” The Pegasus raised his left wing.

Dad stared at him, a tad irritated.

“What, you don’t like my pun? I bet GentleSketch likes it.” Hyper’s head swooped to me. “You like my pun?” I smiled. “Yeah, he likes my pun.”

“You’ve always been full of bad puns,” Dad stated.

“Don’t pretend like you haven’t made a few bad puns.”

It made me happy to see the two older stallions were able to act as if they were twenty years younger. They have such a strong friendship. But now I felt lonely not having a friend to talk to.

“Hey, Dad.”

“Yeah, bud?”

“Can I go see what Jolt is doing?”

“Sure.”

I gazed to the section where I had seen the colt before, but I did not find hi, I scanned around until I spotted him, much farther away. I headed towards there, but I did not run for the bags on my sides would hop around if I did.I realizing Jolt was speaking with a young mare.

After the rose colored Pegasus glanced at me, Jolt turned around and exclaimed, “Hey GentleSketch! This is AutumnWind. I just met her.”

“Hello,” I mumbled, feeling awkward.

“Greetings.” AutumnWind waved.

JumpingJolt continued. “So, you live around here?”

“Um, yeah, sort of. I live in the suburbs, not really far into the city.” She pushed her rust red mane out of her face.

“Do you have a Hybrid problem?”

“Sometimes, but it’s not as bad as you think.”

“Are you at the station often?” Geez, Jolt asks a lot of questions(then again, so do I).

“Yep. My dad works here. Well, most of the time. He does a lot of different jobs but is here most of the time. It’s getting more difficult because he is loosing his eyesight.”

“Oh that stinks. My mom is half blind, like her one eye, she can’t see out of it. She can kinda see shadows. But since is like half blind she has good hearing. Like this one time, we were walking and she heard a Hybrid but nobody else could. And we were able to find the Hybrid and kill it because she could hear it.”

“Wow, that’s neat.”

How the heck is JumpingJolt good at keeping a conversation (without making it awkward). He had no trouble bringing up a topic and making his words interesting. I want him to teach me! I need to know!

“So what are you doing here?” AutumnWind asked.

Jolt seemed a bit started having a question directed at him. “Me? Well, I- I’m here with my dad and his friend and GentleSketch,” He glimpsed at me, “So we can ride the train to Haythorn because we have a mission there.

“For the reason I am standing here right now, in front of you, is because I am looking for more friends. I need to talk to more ponies than just the ones in my camp.”

“I really have no friends of my own,” AutumnWind murmured unhappily.

“I could be your friend! GentleSketch too!”

“That sounds great!” She was just a ecstatic as he was.

“See, you’re the first pony who actually let me talk to them,” Jolt clarified, “Everyone else is asocial.”

“I understand.” The young mare paused. “You said you have a mission and are from a camp. Are you a part of the Resistance?”

“Yes! Are you not?”

“No, I’ve never really been a part of it. It’s just-”

Just then we heard HyperBlitz’s voice. “Boys!” His call carried across the air and echoed. “It’s time to go!” I imagined he had no problem yelling like that.

“Oh, I have to go. Maybe we’ll meet again some time.”

“Yeah, maybe, I hope. Bye!

“Bye!”

“Bye,” I said, moderately quieter.

We started to trot away although out trot was more of a speed walk. I noticed how I, as a smaller pony, had to take larger steps than JumpingJolt to keep up with him.

“Do you like her?” I asked, peculiarly confused.

“What? No! I just want to be her friend. Why, was I acting like I like her?”

“I don’t know,” I disclosed. “ I really have no idea about how liking ponies works. I’ve only read about it in books.”

“I don’t need anypony to like-like. I just want friends.”

“Hmm,” I suppose I agree. At least while I’m young.

Returning, I saw BlazingFlair putting the baggage back into our original train. “Are we using the same one?”

“Yeah. It’s better that way,” Dad justified. “We don’t have to pay for another train.”

HyperBlitz grumbled, “We’ll probably have to pay for service.”

Dad continued, not on the behalf of Hyper, “We just need to turn on the right track. We’ll get a good view of Los Pegasus on this route.”

“Alright dudes,” BlazingFlair hailed as he jumped out of the car. “I think you’re all set to go! I’ll help direct you to the right track. I can pay if they want to charge for service.”

“Thanks Blaze, you’ve been a big help.” Dad patted the orange stallion’s shoulder.

Blazing closed in and gave him a hug. The Earth-pony beamed and then hugged the rest of us.

Back on the train, I looked at the ponies on the platform below. They waved and called to each other. One pony ran up metal stairs which I pondered where they might go. I heard and felt the locomotive startup and rumble. The car shifted forward and the ponies I saw moved backwards. Among the ponies was BlazingFlair, who spoke casually with others. My comrade then followed alongside the train.

Dad had his hooves on the board in the front of the train. He attentively watched the signals from outside. HyperBlitz shifted levers. Dad commanded to him what to do.

We turned out of the station. I could feel our altitude ascending. I peered out the window as we climbed upon the hills. We began to take a wide turn.I was in awe as I witnessed the city skyline appeared. Los Pegasus is so much larger that I imagined. So many buildings reached into the sky. It seemed impossible that this was all built by ponies. I saw way in the distance a faint image of an ocean that bled into the sky.

I dug out a sketchpad and pencil from my bag. I glanced back and forth between my paper and the city. I made a quick sketch of how the skyline was. I knew I couldn’t copy the entirety, for I had no time. I took my moments to enjoy the view. Too bad this city is not in the shape it was years ago.

All of the sudden, Dad was next to me. “Pretty awesome, isn’t it?”

“Yeah.”

“Trying to draw the city? I doubt you have enough time,” He observed, repeating my thoughts.

“I have good visual memory.” That is a gift I have.

“Whatever do you want to use your talent for?” Dad asked. What a strange time for such a deep question.

“I don’t know. I just draw.”

“Would you like to inspire ponies?”

“That would be nice, but I doubt I could.”

“Sure you can.” The Unicorn wrapped his mechanical hoof around my back, feeling cold. “I’ve always thought it would be awesome to just draw pictures and give them to random ponies. Would you like want to do that?”

“That sounds cool.”

“Definitely need to brighten up the ponies in that city.” He pointed with his blue hoof. “I thought about painting on walls. People can pass by and see artwork. Maybe we could make a mural together. Would you like to do that?

“That sounds so fun!”

“I think that’s for another time.”

“CharmingRhythm,” HyperBlitz confronted Dad, “We’re going to have to keep on on the track and where we are We need to find where the track split and make sure it turns the right way.”

“Also check that the track isn’t out,” Dad included, “We can take turns on that.”

The grayish blue stallion situated himself in front of the extra bags. “Alright guys, listen: Do not use any food or water out of your bags yet. If you want anything, that it from these, they are for the train. Do you understand?”

“Yes sir!” JumpingJolt smacked his forehoof to his head as a salute. My eyes darted from the colt then to Dad again. I copied his salute.

“You boys are funny,” He smiled.

“So what about those train stories, Dad?” JumpingJolt incited.

“You want them already? Geez, be a little more patience JJ. We’ll start them in a bit.”

My attention swayed back to the window. I watched as the city of Los Pegasus slowly faded away.

Chapter XIV: Adventures Away From Home

Author's Notes:

Since Lyrics are apparently not allowed on Fimfiction, read this chapter with the lyrics here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RvS4B_7k1_XnyR9wNh1U1l9ODr3c3t633YQdBKLQ5E8/edit?usp=sharing

Stepping into an unfamiliar landscape, I took in one thing that was familiar: dull colors. The sky was dull and the terrain was dull. It was all so… boring. I saw a few plants here and there but no colors screamed brightly. I wonder how plants live in this world, but I reckon they have found a way such as ponies have. I’d likely believe they are not edible.

The map levitating, Dad still studied it. I peered at our mode of transportation. “Do you think someone is going to take the train?"

"Eh, I doubt it," Dad retorted. "It's not like anyone is around here."

"Unless Hybrids take it," HyperBlitz put in.

"Hmm. I don't think Hybrids would take it. I'm sure they know the track is out, so why would they come here? I know the last time we left the train, nobody bothered it. We're in the middle of nowhere."

Dad folded the map and tucked it into a pocket of his bag. "If we keep going north-east, but more east than north, we should get there."

"Alright. You lead the way," Hyper allowed.

I sequenced behind them while staying focused on the train. Scanning back at my companions, I realized I was falling short. I made a quick sprint to catch up.

It had been a while since I had lost sight of the train. My legs already ached. I wished I had taken longer walks around the camp before coming on this trip. I lagged several tail lengths behind. Dad occasionally peeked to see if I was still in sight.

I desired time to pass faster. Dad told me that my legs would reach a certain amount of paint that it would no longer increase. I do not think I was at that stage just yet.

“Dad,” I whined. “How long have we been walking?”

He glimpsed at his watch. “Over an hour?”

“Can we take a break?”

Dad halted and glared at me. “You want to stop already?” There was something in his tone that expressed he really was not upset with me, like he knew I would ask that.

“C’mon!” JumpingJolt encouraged. “We have just started!”

“Easy for you to say. You’re an Earth-pony.”

HyperBlitz approached me. “You’ll be fine. How about a song to pass the time? what do you say, Rhythm?”

“Sure. Depends what song got me. I may have forgot some lyrics.” Dad replied.

HyperBlitz cleared his throat and hummed to find the right note before starting.

Jolt ran forward and skipped around as his father sang.

The musical stallion looked to my father. “You going to rap?”

“I can’t remember all the lyrics.”

“You serious?” Hyper demanded. “Come on, you gotta have them somewhere in that big brain of yours.” Hovering, the Pegasus held and bobbed Dad’s head around with his hooves.

Dad shook his head free. “Hey! Give me a break! It’s been a while.”

Hyper fell to his hooves. “Okay. Okay.”

Another hour passed and we eventually sat down for a break. We at some of our food.

“We need to schedule when we eat,” Dad considered aloud. “It’s better if we eat a little bit at at time.”

“Several snacks, not a couple meals,” HyperBlitz agreed.

“We don’t want to eat right before going to bed because that is wasted energy,” said Dad.

I drowned out whatever the rest of their conversation was. Now done with my ‘snack’, I alternated between rubbing my hindlegs and arms.

I sensed a wing wrap around my back as Hyper plopped down next to me. “Hey, how are you going?”

“I’m sore,” I complained.

“Yeah, you’ll be like that for a while. But hey- I got something for you.” He pulled his bags over and dug in one. He brought out some container. By pushing down on one side of the lid, he popped it open.

“What’s that?” I asked.

“Pain killers. We don’t use them that often, but I decided they would help with your soreness. We don’t want you to be slowed down by pain.”

“You brought these just for me?”

“Yep. I know you’re not used to walking this much. Here take one.”

I held out a hoof when he tipped the bottle over. I swallowed the pill with a swig of water. Something felt wrong taking it, but I did not know what.

Dad paced over to us. “You almost ready?”

“No… I’m still sore.”

“Ah, okay.” Dad noted.

“I want to draw,” I thought aloud.

“I’ll draw with you.” Dad perched on my right side. He levitated out a sketchpad much smaller than mine.

“So what should we draw?”

"I dunno." No matter what it was, I knew my father's artwork would excell mine. Even though my talent is drawing, it was the talent Dad had always wanted shown as a cutiemark when he was a colt. He has been practicing drawing for years. And of course my art was no match to art done with magic.

We had been on the move again for some time. I lost sense of time and could not tell if it had been an hour or more. We headed to a small, abandoned town. It was scary to see no ponies habiting the houses.

“Do you think we should look through these houses? We can scavenge some stuff,” HyperBlitz proposed.

“If you have room in your bags,” Dad retorted.

“Yeah, I think so. I’ll just like to look anyway. Come on, GentleSketch!”

“Huh?”

Immediately I accompanied the yellow pony. He arrived at a wood door. It would not budge. “Step back,” HyperBlitz warned.

He swung up his EPD covered hoof and bashed it against the door. He copied this several times. The wood cracked and the door pushed open.

We entered warily. The smell of mold and dust filled my nose. I felt like I had to sneeze but I could not( that is one of my least favorite feelings). I kept up the rear of the stallion. Dad and JumpingJolt must have gone somewhere else to explore for I did not see them with us.

HyperBlitz looked in highs and lows. He eyed every shelf and opened every cupboard. Peering into a cabinet in the kitchen, he muttered, “nothing.” I saw some things on the shelves, but Hyper found them useless.

We retraced our steps until we stumbled upon a bathroom. It was much darker since the window was small and tinted.

“Oh, yes,” Hyper chimed after opening a mirror above the sink. “Toothpaste! that’s useful.” He checked the cupboard below the sink. “And soap!”

“So these are the things you look for?”

“Yep. This stuff is actually pretty expensive.” He placed them in his bags. “Now let’s get out of here before I get a headache.” I couldn’t agree more.

We collected outside. HyperBlitz reported his treasure.

Dad presented a small, plastic egg-shaped thing. “I found this little container. It sounds like there’s something inside, but I can’t open it.” It was something Hyper would overlook but Dad was more thoughtful and curious.

JumpingJolt trotted down the street and I tagged. He headed right while I stayed straight, towards and inactive fountain. I head hooves land on a roof, which I noted was HyperBlitz.

“I can’t believe things are this bad.” I noticed the horrible conditions including broken windows and boarded up doors. “How could have this happen in so little time?”

Hyper informed, “Actually, things got bad way before Hybrids showed up.”

“Especially in small communities like this,” Dad added from behind.

“Oh cool!” JumpingJolt exclaimed. “Hey guys! I found a skeleton!”

Just at that, I focused to see the remain of a pony on the ground. “What the hell!?” I shouted, fear striking through me.

Timidly, I looked at Dad. “I- I’m sorry I said that.”

He shook his head. “It’s okay. I would have too.”

The long gone pony was off-white with a slightly yellow horn. I wondered if that was because of different matter or if the Unicorn had been yellow.

“How do you think they died?” Jolt mused.

Hyper jumped down from the shop roof. “It looks like they have a cracked horn and broken ribs.”

“Definitely not a peaceful death,” Dad mourned.

“Can we bury them?” I pled. “I can’t stand seeing them out like this.”

“That would probably be good,” Dad stated. “We may not know who they were, but we can still give them the right respect.”

“I’ll see if I can find some tools so we can make a grave.” HyperBlitz announced.

“Find something to open this container!” Dad called, holding his object.

“Whatever!” Hyper flew away.

Still disgusted by the sight of the skeleton, I spun back to the old water fountain. It was twice my height and made of marble. I noted the statue at the top of three ponies dancing around an orb: Earth-pony, Unicorn and Pegasus respectively. Above the orb were two Alicorns, replicating the Equestrian flag.

“Do you remember the names of those two Alicorns?” Dad tested.

“Um… Princess Luna and Princess Celestia?”

“Yep,” Dad confirmed.

My mind brought back memories of when I was a little colt. My mother would tell me many stories of these royal sisters. They ruled Equestria and brought the people of the land protection and peace. What ever happened to that?

“Are they still alive?” I questioned.

“It’s possible. Alicorns are very powerful and can live for a long time.But us normal ponies cannot.” His eyes gestured to the skeleton Jolt was still admiring.

“I’m going to help Hyper find some tools. ‘Kay?”

“That’s fine.” I nodded.

I felt better after the deed was done. That pony must have been there for so long, it was time they were put to a proper place. We continued our venture after.

“CharmingRhythm, I think we should quit walking for today,” HyperBlitz suggested. “It’ll be dark soon. Once we get out of this town, we won’t have anywhere to stay.”

“You make a good point,” Dad took his friend’s advice. “We can find a place to stay. It’s been a long day, hasn’t it.” Dad acknowledged me. “The earlier we go to bed, the earlier we can get up and the sooner we get to Haythorn.”

So we located a place to stay. It smelled like mold but not as horrible as the house earlier. We opened the windows to vent air. Dad set down his blanket and used the bag as a pillow. As a student, I did the same.

Using a knife he found, Dad sawed at the plastic container. I watched as the knife telekinetically swayed to and fro. The container was at last broken through by the knife and dad cracked it open. What fell out was a metal chain with a heart shaped charm.

“It’s a necklace.” Dad said.

“We can sell it,” HyperBlitz brought up.

“I don’t know…”

“Or you can give it to HeartFelt. It’s is a heart.”

Dad glowered, and threw the necklace at the Pegasus. “I had enough of your puns for one day!” (Of course he wasn’t really angry.)

I was almost sure Hyper’s last pun was yesterday. It had been a long day.

All of my bags having been taken off me, I felt free. I curled up on the blanket. I tried to search for a better position.

“I know it’s no bed,” Dad addressed. “I promise you’ll fall asleep at some point.”

“It’s not like it’s much different. My bed’s as hard as a rock.” I mumbled.

“Heh, yeah. Well, good night GentleSketch.”

“Good night, Dad.”

Chapter XV: Lost In The Wastelands

We got up early just after dawn. Dad let us some time to wake up. I stretched at awned. Twisting my neck, it made a crack. HyperBlitz contorted his whole back and it made several loud cracks. I stared.

“Yeah, that’s what happens when you’re old,” Hyper answered my look.

“You’re not that old,” I said.

Dad came into the conversation. “He’s been calling himself old since he was like thirty. Probably even before that. Probably ever since we’ve known each other.”

“I don’t think you’re old,” I expressed to Hyper.

“You’re a kid. When you get to my age, you’ll understand.”

“I don’t want to think about growing up…” My eyes drifted downward.

Dad came and placed his hoof on my shoulder. “Well, you don’t have too. It’s not like you are being forced to think about it.” I showed a questioning look. He explain, “When we were younger, we were forced to think about our future. That’s one good thing about the world being this way, you don’t have to stress about your future.”The future slips away, I thought of the lyrics to the song HyperBlitz had sung.

“But the one thing I will force you to do is get moving,” Dad smiled.

We walked a while. Dad said since we were making good time, we could take a couple of breaks. I liked that.

It now was about our third break. I sat down on a log and drank some water. I tried to spare the water by taking small sips.

Of course Dad was evaluating the map. “We’re making great time. Haythorn isn’t that far. Why don’t we do some Hybrid hunting?”

“Really?” Both JumpingJolt and Hyperblitz said.

“Yeah. We got time to spare. I think I saw some nodes around here. We are the Resistance, we gotta take care of Hybrids.”

HyperBlitz hopped over and spoke to Dad. “How should we do this? Do we both take a boy and split up?”

“Hmm, I don’t know,” Dad considered. “How about the boys go together and we go together.”

“You sure?” Hyper said, unsettled.

“Yeah. They know what to do around Hybrids. They’re smart.”

“What if they get lost?”

“GentleSketch has good visual memory,” Dad affirmed.

“I… I don’t want them to get hurt,” Hyper fret. “We both told SweetHooves we would protect them.”

“They’ll be fine. They have common sense. We have to let them adventure on their own.”

“I don’t want to risk it. It’s dangerous,” Hyper countered.

“Why are you so worried? You’re all about risks.”

“Yeah, that’s me. I want to protect them. What if a Hybrid gets them?”

“If they see a Hybrid they cannot outmatch, they’ll outrun it,” Dad said.

“And if it’s a Gun Hybrid?”

“And so what if they get shot a couple of times. It’s not bullets,” Dad pointed out.

HyperBlitz mumbled, “ I just don’t have a good feeling about this.”

“They’ll be fine.”

Dad turned to me. “Here, I have an extra watch.” He levitated it to me. “Meet us here in forty-five minutes. I’ll give you an hour in case it takes a while to come back. Why don’t you explore that area over there.” He pointed to the area behind me.

“Okay,” I responded

“‘Kay!” JumpingJolt hopped away.

I was about to turn away when Dad said my name. “GentleSketch.” Jolt and I stopped. Dad flicked his muzzle up, signalling Jolt it was okay to go. The stallion leaned towards me and spoke low, “Listen.” I thought I was in trouble, but that was completely wrong. “I’m putting you in charge. I know you’re younger, but you are more senseful. Don’t tell JumpingJolt, he may get upset. Make sure you’re on time and don’t get into too much trouble. Cool?”

“Cool.” I felt so authoritative being put in charge.

“Jolt, wait up!” I galloped forward. I should have asked Dad if I could leave my stuff since we are coming back, but it was too late. I was afraid that JumpingJolt would be ahead of my most of the time.

We scaled along fences and golden shrubbery. Jolt trotted to an old shed. I finally caught up. “Jolt, slow down. You know I’m not as fast as you.”

He ignored me. “What should we do first? We could go beat up some Hybrids. I see a turret over there. We can disable it.”

I noticed the mechanical device. “I don’t want to make too much noise. Is there an easier way to disable it without using energy?”

“We could sneak up behind it and blast it.”

“That’s still noisy,” I said.

“We could stab it with something. What if we kill a Claw Hybrid and us it’s claw to stab it!”

“You think we can kill a Claw Hybrid? Those are the most dangerous kind.”

JumpingJolt crossed the path stealthily. He tried to climb over a fence, but it broke when he did. The sound of cracking wood startled me and left my heart leaping.

I stepped over the wood pile and whispered. “You gotta be more quiet than that.”

The colt stalked around the fence towards a cement wall. He crouched below a low wall where the turret laid on the other side. I slumped down next to him.

“It’s not safe being this close to a turret,” I advised.

“That’s why we are hiding behind this wall.”

JumpingJolt sprang up and walked a few yards, pivoting. He raised his EPD, concentrating. I ducked. I heard a blast of energy that crackled against the turret. JumpingJolt flew downward as the turret spun and fired. Jolt has a bruise the size of a bit coin.

“You okay?”

“Yeah.” he checked his blemish which was red and furless.

The sound of the turret ceased. JumpingJolt crawled back into position. For his second attempt, he waited longer to shoot so his energy could build up. This time, the turret stopped firing after being hit.

I rose and observed the machine. Something else caught my eye. The Hybrid had noticed us too.

“Run!” I hollered. Of course Jolt tried to shoot at the Hybrid. The enemy shot back.

I mustered my inertia and sprinted. Even with my head start, Jolt bypassed me. Hunting us, the Hybrid opened fire. I felt the blows pelt my haunches. Each one gave me a burst of adrenaline. My straight direction faltered as I ran over rocks and uneven ground.

The enemy was still on us, but it had to be slowing. Hybrids are weighed down by their armor, but then again they had no sense of lasting pain.

“Over here!” JumpingJolt called. I went to the source of his voice.

He stared down a ravine, searching for a way down. Leaning his left legs in, he slid down the slope. Oh no way in Equestria could I do that.

“Come on!” He gestured.

“How do I get down?”

“Slide!”

“I… I can’t do that!”

“Try!”

I analyzed the best route.

“Hurry up!” Jolt echoed my thoughts.

I went for it. I attempted to do the same as Jolt and use one side. My bags teetering my balance, my right legs slipped and flung around. My hooves shuffled around, looking for flat ground. Thankfully, JumpingJolt caught me before tipping over.

“We gotta keep moving,” Jolt stated. “It’s probably still after us.”

I continued to dog, my breath waning thin. All of this running was wasteful. I felt like I needed to drink all the water I had left. But I can’t do that. Although I know we are very close to our destination. I did not like running too far from our starting point, but I could not catch up to JumpingJolt to advise him.

The next structures we could lose the Hybrid among was at the end of the field we were halfway across. I shot a glance back. The Hybrid was still there. Damn, how determined is this thing? At least it was not shooting at us anymore. It was impossible to lose it out in the open.

JumpingJolt guided me into an old barn. He quickly locked the door and barricaded it with tools and wood.

“This is a horrible idea,” I analyzed. “We can’t stay in here, the Hybrid will get in and-”

“We’re not saying,” Jolt clarified. “We’re confusing the Hybrid.”

The colt pried open a loose plank on the back wall. For the first time ever, Jolt was more attentive to detail than I was. We snuck out the gap and closed it. I heard bashing sounds from the opposite side of the barn.

“And when he get’s in,” Jolt whispered, “He’ll be so confused.”

We trailed away from the barn. “I see a node,” Jolt observed.

I saw the Hybrid made structure. “I don’t think we should disable it.”

“Someone should,” The Earth-pony countered.

“Do you want the Hybrid come after us again?”

“Maybe we could kill it.”

“Have you ever killed a Hybrid on your own?” I brought up.

“I’m not on my own now.”

Before I knew it, we were on our way to the node. “JumpingJolt! Nodes are much more difficult to disable than turrets. We’re sure to attract Hybrids.”

He didn’t listen.

Jolt analyzed the energy-sucking apparatus. “Maybe we should take out the legs.”

“Jolt, please don’t.”

“Or we can destroy the bottom.”

“Jolt…”

The colt positioned his EPD and readied to fire.I covered my face with a hoof. I heard the collision. He did it again then started whacking his EPD against the node.

I glanced at the barn. As I expected, the Hybrid appeared.

“JumpingJolt!” I cried.

“Wha-” He swiped his head up. “Oh crap! There’s two of them!”

“What?!” I squawked.

I turned to see another coming from a different direction. It was a Claw Hybrid. My body lurched to flee.

“What are you doing?” I snapped at JumpingJolt.

“I want to disable this node before they come.”

“There’s no time!”

I sprang ahead. We darted to a field of long grass. The plants made my legs itch. JumpingJolt tried to get us out of the field. So he lead me toward the bottom a wall of earth. It was the same wall we had slid down. We were not returning to our place, we were drawing farther from it.

“Maybe we could drop rocks on them,” Jolt said. I wanted to make a comment but could not use my breath for words.

We needed a place to hide. I saw some objects among the flat land: Many barrels, wooden planks, and other structures. An oil drill towered among it all. We swooped over there.

There were no buildings to hide in, only a little shack that would be obvious to see us go in. We trailed behind the oil drill. JumpingJolt frantically glanced around. I saw how the earth dipped down below the machine. There was a dark hole under the structure. I’ve seen something like this before, but at the moment I had no time to remember when or where it was.

“Over here!” I gestured.

JumpingJolt grabbed a wooden plank. I knew I could fit in the space, but I wasn’t sure if Jolt could, let alone both of us. We squeezed into the small cavity and Jolt placed the plank over the hole, leaving us enough space to spy out of. Soon enough, we saw shadows pass by. JumpingJolt waiting until they were unseeable to slide the plank over and check out the other side. We waited many moments. It was silent.

Jolt entered air and examined the area. He beckoned me with his hoof. We ran the same way we came. Repeatedly, we hid behind barrels and then trees to obscure us from the Hybrids. Now we took a different path: straight instead of toward our origin. We followed the wall of the plateau.

“Jolt,” I breathed with a cracky voice, “Can we stop for a second? I need a drink.”

“Okay.”

I sat down and grabbed a water bottle with my hooves. I took a drink and then exhaled with relief.

JumpingJolt looked around in all ways nervously. “I don’t think we should go back that way because that’s where the Hybrids were,” He stated. I definitely couldn’t take anymore running from Hybrids.

I checked my watch. “We only have fifteen minutes to be back.”

So we walked around when the plateau curved. My muscles throbbed every step. We passed over a bridge that was above a stream formed by a meager waterfall. I stared at the ground, watching my heavy hooves paddle along.

I heard Jolt make a strange sound followed with “I don’t think we can go that way.”

Swinging my head up, I caught sight of some odd objects. Nodes, oil drills and structures collected in an area. It was a Hybrid camp!

“Uh, let’s go this way.” JumpingJolt swayed to the left.

“Wait!” I huffed. “We’re getting farther from our meeting place.”

“No we’re not. I think we’re like turning around.” The colt pointed at the mesa. “See, this land here wasn’t there, so we're going in the other direction.”

His logic made no sense, so I countered it with my own logic. “No, we are walking in the same direction. That plateau is the one we came from when we slide down the side.”

“Really? You sure?”

“Yes.”

“Maybe we can get around. Are you sure we are going the same direction?”

“Yeah.” I remember Dad told me a way to find directions by the sun position and time of day. But it was the middle of the day and today, the air between use and the clouds was more congested than usual.

I scurried to catch up with my friend. I really wish he’d take some of my advice. I was put in charge, and I was failing. Minutes counted down and passed. I grew more and more vexed. Soon enough, the pain in my head was greater than the physical pain.

"JumpingJolt, it's ten minutes past our meeting time!”

"If we're not there on time, my dad could do a fly over to find us.”

"But we are not going the right way!" I argued.

"We'll get there eventually," My friend dodged my foresight.

I stomped my hoof. "No we won't ! Why do you think you can make all the decisions? I'm in charge!"

"Says who?"

"Says my dad!"

JumpingJolt glared. "He didn't tell me. Anyway, I'm older."

"That doesn't matter. Dad put me in charge and said we should be back on time. Now we're lost!"

"We are not lost."

"Yes we are!" I shouted.

I fell to my haunches. All of my exhaustion washed over me and translated into tears. My body became numb and weak. “W-we’re lost. And…and this is u-useless. We’ll n-n-never get back.”

“Oh gosh. Please don’t cry,” JumpingJolt said. He sounded annoyed, or that could have been just my mind defecting his tone. The Earth-pony leaned toward me. “I told you, my dad will probably fly over.”

“Then how come… come he… ha-hasn’t found…us yet?”

“Maybe…” Jolt thought. “Your dad said we are close to Haythorn. Maybe we can go there. Maybe we’ll meet them there.”

“But we don-don’t know… which way to g-go.” My eyes still drained and I hiccupped every few breaths.

“Hey, it’s going to be okay. Please don’t cry, Sketchy. You’re going to dry yourself up.” He put a red hoof on my shoulder.

“Listen. If we find Haythorn and our dads aren't there, why don't we ask for them to help us find them?” That actually didn’t sound like a bad idea. But the thing was getting there.

JumpingJolt helped me stand up. He lead again, but then slowed down to match my pace. He glanced back at me.

After we had continued our trek he said, “I’m sorry.” I did not respond. “I should have listened to what you said. Everything. If I would have, we wouldn’t be in this mess.”

We are lost, Jolt feels bad, and I feel bad that he does, all on top of the soreness. Could this day get any worse? HyperBlitz’s instincts had been right: it was a horrible idea to have us go out on our own.

“Hey, I see something flying. It’s a Pegasus!” JumpingJolt declared. “Maybe it’s Dad!”

I scanned the atmosphere. “I don’t think it’s him. It’s not yellow.”

We reached the peak of a hill. “There’s some houses!” JumpingJolt gasped, “Maybe it’s Haythorn! Come on!” He darted down the decline.

“Wait, slow down!” Even after all of this running, Jolt was fast. This time he heard me, and he decreased his speed.

I trotted down the steady slope. The houses were quite a trip away. We closed in on some trees. There were scattered metal everywhere, most likely from nodes. I saw some lump of mass encased in armor. It was a rotting Hybrid. EW! Grotesquely, it’s red eyes bulged out of its insect eaten face. I felt queasy. At least it’s good to know that the Haythornians know how to kill Hybrids.

I started to trail ahead of JumpingJolt for he was too amused with the deceased Hybrid. I hopped down a small ledge. Tree roots curled around the uneven terrain. My ears picked up the sound of Jolt’s hooves clattering against the soil to catch up with me. He gave a grunt when leaping, but then he gave a sudden yelp.

Swiveling around, I was dazed by the sight of my friend dangling from a tree by a rope tied to his leg.

“What happen?” I asked.

“I-I tripped on that root, but then… this happened!”

A different, unfamiliar voice joined with ours. “Well, well. Look what we have here.”

Chapter XVI: Caught Under Circumstances

I turned to the source of the mysterious voice. A rust colored stallion emerged from the trees.

“These aren’t Hybrids. These are two colts.”

“You expected Hybrids?” I meekly said.

A mare appeared next. “Well, you are caught in our Hybrid trap.”

“Trap?” I glanced at JumpingJolt, who helplessly hung above the earth.

“Oh, River,” said the golden yellow mare. “Look at their hooves.”

“They are a part of the Resistance?” The stallion scoffed. “GearClank isn’t going to like this.”

“We should get them to the camp,” The mare brought up.

“Camp?” River grabbed me by my bag strap.

“Wasp, get the other one down.”

The mare flew up to the tree branch. With her wings open, I saw she had darker stripes on them. I wondered if they were natural or dyed. She untied the rope which made JumpingJolt crash to the ground. “Come on, get up.” Wasp poked him.

The colt arose and limped. “Ow, ow! My leg hurts. I like pulled it when I tripped and also by that rope.”

“Where are you taking us?” I questioned.

“To our camp, you idiot,” River scorned.

“Do you think you can help us find our Dads?” JumpingJolt requested.

“Help you?” The rust colored stallion snorted. “Why would we help you after you’ve invaded our territory?”

I was so confused. They had a camp but seemed disgusted by our EPDS. They said we were in their territory and acted hostile. Then it all add it up. These ponies are not Haythornian, they are rogues! I abruptly stopped.

“What are you doing?” River tugged on my strap.

“You guys are rogues,” I stated.

“That’s what other ponies call us,” Wasp alluded. “Do you think we would call ourselves such criminal names? No. Just because we do not agree with the lifestyle of the Resistance doesn’t mean we are criminals.”

“Well ,you’re acting like it,” JumpingJolt added.

“We are only doing what we are told,”expressed the Earth-pony dragging me.

Today just got worse. We were being captured by rogues. How were we supposed to get back with our dads now? I can believe this is happening.

The two ponies brought us to the building we were aiming to go to, now I wanted to part of them. Many ponies eyed us as we passed through. It seemed like the North Hills camp but… with a malevolent atmosphere.

Arriving at an apartment door, River pounded on it. “GearClank!” he shouted.

The door swung open. An olive green Pegasus stood powerfully. “What?”

“We have something for you.” The Earth-pony pulled me over.

The look in GearClank’s eyes sent a shiver through my spine, I don’t know why. He glared at me with yellow eyes which were highlighted by the dark circles around them. It was utterly evil.

“These two were in our territory,” Wasp explained. “And this one got stuck in a Hybrid trap.” She pointed out JumpingJolt.

GearClank examined us and sighed. “At least one of them is a Unicorn.” What is that supposed to mean?

“They are a part of the Resistance,” River pointed out.

GearClank bared his teeth at the sight of our EPD. “Search them down. then put them to work.”

They pushed us away. “Work? What kind of work are we talking about?” A sudden anxiety broke into my body. I felt more anxious than I ever felt in my life. Everything was happening so fast. My mind shielded all the distraction and focused on the situation at hoof.

The rust red stallion yanking at my bags. Unbuckled, they fell to the ground. River searched through my luggage and empty the products. Wasp did the same with JumpingJolt.

“Hey!” Jolt yapped.

“It’s just water and food,” Wasp announced.

I watched as River carelessly tossed my sketchbook on the floor. They took out some food and placed to the side.

River snatched my fight hoof and started pulling my EPD.

“Um… I’d appreciate if you didn’t do that,” I said.

“I don’t care.”

“What? You wouldn’t feel good to do something somepony appreciates?”

The Earth-pony grumbled, “I’d appreciate not getting shot in the head, and you better play along unless you want to be.”

He struggled at removing my energy power device. “I can’t get this stupid thing off!”

“Damn it River Rush, do I have to always do everything myself?” Wasp pushed the stallion aside.

The golden yellow mare analyzed my EPD. “These things usually have a lock.” She found the lock, pressed down and turned it. My EPD clicked the the back opened. Wasp slipped it off. She went over to JumpingJolt to do the same. Balancing on two legs, Jolt watched her remove his device.

“Are we going to get those back?” The orange colt asked.

“Maybe…” River Rush said.

“That means ‘no’.” Wasp clarified.

My leg felt so strange without its covering.

Collecting the EPDs, River Rush stated, “Okay. Time to get these brats something to do so we can get rid of them.” Get rid? Everything they said sounded like a different language.

The rogues returned our bags. I was relieved when they put my sketchbook back.

JumpingJolt and I had to follow them. They came to a pony overlooking the camp.

“We got too new ponies, get them some work,” River demanded.

The pony they acknowledged held a clipboard. “They could clean some water filters. Or load ammo. There are some walls and fences that need to be rebuilt.”

“Let's just do the water filter thing”

River Rush lead us to our work place. “These ponies will tell you what to do.” He and wasp walked away.

The pony we faced was about to speak but I blurted out every word I could: “I don’t understand what’s going on. Why did they take us? Why did they take our stuff? Why are we being put to work? This is all happening at once. They didn’t even want to know who we are. They didn’t ask why we are here. Why are we placed with a different pony.” I gasped for air.

“Are you done?” The sand colored pony asked.

“I don’t know. Who are you? Why is everything so strange?”

“My name isn’t important. I’m just here to tell you what to do,” Addressed the mare.

“Why? Why do we have to do what you say? What’s the significance? You don’t even know who we are. Nobody is treating us like ponies.”

“You get use to that after a while. Listen, you talk too much. Here take these brushes. Use them to scrub the filters. You can strap them to your hoof, or use your magic.”

She set us up with the filter parts that needed to be cleaned. Staring at them, a tear ran down my cheek, but I tried to stay strong. JumpingJolt lowered his head and sat.

“JumpingJolt, is your leg okay?” I asked. “Does it really hurt or did you make that up?”

“No. It really does hurt. I must have sprained it or strained or something.”

“Hey, get to work!” The mare tapped her hoof.

I quickly put my hoof into a back and forth pattern.This was kind of work we would do back in North Hills. The only thing different was that ponies would politely ask us to help, and make sure we had the time to do it.

“Hey, Pinksie!” The mare shouted. “Wrap it up, we got some walls to fix.”

A stallion across the table from me glanced at the mare. The pink pony eyed me.

“There was an earthquake last week.” He said.

“We had a Earthquake where we were… but it only knocked down some crates, it didn’t make walls fall,” I stated.

The pink stallion paused. “It must have been closer to here. But these stupid rogues don’t know how to make strong walls.”

“Stupid rogues…?” I questioned why he called them that. Wasn’t he one of them?

“Come on Pinksie!”

“That’s not my name!” He snapped. He sprang up and galloped away.

The way they made fun of him being pink reminded me of a stallion in North Hills who was pink too. But he was made fun of before coming to the camp, now he was accepted. How could ponies be so judgmental?

“What if, possibly, the rogues only wanted us to help because they had a lot to do after the earthquake,” I suggested.

“I don’t think it’s that,” Jolt mumbled. “I think they want us as slaves. Forever. Not just because of the earthquake.”

Oh no way could I stay in a rogue camp forever!

Darkness began to enter the sky quickly. The rogues set up a place for us to sleep… outside. A plastic-like sheet having been placed on the cold ground, I curled up. The air around me felt so wrong not having something sheltering me. There was a sense of vulnerability.

I realized JumpingJolt and I were going to sleep without our fathers. It seemed like ages since we last saw them. Today was longer than the last.What the hell happened? Today has officially been the worst day of my life.

All the thoughts of the day broke me down. My body quivering, I made a high whine. My cheeks became drenched with tears. JumpingJolt looked at me with concern. I began to hyperventilate, mucus clogging my throat. Jolt grabbed my shoulders.

“Are you alright?”

“No!” I cried. I wanted to explain my mental state, but everything came out as gibberish. “It’s… t-too much! The… the rogues. Wh-why...” My emotions infected me like a virus.

“This is all my fault,” Jolt took the blame. “If I hadn't gotten us lost we wouldn’t be here.”

“No… Jolt. I… m-maybe I-”

“GentleSketch, you did nothing wrong. I understand you were telling me the right things, but I was stupid and didn’t listen. It’s my fault. There’s no one else to blame.”

“D-do you th-think… we’ll see… our d-dads a… again?”

“I’m sure they are still looking for use. they wouldn’t give up,” Jolt assured.

I started to whine a second time. A pony came out of an apartment. “Shut the fuck up!”

I know I cry a lot, but I never thought I would cry myself to sleep.

Chapter XVIII: Deceiving Images

It was all a dream. Getting lost and being captured was a dream. I still stood in the wastelands. There was nopony around me. They must have gone to explore the area.

I heard a call. “GentleSketh!” My eyes caught sight of the grayish-blue stallion. He ran to me and embraced me. Why was he hugging me? We had not been apart for long.

A dry wind rustled my mane. I stared into dark brown eyes which seemed to be sleep deprived.

“Dad,” I said, “What are we doing next?”

“I don’t know,” the stallion retorted. “I guess we keep moving.”

Next to my father, I warily traveled. Something was wrong.

“Where are HyperBlitz and JumpingJolt?” I pondered.

“They’re coming.”

I started skipping ahead. Strangely, I did not feel weighed down by saddlebags. I had a new energy in me I did not experience in me earlier. But I did not feel like jumping around everywhere, I only felt like I could go on for quite some time.

I shot a look at Dad. “Could I go check down there?”

He gave me a signaling nod.

I gaited down a path formed by two sloped wall of the sides. When I got to the base, I glanced back. “Dad?” The stallion had vanished.

I turned forward. “AH!” A small figure startled me. The filly stared at me with huge eyes. “What are you going here?” I puzzled.

“Wait…” I tilted my head. The little Unicorn mimicked. “Is this a dream, or have I finally met you?” She did not respond “This feels real. But… my dream before, that felt real too. Was that actually not a dream? Is this the dream? Or the other circumstance?”

A voice droned in my head : One of the circumstances is the one you wish was a dream. I could not tell if it was my subconscious. It was not a defined voice I recognized.

“The one I wish was a dream,” I thought out loud, “Is the one before… the one where I got captured. Does that mean this is a dream? If this is, then I don’t want to wake up. Is it strange to know you are in a dream or keep saying it is a dream? This is so crazy!” I laughed a bit. The filly smiled.

“So do you feel the same emotions as I do?” She shrugged. Hey, that was something.

“I want to know why you keep appearing. Why do you keep following me of have to follow you? Are you the filly that inspects dreams? Do you work for Princess Luna?” I made a connection to the tales I was told as a colt. Luna could go into ponies’ dreams.

The aqua green Unicorn shook her head.

“Hey, at least you are communicating with me. I mean, it may not be speaking but it’s body language.”

The filly pointed her hoof in a direction. She guided me. It was uncomfortable without my speaking. The only sound I heard were hoof steps.

“So what do I call you? Am I supposed to just call you ‘filly’? Do you even talk? Do you have a voice?”

Still pacing forward, the filly glared at me. I think she was annoyed with all of my questions.

We came upon a house in the middle of nowhere. Everything felt so eerie. The filly opened the door with her magic. She politely let me in first.

Entering, I realized it was my own home. Everything was in place. The Filly came in with me. We awkwardly remained in the living room. “So why are we here?”I studied every corner.

The door to my parents’ room was ajar. I slipped inside and peeked my mother sleeping. She look so peaceful, the sheet pulled up to her muzzle. I let her be.

Angling back to the living room, I beheld books everywhere. The books scatter across the floor, on the couch, table, and shelf. There were more books than my mother actually had, which is absurd because she has an abundance of books.

I contemplated if I should stack them up on the table. I grabbed one with my teeth and set in on the table.

“What are you doing?”

Jolting, I swung around to face Mom.

“I was cleaning the books up.”

“No, no,” She protested. “Don’t mess with them.”

“Okay. Why are they on the floor?”

“That’s how they multiply,” The mare informed.

So my mother was growing book.

“When did you start doing this?” I inquired.

“Just recently. Now everypony can have books!” Mom exclaimed happily.

I overlooked all the books. They each seemed to be unique, so I wondered how they ‘multiplied’.

My direction changed, I said “Should I tell ponies?”

“Oh definitely!” Mom replied enthusiastically. “Don’t step on the books on the way out, though!”

I exited my apartment, expecting the camp, but that I got was a vast emptiness. Confusion struck me for a moment. Echoing hoof steps approached me.

“That was part of the dream,” I said to the filly. She nodded. “When I was in there, I could not recognize it was a dream, despite the improbable conditions. Just like a dream should be.” I’ve said and thought the word ‘dream’ so many times that it felt numb to me. “How can I tell I’m in a dream now?”

Out in the emptiness was now a terrain and mountains. Everything became blurry. A fog spread everywhere.A sound flooded into my ears. It was speaking. Voices I knew spoke in an unperceived manner. The mumbling became clearer. I turned, the fog now parting.

“You’re not taking this seriously enough!”

“Maybe you’re over reacting.”

“Overreacting?! Our sons are gone!” The Pegasus glared up at Dad as he sat on his haunches. “We don’t know where they are!”

“We’ve been looking,” Dad reminded.

“We haven’t been looking enough. We need to look more. They could be anywhere.”

“We need to keep checking the place I told them to go,” suggested the Unicorn stallion.

“Isn’t that what we’ve been doing? Maybe… maybe a Hybrid got them.” HyperBlitz stared at the ground.

“I don’t think that would have happened. They’re smart,” Dad advised.

“Then where are they, CharmingRhythm?!” Hyper shouted. “Where are they?!”

“You need to calm down.”

“NO!” The yellow Pegasus screeched. There were tears in his eyes.

My hooves lagging, I creeped toward the stallions. “Dad…HyperBlitz,” I murmured.

“You don't have to yell at me,” Dad said firmly.

“But you aren’t listening to me!” Hyper cried.

“Dad!” I called. I galloped next to them. They didn’t seem to notice me, and continued to argue.

“I am listening. I do believe we had to continue searching for them, but we can’t do that forever. I say, before it gets dark, we go to Haythorn. We need rest. If we don’t find them today, we can go out tomorrow.”

“But that’s a whole night! Do you really think they can last?”

“Yes. I’m confident they can.” I couldn’t believe how calm my father was. Him and Hyper were like polar opposites.

“Dad! Uncle Hyper!” I looked to the filly behind me. I huffed, “Why can’t they hear me?”

She only closed her eyes. She seemed saddened.

I glanced back, and the fog had returned. The older ponies were not there anymore. A light appeared, created by the filly’s magic. It looked like the sun, or at least the sun spot behind the clouds.

“What’s this?”

The filly pointed her nose to the light. I scrutinized it. There seemed to be an image forming in it. I tried to get closer to understand it, but it did not come nearer. I wanted to catch up to it, but I ultimately failed. What does that light mean?

“Get up!” I awoke to a cloudy image of a stallion over me. GearClank prodded my side. “You got work to do.”

“This early?” I rubbed my eyes.

Gathering my thoughts, I wish I knew how my dream ended. I prefered that ream over this reality, even if nothing is real in a dream. I’d gladly stay with Mom’s book garden.

I peered at JumpingJolt who was eating some raisins.

I sighed. “I want to sleep more.”

“Me too,” Jolt donned empathically. “I was having a good dream.”

“I had a… strange dream.”

Chapter XIX: Reprimands and Reunion

Body aching from sleeping on the ground, I trekked to my next labor. My eyes were heavy and I felt like I was going to faint. Long shadows cast from the dim morning light. I was cold to the bone. Oh, coffee would be so wonderful right now, or at least some tea.

GearClank was the pony who escorted us. He sauntered slowly. His yellow eyes struck me.

“So, you colts are part of the Resistance.”

“Y-yes,” I hesitated.

“What are you doing in my territory?”

“We-we’re on a mission,” I gulped.

“What kind of mission?” The olive green stallion interrogated.

“Um,” I was shaky, “Just a… a normal mission.”

“What’s a ‘normal’ mission for you?”

JumpingJolt butted in. “Hey! What gives you the right to ask all of these questions?”

GearClank glared. “Because you are in my camp. And since you are, you will do what I say.”

“Fine, you can ask questions, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to answer them.” Jolt refuted.

Turning to me, GearClank continued, “So, what is a normal mission for you?”

“Um... like… going after Hybrids.”

“Are you from Haythorn?”

“Yes we are!” JumpingJolt concluded falsely before I could even process a single syllable.

There was a pause. GearClank must have been thinking of more questions to ask. “Are you out here alone or were you with other ponies?”

Jolt said, “We were with our dads, but we kinda got split after we were searching for Hybrids.”

“Hmm, they are stupid to do so.”

“What? Our dads are not stupid!” Jolt defended.

“It seems like a stupid thing to let two colts on their own in the wastelands,” The Pegasus clarified his thoughts.

“They aren’t stupid! How can you even say that if you haven’t met them!?”

“I’m allowed to judge anypony how I like.”

The olive green pegasus picked up with the interview. “So, you dads truly trust you to be on your own? Do you trust them?”

“Why do you keep asking questions?” Jolt barked. “Why can’t we ask anything?”

“Fine,” GearClank snarled. “Ask me a question.” He glared at me.

My mind went dead. “Um… how are you doing?”

JumpingJolt face-hoofed.

“You are pathetic,” The stallion scoffed.

“H-how?” My voice cracked from fear.

“You are a colt, foolish enough to think it’s was okay to go out on your own. Thinking you can boss me around.”

“I… I’m not-”

“Well, your friend is.” He eyed the Earth-pony. “I’ll let you know something. As long as you are in my camp, you take my orders.” The way he put emphasis on ‘my’ made me believe he is the leader of the camp. I can not understand why he would be so possessive of it.

“Now get your asses moving,” GearClank said harshly.

Using a wing, he shoved my hindquarters. I stumbled forward.

A small crowd of ponies shuffled about. We joined them unwillingly. They were fixing structures of walls. Pipes were all unorganized. I guessed the walls held the pipes. GearClank watched us from the side.

I heard a clanking sound that followed the pattern of hoof steps. The image of my father came into my mind. I was greatly disappointed. An amputee pony, but not Dad, came up to me. He seemed to shiver under his white coat.

Speaking hesitantly he said “We need… ponies to help restore the walls and pipes.” He acknowledged me. “You would be at great service.” His eyes quickly darted past my left shoulder, where GearClank was. Was this pony afraid of GearClank? I know I am.

Obediently I did everything everypony ordered. Working slower than the other ponies, I was scolded. JumpingJolt had trouble using his forelegs, for he didn’t have both of his backlegs for balance.

“Why don’t you use your magic?” A mare protested at me.

I attempted my magic, but only saw one little spark.

“Come on! Pick up that pipe!”

Again, my brow muscles furrowing together, a small flicker.

“Ugh!” The mare groaned. “What the hell is wrong with you? Use your fucking magic! You’re a Unicorn for fuck’s sake!”

Her cursing pinched at my heart. My knees became shaky and I held my breath. “I… I can’t.”

“You what?”

“I can’t use magic!” I blurted out.

“Then get out of here!” She smacked the back of my neck.

I scurried backwards, towards JumpingJolt. I bumped into the amputee pony.

“If you can’t use magic, maybe… Arcane can help you. He-he knows about magic.” The white stallion suggested.

“Who’s that?”

“Come, come. I’ll show you.”

Attending the pony, I studied his mechanical leg. It was made of some silver metal material and heavy fabric that covered over his skin.

“Is that an EPD?” I asked.

“A what?”

“An Energy Power Device,” I elaborated.

“Um,” He lifted his leg, “It is powered by energy.”

I assumed since he didn’t know what an EPD is, it probably did not shoot out energy. I remained silence, and felt naive.

We arrived at a small building where curtains replaced a door. “Arcane?” The amputee pony requested, poking his head in.

Following that, a stallion popped out of the curtains. “Yes?” replied a light indigo Unicorn. I was intrigued by his lighter splotches of fur on his coat. “What is it?”

“This one,” said my director, “Has trouble with using magic.”

“Oh,” The Unicorn rubbed his scruffy chin, “I could help with that!”

The young white stallion stepped back as this other buck stepped forward. He examined me. “What seems to be the problem, young fella?”

“I, um…” I was a bit flustered.

“Why do you have problems with your magic? Are you tired? Have you not eaten? Are you too pressured?”

My eyes zoned out.

“Just tell ol’ Arcane here, and I’ll fix the problem!”

“I just can’t use magic,” I finally said, ashamed.

Arcane was puzzled. “Why not?”

“I… I never have been able to use magic. It’s weak. And I seem to be incapable of learning. These ponies are telling me to use magic but I can’t.”

“Hmm,” Arcane squinted his eyes. “Maybe I could give you some magic aid potion. It will make your magic quite stronger. Come in,” He beckoned.

He turned to a shelf piled with bottles. Liquids of all different colors gleamed in the shafted light from a lamp. A purple aura levitated a small, pale pink elixir.

“This here,” He explained, “Is magic aid. Drink just a small bit. It will increase your magical ability.”

“Is it safe?” I quizzed.

“Oh indeed. There is another pony I make it for in this camp. She has to use her magic so much, that she gets exhausted.”

“So this gives you energy?” I watched my mouth move in a reflection off the bottle.

“That is what magic is made of, indeed? But this is not to be used as an energy boost. It is specifically for magic. If you ever need more, I will give you some.”

“I don’t have to pay?” Why the heck did I ask that?

“Your work around the camp is return enough.”

I walked away. I sat down to take a small sip from the potion. It tasted strange, but almost comprised of flavors I have tasted before. I placed it in my bag.

When I returned to my chores, my magic at last picked up. I levitated things into place without any headache. Nopony had to force me to do labor(they would if I stopped).

JumpingJolt glared at me, befuddled. “How are you doing that?”

“What?” I lifted a pipe, encased in a transparent orange sheath. “My magic? This guy gave me some potion to make my magic stronger!”

Jolt did not share my enthusiasm. “Are you sure you should be using it?”

“He said it was safe. And now I don’t have rogues on my back all the time.”

It was past midday, and I was exceeding at magic. My power had begun to lag when the potion wore off, so I had to go to my bags to get another swig.

By now the work did not even feel like work. It was fun. I enjoyed having the feeling of being able to accomplish the task I’ve been waiting to do for so long. JumpingJolt disapproved of my excitement. I told him he was just bummed out because he hurt his leg.

My magic died down again. I probably shouldn’t have to use magic for everything, but that thought zoomed over my head when I hurried back to my bags.

Crossing the dirt road, I heard a holler: “GentleSketch!” A voice so familiar I could recognize it through vibrations in my veins.

I turned to see the yellow stallion staring at me. Brown eyes were full of desperation and hope. We galloped to each other and he scooped me up. Squeezed, my cheek smashed against his chest. My arms were crushed by his strong, endearing embrace.

“HyperBlitz…” I choked up, halfway muffled.

His fur was warm and his hold was loving. His voice coughed out with emotion, “Oh, GentleSketch. I’m so glad you’re okay. I’m so happy to see you.” Hyper pushed back. His eyes were misty. So were mine. “We’ve been looking for you guys for so long. I was so worried. I-” He couldn’t say anything else, so he just hugged me again.

“Uncle Hyper, I’m happy to see you too.” For a moment, I believed he was my legit uncle.

“You’re okay. You’re alive. You’re here,” The Pegasus listed. His face wandered. “Where’s JumpingJolt?”

“He was working for some rogues.”

“Oh thank goodness you two stayed together.”

I started back to the workplace, HyperBlitz following. “Where is my dad?” I asked.

“They wouldn’t let both of us go on our own,” He explained. “Those damn rogues… I asked if two colts have came in, they said yes, so I had to look for you guys.”

I saw my orange friend. “JumpingJolt!” I called but Hyper’s voice overpowered my shout.

The colt turned, wide eyed. He sprang up and darted to his father. Hyper squeezed him just the same as me. JumpingJolt accepted the smothering hug with a huge smile.

When HyperBlitz let go, his son stumbled. “JumpingJolt, are you okay?”

“Ye-ah, I’m fine.” The Earth-pony placed his forehooves down.

“JumpingJolt, you’re limping.”

“I kinda pulled it. They haven’t let me rest.”

“They’ve been making you work?” Hyper expressed, baffled. Jolt nodded. “No, no, no! You need to rest, and keep your leg elevated. You shouldn’t be moving around. Don’t those rogues know a damn thing?”

“They don’t care about us,” I told.

“Well, I do,” Hyper insisted.

He changed the subject. “C’mon! I need to get you to CharmingRhythm.”

“But what if they don’t let us?” I feared.

“Fuck them!”

We trekked alongside HyperBlitz. The Pegasus had a wing around his son.

All of this did not seem real .Was this a dream? I remembered waking up. There was a start to the day. Dreams randomly throw you into a storyline with no beginning. I judged this was reality.

I spotted my father standing around with some rogues. I was eager to see him. It was an excitement that built up, and was not as sudden as when I saw HyperBlitz.

“CharmingRhythm!” Hyper requested him.

The Unicorn laid eyes on us, specifically me. He raced over and grabbed me. Dad embraced me just as loving, but not as harsh, as HyperBlitz. His chin rested on my shoulder and my head fell into his arm. He stroked my back with one hoof and patted the back of my head with another. I felt at ease, soothed. I became sleepy, like a foal ready for bedtime.

Dad placed me far enough so his eyes could focus on me. His mouth quivered as if he wanted to say something. He could not express his emotions verbally, as is expected for my father. Tilting his head, he situated his horn next to mine. The grayish blue stallion wiped a tear from my face and smiled weakly.

“GentleSketch, I… I,” He was still lost for words.

Dad sought a distraction from his failure at speaking. He saw JumpingJolt and went to hug him. That hug was not as long and meaningful as mine, for Dad had invested all his emotions on me.

“I’m sorry CharmingRhythm,” Jolt lamented.

“Why?”

“Because I’m the reason we are here. I got lost and didn’t listen to GentleSketch.”

“Are you mad at us?” I queried nervously.

“Mad?” Dad said, twisting his head. “I’m more relieved than I am mad. Do you know how hard we searched for you. How desperate we were to see you again?”

“I was going crazy,” HyperBlitz added. “Rhythm tried calming down but It didn’t work.”

“I’m sorry we caused you so much trouble,” I mumbled.

“Don’t apologize,” Hyper insisted. “I think this would have happened anyway- us getting caught by rogues.”

“You see,” Dad begun, “We went to Haythorn- maybe to see if you were there, and we needed to stay the night. The ponies said that rogues have captured ponies from the town.”

“So we can find them and bust them out of here!” Hyper concluded.

“Hey, you lazyasses!” A rogue shouted. “Stop standing around. We need assistance!”

HyperBlitz rolled his eyes “Ugh, fine. Come on JJ, I need to have a word with them anyway.”

The father and son duo went along. I was left with Dad. When I leaned my head on his shoulder I said, “I missed you a lot, Dad. I tried to take control, but it was too much. I got really upset, and I cried a lot of course,” I said that murmously.

“You weren’t the only one crying,” Dad informed.

“You?”

He shook his head. Staring at his friend who was arguing with rogues, Dad stated, “HyperBlitz. He was really freaking out and getting emotional. He always had unstable emotions after all.”

“What do you mean by ‘unstable’?” I pondered.

“He can’t control his emotions. Whether he’s happy, sad, angry, he’s exaggerated, overly expressive.”

“I guess that’s why they call him Hyper?”

Dad smirk a little. “Yeah.” He rubbed my back.

Chapter XX: Awkward Situations

Author's Notes:

Okay, so this chapter is a little odd. It does have some sexual references to it, which I usually stay away from, but that is just how one character acts. BUT, I did cut out some of it, making it more appropriate. I do not want to have to label this story as 'sexual' for just one chapter, that would make me uncomfortable
But if you are not phased by sexual themes and would like to real the unedited version, you can read it here.(which isn't much changed, maybe some adjectives) This chapter cannot really be overlooked, because there is important information in it.

“Don’t you get what I’m saying?” HyperBlitz protested. “We can’t sleep outside! Especially not these boys.”

“It’s not my problem,” GearClank said.

“Yes it is! This is your camp! If you want us to do your work, give us a better place to sleep.”

“Fine,” GearClank gave in. “Wasp!” He called a familiar name. The golden yellow mare appeared next to GearClank. “Get them to a room,” He ordered.

Speechless, Wasp guided us. Doors lined up on a long wall. I was confused by this structure. Wasp opened the door with a key. I don’t even remember her receiving the key. Extending a foreleg, Wasp pointed us into the building.

A fierce smell of mold filled my nose when I entered. Two beds where to the left, a desk and lamp to the right. At the back wall was a sink.

“This is odd. What kind of apartment is this?”

“It’s not an apartment,” Dad informed me. “It’s a hotel. Well, a motel kinda.”

“What’s a hotel?”

“It’s meant to be a place you sleep when you are traveling. It’s not a permanent home.”

“Ugh, these beds are gross,” Hyper groaned, looking at the stained sheets. “Who know what nasty things could have happened on them.”

“Yeah, someone could have gotten killed!” JumpingJolt added mischievously.

“Um, yeah…” Hyper responded.

When Hyper removed the sheet, Jolt hopped up on the bed. Hyper rolled up the sheet and said to JumpingJolt, “Here, put your hoof on this.” The colt did as he was told. Hyper hummed. “Hmm, it probably would be best to compress it.”

The stallion rummaged through his bag and took out a bandage. He wrapped it around his son’s leg. After tieing it, Hyper tightened it with his teeth.

“Ow!” JumpingJolt complained, wincing.

“I promise this will make it better,” HyperBlitz advised. “You just can't move it a whole lot.”

Over at the sink, Dad announced, “Hey, they actually have running water.” He placed a bottle under the stream.

“CharmingRhythm, don’t drink that!” HyperBlitz exclaimed.

Dad examined the color. “Looks pretty clean.” He took a sip. “Tastes fine too.”

“That must be why they had us fixing those pipes,” I surmised.

“And made use clean water filters,” JumpingJolt added.

I realized my stomach was aching from hunger. I searched my bag for food. Whatever the rogue had not taken.

I was shuttered out of sleep by pounding on wood. The bed jiggled when Dad hopped off. Half awake, I watched the door open for GearClank.

Dad said, about half awake too, “What?”

“It’s time to get to work!”

“Why do you have to be so punctual? Can you give us a few minutes?”

“No! You said you were going to work for this room, and that’s what you are going to do,” GearClank retorted bluntly.

Dad turned with a slight groan. “HyperBlitz!” After no response, Dad levitated a pillow and threw it on the Pegasus. “HyperBlitz!”

The pillow flew off, almost directly after contact. Hyper’s limbs flailed around as he shouted incoherent words. A wing flopped and smacked JumpingJolt. “Dad! Dad!” Jolt hollered between hits. I laughed at HyperBlitz’s ridiculous reaction. Jolt pushed the wing over and Hyper stopped freaking out due to comprehending his surroundings.

“Huh, what?”

“We gotta get up,” Dad told him.

“I’ll give you ten minutes,” GearClank said crudely and left.

“Now he gives us time,” Dad muttered.

JumpingJolt sat up and rubbed his eyes. “Ugh. I wish these rogues weren’t so rude.”

Dad eyed HyperBlitz. “We need to find those ponies from Haythorn. They must be here.”

“Oh yeah.” Hyper acted dazed. His eyes darted between his son and me. “You guys need to look too. There were two ponies. Their names are EveningGaze and Gale.”

“Oh!” Jolt waved a hoof. “I know EveningGaze. He was working with me yesterday.”

“Great. We know one. Now we have to find the other,” Dad collected. “We’ll have to somehow talk with them. Somehow… get them and us out of here.”

I checked my bag for breakfast. I saw how little magic aid I had. I will have to go to Arcane for more.

When we entered out to the rogue camp, I managed to slip away. I went to Arcane and he told me he would show me how he made the magic aid.

He beat many herbs in a bowl to extract their juices. Pouring the juices steadily into a vial, the older Unicorn levitated over another bottle.

“I thought it was pink,” I took note of the green tint.

“It will be,” Arcane said.

After putting the other liquid in, he shook the elixir violently with magic. He eyed an open book, reading it thoroughly. The potion gradually changed to pink.

“Here you go!” Arcane handed over the potion.

I took a small sip. “Could I keep it here? I’m not sure I’m allowed back in my room.”

“Sure. As long as you use your magic for work.”

“Yep!”

Having been directed to a station, I searched for a place. I levitated a piece of metal. My mind scrambled for an answer.

“These are for solar panels and generators,” A mare announced. I blinked at her. She stared at me with her chin on a hoof. Her colors reminded me of the filly from my dreams.

“Um, I don’t know how to put it together.”

“Oh you poor thing,” The aqua mare said, slightly mocking. She magically gave me a paper of instructions.

My orange aura gathered objects. The mare supervising me went into the building at the side.

Just then, a noise approached me. “GentleSketch.”

“Hey, Dad!”

“They sent you here too, huh?” Dad looked at the table.

“It’s like part for solar panels and generators.”

Dad stood next to me. “Hmm.” He read through the instructions, then studied the parts. “Some of these are broken. They have been put together, but damaged.”

“How do we fixed them?”

“I don’t know. Let’s focus on the new parts.” Dad suggested.

I just stared at the equipment. I levitated a plastic bar.

“GentleSketch!”

I was startled by Dad’s exclamation. The bar clattered on the ground. I swooped around. “What?!”

“You’re using magic!”

I completely forget he was here when I used it. “Um, yeah. I… I got help from this one guy-”

“Oh my goodness!” Dad hugged me. “I’m so proud of you!”

My heart and mind stopped. He was proud of me. He said the words I had been waiting for. But I was using magic aid. If I told him, he would be disappointed. My father was so excited and happy, which I imagined was rare in this camp.

“How did you do it?” Dad pondered.

I fathomed my next verbal outcomes. Disappoint my father once again, or lie to him for his happiness’ sake. No, I wouldn’t lie, I would stretch the truth. Actually, I lied almost on accident.

“Um. For the past couple of days, like even when I first came here- like, they didn’t like that I couldn’t use magic. So they had this one guy help me. I don’t know, it was something he said, some technique, that made me better.”

“That’s great!”

“I-I still am not the best. I mess up a lot.”

“It’s still a step forward, GentleSketch!” Dad rubbed my head.

The grayish blue Unicorn turned back to the table, still grinning. I shook under my coat, blood pumping with adrenaline, I had no idea if this was good or bad feeling.

We constructed for a few long minutes. When Dad sighed, I glanced at him. He looked dismal. That didn’t make sense. Wasn’t he just so excited and happy?

“What’s wrong, Dad?”

“I wouldn’t mind doing this, if only they were nice about it. Like say if we went to Haythorn and they asked for help with generators and solar panels, and they were polite about it, I’d do it. But here they force us to do it and treat us like shit.”

“Then why don’t you tell them that?”

The stallion shook his head. “No, we don’t want to do that. It will only make things worse. We want to get on their good sides, so they don’t expect anything from us.”

Just then, the mare returned. I hope she didn’t hear us. I continued to pretend working. I could feel my magic getting weaker. I drank way too little magic aid (I did only take a drop). Why was this happening now? Dad is expecting better of me.

Thankfully, as a distraction, the mare stepped over and watched Dad. He raised a brow. “Um, hello?”

“Hello,” She replied, coyly. “You must be new here, I haven’t seen you before.”

“Yeah…”

“What’s your name?”

“CharmingRhythm.”

“Hmm, well CharmingRhythm… my name is GracefulWaltz, but you can just call me Grace.”

After a few moments of silence, Grace stepped closer.

“Uh, could you step back a bit? I need space to work.” Dad requested.

Grace pushed back her dark striped mane. “You could take a break from your work.”

“I don’t think I’m allowed to do that.”

“Nopony would know,” Grace gently stated while stroking the back of Dad’s neck.

“Eeehh,” Dad shivered. “Please stop.”

“Why?”

“I don’t like it.”

Grace blinked slowly. “Oh, what do you like, Charming?”

“Don’t call me that. I don’t like to be called that.”

“Why not. Are you not Charming? I’d expect you’d live up to your name. You look like a stallion who would.”

“I like to be called ‘Rhythm’ for short. It goes more with my talent."

“What’s the matter?”

“I would like to get my work done,” Dad stated bluntly.

“I like how determined you are.” The mare put her forehooves around Dad’s neck.

“I have a wife,” The stallion informed.

“And where is she?” Grace asked with a smile.

“... Back at home…” Dad whispered.

“She doesn’t have to know.” Grace came closer so that their muzzles were only a few centimeters apart.

Dad shoved her away. “Stop it!”

“Why are you even interested it me?” Dad prompted. “I’m like, probably more than ten years older than you.”

“What can I say,” Grace smirked, “I’m attracted to older stallions.”

“Well, I’ll let you know I’m not interested in you!” Dad huffed.

“Oh come on. How could you not like me. I know you do. With my perfect, flowing hair, my perfect body.”

“You know what I like? A mare who isn’t perfect. And admits she’s not perfect. I like a mare who is not full of herself and who is modest not a… fucking slut. One who cares about what I think, and understands and respects that ‘no’ means no. And you know what? I already have a mare like that. She loves me very much and I just like to go home to her.”

In my head, I cheered Dad for his comeback, but I knew it would be an inappropriate time to shout out. Dad turned back to his work.

“Oh, you’re just playing hard to get.” Grace came even closer to Dad.

In a fury, Dad bucked her, swung around and smacked her with a mechanical hoof. “Get off of me!”

Grace didn't seemed phased.

“You never stop do you?” Dad grumbled as an aqua hoof was placed on his chin.

“Stop messing with my dad!” I shouted while attempting to pull her tail with magic. Nothing happened to her tail making my call practically meaningless.

She turned to me and pushed me with a hoof. “Stay out of this, honey.”

“Don't touch my son.” Dad ordered.

Grace only eyed him, longingly.

“Listen. Just get away from me. I. Am. Not. Interested.”

“You are so defiant. I love that.”

Dad snorted.

“Why don’t you dance with me?” Proposed Grace.

“Depends on your definition of ‘dance’,” Dad said in a scornful tone.

Grace’s horn went ablaze; an aura shrouding my father. Dad was helpless to his own movement. The aura faded but Grace was still in control. She moved him like a puppet; his forehooves raised. Grace wrapped her forelegs around the stallion’s torso. They begun to take steps back and forth in a pattern, and then spun around.Grace smiled mischievously while Dad looked like

I couldn’t take this anymore! It was disgusting! A flash of rage spilled out as I shouted “Get off my dad!” I imagined her flying back, releasing my father, and thrusting my head up as I did so. What I didn’t expect that it would actually happen. A wisp of orange flew around the mare, making her topple. Dad collapsed, out of her reins. His eyes shot up at me. Chest heaving, I was just as surprised as he was.

“What’s going on?” A voice sounded. I pivoted to see a rogue in the road.

“She-” Dad huffed while arising, “Keeps preventing me from doing my work!”

The other pony glared at Grace. “GracefulWaltz, what have I told you about messing with stallions while they are working? There is work to be done and we don’t need anypony stopping it.”

The mare just stared for a few seconds, then twirled around with a flick of the tail.

“Believe me,” The rogue stallion addressed to Dad, “This isn’t the first time… or second…”

Dad bowed his head to me. “Thanks for defending me, Sketch.”

“Yeah,” I said, swaying. “But that kinda took a lot out of me.”

“I’m sure.” Dad let me lean on him. “That was pretty awesome.”

“I just thought of what I really wanted to happen…”

“That’s what magic is about,” Dad told.

I was confused by my ability to attack when the magic aid had worn off. Was that my actual magic?

Chapter XXI: Father/Son Brawling

We entered our room, all exhausted. Today had been a long day but more preferable than the days before because I had Dad with me. After all, I had made him proud of me, despite my abilities being a lie. No, maybe it wasn’t a lie. Magic aid is an energy boost, so maybe all I need is an energy boost to use magic.

“You need to rest,” HyperBlitz said to JumpingJolt.

“I know, I know. This is the first time I could rest all day.”

“You couldn’t rest earlier?”

“The rogues wouldn’t let me.”

“You should have said something. I know I said something,” Hyper reminded. “Don’t make them push me around. Tell them you’re injured.”

“They don’t care, Dad.”

“They should know you would work better after you heal. I told you that you need to rest, you can’t be moving around.”

“I’ve had no chance. It’s not my fault, they yell at me if I do,” Jolt explained.

“You need to stand up for yourself. That leg won’t heal if you walk on it.”

“I’m not trying to, Dad. Stop nagging me.”

“I’m not nagging you,” Hyper claimed.

“Yes you are.”

“Hey-” Dad interfered from the bed, “Stop arguing. I want to get some sleep.”

I curled up on the bed next to Dad. I glanced at him.

“Ugh, I’d love to wash myself. I feel gross,” Dad muttered. “They don’t give us enough time. He paused. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Your beard.”

“My beard?” He raised a brow and touched his chin.

“It’s longer, it doesn’t look right on you.”

“Oh, yeah. I haven’t trimmed it in a couple of days. I doubt they’d let us have razors or scissors… Eh, HyperBlitz is worse; He doesn’t look right with facial hair.”

I looked at HyperBlitz, whose shadowy face made him, like everything else, look older.

“Dad, I can do this myself!” JumpingJolt expressed, snatching the sheet from the Pegasus. He rolled it up for his injured leg. “Stop babying me.”

“I’m not babying you,” Hyper took with offence. “I’m trying to help you.”

“I can help myself.”

“Hey, what did I say?” Dad snapped. “We need to go to bed. This is the only time we get to rest.”

JumpingJolt and HyperBlitz just coldly glared at each other silently.

Getting up early is something I can do, but not when it means there are ponies hovering around and ordering me. Stalling, I observed several ponies who shouted and cursed at one another. My father, HyperBlitz and JumpingJolt stood to my left.

GearClank prompted himself in front of us. “Today,” the Pegasus began, “You will help us with our Hybrid problem.” I scoffed at the word “help”, for we were going to be forced to work. He continued, “We will set you up with some other ponies. Do not even try to run away, or we will hunt you down. You have twenty minutes to prepare yourselves.”

Not much time, I thought. I followed my companions back to our room. “This is stupid,” I muttered, hopping onto the stained bed. “Why do they keep us here? Why do we have to make us into slaves?” I spoke thoughts that repeated in my mind ever since I had reached the rogue camp.

“It’s not like we can do much, GentleSketch,” Dad replied. “I don’t like this just as much as you do. We just have to keep going along until we find an escape.”

“We should just leave,” I huffed.

“You know we can’t. They are always guarding, and do you think we can stand up to guns?” Dad pointed out.

“No…” I looked down.

JumpingJolt joined the conversation. “Why don’t we just run when we’re out on this Hybrid mission?”

My father shook his head. “They would hunt us down.”

“We’ll run fast! We can trick them!” The orange colt said enthusiastically.

“Jolt,” his father spoke, “Your leg is hurt, I doubt you could run very fast.”

“But I could-”

“Jolt, it’s no use.”

JumpingJolt dropped his head. “I always mess things up.”

HyperBlitz stepped towards him. “JumpingJolt… it’s not your fault, we just can’t leave.”

“If I didn’t hurt myself we could have been out of here already!” The Earth-Pony growled. “I can’t ever help. I always screw things up, and get in other ponies’ way!”

“No you-”

“Yes I do!” Jolt stomped his forehooves. “If I don’t, let's just leave!”

“Jolt, we can’t!” HyperBlitz exclaimed, his voice raising.

His son swirled around and flicked his tail.“Fuck it!”

“JumpingJolt! Watch your language!”

“Why? You always say it!”

“That doesn’t mean you have to!” The Pegasus cried. “You should be better than me.”

“But I can’t. I fuck things up.”

“JUMPIMGJOLT!” HyperBlitz was furious. He then took a deep breath and lowered his volume(which still was not an appropriate speaking level). “Just because you are my son doesn’t mean you have to be like me. I want you to be better. That’s the point of having children: to raise someone to be better than you.”

I realized JumpingJolt was going through some of the same things as me. He wanted to make his father proud, but felt like he could not ever do it. He was missing self acceptance, which is something I lack greatly, but maybe not as greatly as JumpingJolt. We both think we are useless in some way.

Dad and I made eye contact, and both exchanging worried expressions. Whenever anything like this happened, no matter who it was between, I wanted to hide away. I urged to scoop up the covers beneath me and throw them over my head.

Lifting a mechanical hoof, Dad interrupted the argument. “You guys, we don’t have a lot of time.”

HyperBlitz glanced at the Unicorn and waved his hoof. “Just…” He went back to Jolt.

“Dad,” My friend started up again, “How can I be better than you when I’m always making mistakes? I’m the reason we are in the hellhole to begin with! I got distracted and lost,you had to find us, I got hurt and we’re stuck here.”

“We all make mistakes,” Hyper tried to reassure him.

“Yeah, but that looks like that’s all I’m good at. I don’t ever think. I don’t ever think of anypony else. I’m just a burden.”

“JumpingJolt, I know exactly how you feel. I’ve felt the same way before.”

“Ha,” the colt sarcastically laughed. “Everyone tells me I’m just like you.”

I looked over and my dad shifted forward. “Ah.. I’m just going to go to the bathroom.” The blue stallion stepped around HyperBlitz but neither he nor JumpingJolt were aware of his existence.

“JumpingJolt, listen-”

HyperBlitz was cut off by his son. “Why do you keep saying my name? Do you think I can’t hear you, HyperBlitz?”

“Excuse me, I am your father and you will address me as such.”

“Why? don’t hear you calling me ‘son’.”

“It doesn’t work like that.”

I slumped down over the side of the bed and reached for my bag. I scooped up the plastic bottle of magic aid. I took a quick gulp. Luckily I had a chance to get some before we left. If we ever left.

“Nothing ever works the way it should,” Jolt huffed. He pushed himself up onto the other bed with his hooves, his back now turned to me.

“Do you really think we could leave if we wanted to?” Hyper called out as he waved his hoof, gesturing to the door. “We need to save those ponies from Haythorn!”

“Just leave without me. You won’t have me to slow you down. Your life would be better off without me.” Muttered Jolt.

“What? That’s absurd.”

“Is it really? It seems like the smart thing to do.”

The way JumpingJolt was speaking frightened me. Could he really be feeling like this?

The creaky bathroom door opened, and Dad stepped out behind the bickering father and son. “Would you two shut up?”

HyperBlitz whipped his head to Dad and bared his teeth.

“You’re acting like children. We don’t have time for this.”

The Pegasus pointed to his agitated son. “He-”

“No,” Dad said with an even voice. “Don’t even try to blame it all on him. You are acting just as childish. As much as you want him to be better than you, you can’t do it by setting a bad example. He takes after you, and you have to realize that. Anything you do, he will copy. So you should be the better pony.”

I was confused by his statement. I guess my brain could not place words together to make sense. Perhaps the magic aid may have needed to completely settle into my system before I could think right again. (And/or the lack of sleep I got the night before.)

Blinking, his frustration washing over, HyperBlitz stared at Jolt. He then placed himself next to the orange colt on the bed. “JumpingJolt, son,”The stallion said, now with a softer voice, “I wouldn’t ever leave you here.”

“Why not? I’m no help. I shouldn’t even go on this mission.”

“You can help.”

“How?”

“Maybe you can help in ways you don’t even know. Please come with us. You don’t want to be stuck here, they’re nasty.”

My father went around to the opposite side of the bed I was sitting on. His blue magic lifted up his bag and he placed a water bottle and bandages inside.

“Are we going to have enough energy?” I inquired.

“I’m not sure. Hyper and I have some, but we really don’t want to waste it. Crystals can last a long time, but using them on Hybrids can be costly. I see why they don’t use it as a weapon,” Dad explained to me.

“But aren’t there ways to stretch out how much you use?”

“We’ve designed EPDs to stretch out energy as much as we can. It’s better than it use to be.”

The older Unicorn twisted his head around. “Are you guys coming?”

“Yeah,” HyperBlitz said as he pushed himself off the bed. He glared around, looking for what to bring.

“Do you think we can find crystals when we are out?” I asked Dad.

“We really don’t have equipment to find it. Even if it’s straight out in front of us, we don’t have the tools to harvest it.”

“But don’t you have-”

“Please no more question, we have to get moving.”

I am a colt! I have so many questions! But I realized I was annoyed with myself from asking so many questions. I decided to shut up.

Chapter XXII: Fine Line

Author's Notes:

Alright! All the chapters are updated with double spacing! Yey! Here, have a pretty dramatic chapter!

We were lined up getting a thorough inspection by a dark Pegasus who was called Crow. I’m not sure what he was looking for, but he sure was taking his time. A purple mare met up with us. She grimaced a bit as she looked at me. I examined her coat around her shoulders, which was covered with strange tattoos that looked like vines with claws.

“Just call me Thorn,” She introduced herself.

HyperBlitz nodded his head up and said “Nice tatts.” Probably to get on her nice side.

“Whatever,” She muttered. What a lovely pony.

Crow strapped a sash around his chest, holding a gun. He noticed me observing him. “Ya not have a weapon?

“I used to have an EPD.”

“We can’t use those.” Crow glanced at Dad.

“This is my leg.” Dad said bluntly.

“I know. Ya usin’ that to fight Hybrids? That’s wastin’ your energy.”

“Nah, I got this,” Dad insisted.

“An’ whatta bout you?” Crow went to JumpingJolt. “Ya have no weapon.”

“Could you give me one?” Jolt asked.

“I can let ya use a gun.”

“No!” HyperBlitz protested. “It’s too dangerous.”

“I can teach him howta safely use it,” Crow offered.

“No. Handling a gun takes more practice than a few minutes.”

“Oh come on, Dad,” Jolt whinnied “Why can’t you let me use it?”

“It’s dangerous.”

“Why can’t you let me do anything fun? You usually do.”

“I’m protecting you,” Hyper replied.

“I don’t need protecting!”

“Would you two stop!” Dad growled. “I thought we left this argueing behind us.”

Crow attempted to resolve the bickering. “If not guns, we do have some blades an’ spears. At least some armor, we have some armor.”

“I think that would be helpful,” Dad donned.

“Thorn,” Crow addressed the tattooed mare, “Get us some armor.”

After we recived armor, we set out on our mission. The armor was quite heavy, so I couldn’t put too much on.

“So there is a general area where the Hybrids are?” Dad started at Crow.

“Yes. We been seein’ some nodes.”

Soon enough we climbed to the top of a slope. A few shacks and trash piles were here and there. A node lied twenty yards from us, and another, much farther down. I caught sight of movement by the second node.

“Should we split up?” Crow asked.

“I could take two and you could take two,” Thorn suggested.

“I’m not going with him,” Jolt sneered, pointing at his father.

“What?!” Hyper snapped.

Crow squinted. “Why don’t’cha take that one and go scout.”

“Fine.” Thorn said, HyperBlitz following her.

Dad begun to travel to the node. I heard Crow whisper “Wait!” Dad didn’t hear.

I turned with a questioning face.

“There a Hybrid.” Crow got down behind some trash, so did JumpingJolt and I.

The dark Pegasus positioned his gun. His eye slipped to my friend. “Here.” He situated the gun into Jolt’s arms. Crow placed his right hoof around Jolt onto the colt’s right arm. Crow let Jolt hold his gun.

“Ya gotta look through here.”

Jolt looked through the eyepiece.

“Now put the cross on the Hybrid, and then ya pull back on that trigger.”

A bang rang out when Jolt’s red hoof pulled the trigger. The Hybrid swirled around, hearing the sound. It was not hit.

“That’a good try,” Crow said, taking back his gun.

He quickly put it up and fired. The bullet slammed into armor. Another bullet sunk into the neck of the Hybrid. It was an energy blast that finally slayed the creature. Dad placed his hoof on the fresh corpse and gave Crow a nod.

The four of us headed to disable the node. Crow slammed the back of his gun on the device and Jolt pounded his armor hooves on it. I shot some magic at it, but it only rebounded the blows. The metal construction shook when Dad energy-blasted it.

I heard the beating of wings come closer. Thorn returned with HyperBlitz.

She reported, “I think there are more Hybrids that we thought. They heard your noise and are coming.”

“That was pretty rude of you to say,” HyperBlitz asserted at JumpingJolt.

“Huh?” Jolt was either pretending he didn’t say anything or actually did not remember.

“You know what I’m talking about,” Hyper hissed.

“We don’t have time for this,” Dad said.

Crow continued to damage the node, now faster.

“Stop it! The Hybrids are coming!” Thorn clamored. “We need a plan.”

“Come on!” I heard Dad call.

Jolt and I tagged him and hid behind some barrels. Between two barrels I saw an orange and silver figure rose up on the hill. It dashed toward the node and the other ponies.Dad popped up from the barrels and fired. I levitated a rock and threw it yet disappointingly missed.

The Hybrid turned to us now. Hovering above the ground, its scrawny wings could barely keep it off the ground. We scrambled to get away. JumpingJolt tripped over the barrels. “Damn it!” He cursed. Dad helped him up.

Just as the Hybrid was about to reach us, a display of red cascaded as Thorn sliced into a wing with a blade. The Earth-pony then stabbed the Hybrid’s chest. I was horrified by her brutality.

When I thought I had a moment of rest, more Hybrids appeared. We scattered. Crap! I should have stayed with Dad!

I was chased by a Hybrid who reached for my legs. I glimpsed a shadow of a soaring Pegasus pass by me. Bullets rained down and penetrated the Claw Hybrid. I twisted my head to watch Crow swooped down to the other ponies and once-ponies.

I turned back and skidded. The ground dropped several hoofsteps away. I held my breath. I realized the Hybrid Crow shot was not dead. It slowly crept toward me. I could not move backwards. My mind pulled for strategies. I hit one. I needed to push the Hybrid over the edge.As it approuched and swipped, I engulfed it in an aura, pushing it. The armored creature rolled off the cliff.

A sigh of relief escaped me. I killed a Hybrid myself! But I felt almost guilty for it. Hybrids were ponies once, after all.

I spotted JumpingJolt being attracted by a Hybrid. He attempted to fight back by punching. The foe slapped him and he fell to the floor. HyperBlitz was just standing there! What the hell was he doing? After moments of Jolt struggling and shouting, Hyper lept to aid. The Pegasus pinned the Hybrid and pierced it with a hoof blade. JumpingJolt got up and started speaking with his father, not breaking into an argument.

I was foolishly distracted. A scout Hybrid skulked me from the left. The pale creature pushed me, I respectively stepped back. I completely forgot about the ledge.

I yelped when my back hooves slipped. My front hooves grasped the ridge that immediately emerged. The Hybrid did not show again, most likely believing it was done with me. I held my breath for moments, not to attract my enemy. When I was sure it was ‘safe’, I screamed like mad.

“HELP! SOMEPONY, HELP! PLEASE!” I cried. “DAD! HYPERBLITZ! JUMPINGJOLT! CROW!” He seemed nice enough to care about my life. “DAD! PLEASE! SOMEPONY!”

I glanced down(idiot!) The descend was about twenty to thirty tail lengths down, jagged rocks everywhere. It was a certain backbreaking death. I screamed some more, now without words.

Behind my caterwaul, a faint voice was heard. “GentleSketch?” Dad’s face peered over the ledge to the right.

“DAD!”

“GENTLESKETCH!” He gasped. He disappeared and reappeared over me. “Grab my hoof!”

My arms ached from clinging. My hind legs pushed my weight up. “I can’t! I’ll slip!”

“Use your magic!”

“It’s not strong enough!” That was true even with magic aid.

Dad leaned, his horn glowing. I felt my body lift slightly. He wrapped his mechanical hoof under my arm

“I got you! Grab my hoof!”

I let go, gripping his limb with both hooves. My hind footing slipped as Dad snatched me with another hoof. Dad strenuously levitated me up. He seized my shoulder then held my side. I kept climbing with my hind legs until my arms reached the top ground. Dad pulled me up without magic now.

He grasped me tightly around the waist, stumbling back bipedally. I was relieved to have footing on solid ground. We both fell to our haunches.

“It’s okay. I got you,” Dad comforted. “ You’re safe now. Don’t cry… don’t cry.”

“I-I’m so-sorry I cry s-so much, D-Dad.”

“It’s okay.” Why is it okay? He just told me not to cry. “Come on, let’s get away from that ledge.” He brought me farther inland.

“Damn,” Thorn swore. “I can’t believe how many there are.” Her hoof blade was planted in the Hybrid who pushed me. She scampered away to the next fight.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt?” Dad asked.

“I- I have some scrapes on my legs.” The abrasions on my knees stung. I kept in the tears of physical and emotional pain.

There appeared to be one Hybrid left. Thorn cantered to it. She wrestled and sliced it’s unarmored parts. Metal claws sunk into the Mare’s shoulders.

Dad started to her. “Stay out of this!” Thorn shouted. Dad stepped back.

We watched the Earth-pony brawl the Hybrid. The metal encased creature grunted some words, but it was so muffled that it was inaudible. Thorn wacked the Hybrid. The enemy returned with a blow to the chest. Her breast was now covered with more blood than tattoos.

Thorn reared up to push her rival. The Hybrid rammed its clawed limb into her abdomen. Dad and I gasped simultaneously. Thorn’s movements slowed, realizing her fate.

Out of nowhere a yellow figure drooped from the sky. A wing swarming with blue, HyperBlitz carved the Hybrid. Both it and Thorn fell. HyperBlitz circled around and kicked the foe in the jaw. The Pegasus descended on the Hybrid with a forceful stab of a blade. The enemy screeched, exhaling one last time.

Hyper skipped to the mare, a pool of blood around her. “Thorn!” There was no response. “Holy shit!”

Crow landed.

“Why didn’t you shoot the Hybrid?” Hyper demanded.

“I was outta bullets.”

“She’s dead!”

“I saw what happened,” Crow informed. “She didn’t let anypony help. She set herself up.”

“You don’t even care about what happened?” Hyper defended.

“I tell ya, she did it to herself.”

“You don’t care about your ally?”

“She ain’t my friend,” Crow responded. “I’m tellin’ ya. I try to be sympathetic, but I seen so much death it ain’t phase me no more.”

I was crying again, full tears and hyperventilation. The fear of death and cruelty of violence roared in my mind. The guilt of killing Hybrids recurred. I sat, shaking and bawling.

“GentleSketch,” Dad came to me, “What’s wrong?” I could only weep. Dad perched in front of me and rubbed my arms softly. “Shh… shh… Just breathe, breathe.”

I inhaled, but air got caught in my throat so I started coughing.

“We should get back to the camp,” Crow said to HyperBlitz.

“What about her?”

“I’ll have some ponies come back. I ain’t gonna put you through carrying her.”

“And the other node?”

“We’ll go back for it,” Crow stated firmly.

Hyper came our way. “GentleSketch? What’s the matter?”

I hiccuped. “I-I… It’s… t-to-too much… too much….d-death! She-she’s de-ad. I-I almost d-died. An-and… the… we kill the Hy...brids.”

“Sketch,” Dad murmured, “You know we have to kill the Hybrids. There’s no other option.”

“They w-were ponies t-too!”

“They were,” Hyper affirmed.

Dad gingerly grabbed my arm and pulled me up. “We need to go.”

JumpingJolt returned to us with Crow. The dark stallion looked at me, perplexed. “What’s wrong with this one?”

“It’s just a bit too much for him at once,” Dad explained.

“Oh.” Crow did not seem to judge me as harshly as the other rogues.

We began to walk back.

JumpingJolt sighed. “Dad, can I appologize to you completely now?”

HyperBlitz gave him his attention. “Go ahead.”

“I’m sorry I was arguing with you. I guess… this trip isn’t what I’d expect.”

“It’s not what any of us expected,” Hyper said.

“I just thought maybe I could do things myself for once. I want to learn things myself. But I shouldn’t have been so rude about it.”

“Jolt, to be honest, I was rude too. I didn’t think before I said anything. You see- we are so alike.”

“I know Dad.”

“I think, since we are alike, we both look for fights the same way. When we both put that together, it clashes. We both want to be right. I’ll admit, you were right on some things.” HyperBlitz paused. “I have been a bit overprotective. Maybe that’s because your mother isn’t here to be the overprotective one. I’m the only one looking over you, and out here as been so dangerous.”

“I promise I won’t try to start a fight again,” Jolt vowed.

“Don’t promise anything. You don’t know what could come up.” There was a moment of silence. Hyper stepped over and blanketed his wing over Jolt’s back. “You know the only reason I fight with you is because I care about you.”

Jolt only nodded and hummed.

Chapter XXIII

Author's Notes:

I'm not naming this chapter, anything I can think of is dumb. This chapter is dumb, so is this story. I'll upload what I have wrote already (about 5 more chapter) But I won't write any more. I just don't have a the time or motivation. This story would only be about half of what I wanted.

this chapter has lyrics, read the full version here

Either stabbing pain in my stomach or prodding on my shoulder woke me up. No matter what it was, I was not happy.

“C’mon GentleSketch,” Dad said.

I sat up and haunched over.

“You okay?” Dad asked.

“My stomach hurts. I haven’t ate much in a while.”

“When’s the last time you ate?”

“Yesterday morning. And that was only a few raisins I had left. The rogues took a good amount of our food.”

“Oh, GentleSketch, you should have told me. I could have gave you some of mine… but I don’t have any left.”

“It’s okay,” I retorted.

“No it’s not. We’ll get them to give us some food.”

When GearClank arrived, Dad explained our new situation.

“We gave you a damn room, and now you want food?” The Pegasus growled.

“Well, you did kinda take ours,” Dad countered. “And you can’t expect us to work well without energy.”

GearClank left muttering, the only word audible was “fucking…”

We were brought outside. GearClank had somepony bring us some food. Dad glared inside the bowl.”

“What the hell is this?”

“Food,” GearClank said bluntly.

“No it’s not,” Dad argued.

“You wanted food, and you got some!

“This isn’t food. This is like rotten tomatoes, roots, stems. This isn’t edible.”

“Well, you’re gonna have to make it edible. That’s all we got for you.”

“No it’s not. You have ponies working all the time. How can you not have food to spare. Are you-”

“CharmingRhythm,” HyperBlitz stopped him. He shook his head.

GearClank found a wooden stool next to the wall to sit on. He crossed his legs and glared at me. “Eat it.”

I peered down at the mush. I frowned in disappointment. JumpingJolt went ahead and ate. I think Dad was searching for the decent parts of the tomato. I felt pressured by GearClank, but I did not feel comfortable being watched as I ate.

I consumed the substance, forcing myself to swallow. I attempted to imagine it was something I like to bare the horrible taste and texture.

“Hurry up,” GearClank ordered.

I took as much as I could get down. I scrambled to my footing.

“You two,” The olive green Pegasus pointed at JumpingJolt and Hyper. “DesertDash can tell you where to go. And you two,” to me and Dad, “Come with me.”

Every movement made my stomach hurt more. I stumbled from lake of nutrients in my body. Dad supported my stance.

GearClank scorned me, “Get a move on, you bastard.”

“Don’t call my son a bastard,” Dad snapped.

“I can call him whatever I want.” GearClank stopped walking to engage in the argument.

“No you can’t. You need to learn to respect.”

“Don’t tell me what to do. And you shouldn’t be speaking for your son. He doesn’t seemed bothered.”

“But he is. I knew he is. He’s just afraid. Just like every pony in this camp.” Dad concluded.

“Ponies only fear if they are doing something wrong.”

“No, they fear you because you are abusing your power.”

“Dad,” I groaned through my nausea. “Stop fighting.”

“Sketch, you don’t understand-”

“No, Dad, remember… you said… not to fight.” I insisted.

GearClank smirked. “You should listen to him, maybe he’s smarter than you.”

Dad confronted him again. “You know, maybe you should stop insulting ponies.”

“How am I insult-”

“You are always degrading them. I’m getting tired of it.”

The rogue cocked his head. “I’m getting tired of your shit too. You come in my camp and boss me around?”

“Well, somepony has to.”

I groaned some more, part from my sickness, a part from annoyance of Dad’s fit.

The older Unicorn turned to me. “Sketch...”

An unsettling feeling swarmed my whole abdomen and chest. I pivoted away from Dad. My stomach clenched and emptied itself.A weakness shuttered through my body as I picked my head up. I tried to make myself stop gagging.

Dad’s hoof was on my back. I glanced at him. His mouth expressed disgust by his eyes sympathy.

“I’m sorry,” I murmured.

“No, no, it’s okay,” Dad retorted. “You just can’t take that stuff. You’re stomach didn’t like it, so it get rid of it. I mean- it’s just a natural thing- especial if you have a sensitive stomach,”Dad glared at GearClank, “Or you eat rotten food.”

“I’m not cleaning that up,” The Pegasus grimaced.

After that, I trotted with the stallions to the workplace, feeling weaker than before. The station was full of water filters and large tanks. My eyes caught sight of a gray mare who looked too worse for wear.

Her magic lit up a jar of water in front of her.

“What are you doing?” I pondered.

She looked at me, confused. “I’m… purifying water.”

“How do you do that?”

“I have a spell for it.”

An aura removed the jar on the table and replaced it with another.

“Do you do this all day?” I hoped a conversation would distract me from my current state.

“Pretty much,” The gray mare sighed.

“Don’t you get tired?”

“Yes. I use my magic so much that I have to use this potion to make it stronger.”

“I’ve used that too,” I said.

“I’ve used it so much and use my magic so often that I’ve become depended on that potion.”

“WaterGray!” A pony commanded. “Stop talking with that colt and get back to work.”

WaterGray scowled at the pony. I was relieved she didn’t scowl at me.

Time slowed to a crawl as I bared the weight of standing. Dad, a few steps over, eyed me. “You okay?”

I was slow to respond. I was going to say ‘yes’, but that would be lying. Instead, I said “No…”

Dad gave me another one of those concerned parent looks.

I didn’t know what time it was, but I was getting real tired (pun not intended) of working on water filters.

A figured descended from the sky. HyperBlitz held a bucket in his teeth. He spilled a bit of water when he dropped it.

“What are you doing here?” Dad prompted.

“They asked me to get water from the river.”

Crow landed next to Hyper. “We gonna have to get some more,” He stated.

Hyper rolled his eyes and groaned “Ugh!”

“Sorry,” Crow apologized, “I’m just doin’ what I’m told.”

“I’ll be back, Rhyth.” Hyper waved.

Crow handed HyperBlitz a new empty bucket. They both lifted off and headed west.

“This must be how they have running water,” Dad thought aloud. “They keep bringing water in and filter it.”

“But why not more than one bucket they have?”

Dad glared at me like I said something wrong. I didn’t catch my mistake. “What are you trying to say?”

“They each,” I pointed to where the Pegasi flew, “Have one bucket. Why not more?”

“Oh,” Dad paused. “Mmm, yeah, that may be better, but it would be hard to carry it. Unless they use hooves. Or have jars in saddle bags.”

“They usually do that,” WaterGray informed. “I don’t know why they aren't now. We usually have plenty of ponies coming in with water.” She returned to purifying the liquid.

“Geez, Sketch.” Dad turned to me. “You must really not be feeling well if you can’t talk right.”

“What? I did?”

“You’re doing it now. You are missing words and scrambling them around.”

I went back to scrubbing filters, embarrassed. I wished I have magic aid to use my bagic. But I couldn’t even use magic if I was this exhausted. Would using magic even be believable at this state.

“Hey kid.” I slowly turned my head. WaterGray was eyeing me. I paced over to her. “Could you go to Arcane and get me some magic aid? You know who that is, right?”

I nodded. “I do.”

I passed Dad. “She asked me to thing get for her.”

“Get a thing for her?”

“Yeah.”

I trekked to Arcane’s building. I spotted the blue stallion beating some herbs. His ears flickered in response to my entry.

“Oh, it’s you. Come for more magic aid?”

“WaterGray,” Was all I said.

“Oh yes.” Arcane turned to his shelves. Purple magic gave two elixirs of pink liquid to me. “One for WaterGray, one for you.”

“Thank,” I said. Was I trying to say ‘thank you’ or ‘thanks’?

I carried the bottles by the cap in my mouth. I went to my room to drop one off and took the other to the workplace.

“That took a while,” Dad stated.

“Well, he is moving pretty slow,” HyperBlitz observed. It must have been a while if Hyper was already back.

I gave the potion to WaterGray. I didn’t drink any of mine because I knew it was a lost cause.

DesterDash, a sand colored mare, came to us with GearClank’s report. “He wants you to go to your next job.”

“C’mon, Sketch.” Dad tapped my shoulder.

I struggled to rise. I walked a few steps, but failed to stand any longer. I collapsed.

My father gasped, “GentleSketch!” He rushed to my side. “What happened?”

I replied in a moan and held my stomach.

“Can we please take him back to the room? He can’t work like this.” I think Dad was talking to DesertDash.

The next thing I knew was that I was in a bed with Dad next to me. I moaned some more. “You really need some food,” Dad lamented.

“It’s not like those fuckers are give us any,” Hyper cursed.

Dad look at me. “Your stomach hurts?”

Well, duh. “Mm-hmm.”

He began to rub my belly with his mechanical hoof. “Does that feel good?”

“Mm-hmm.”

He checked my forehead temperature with a foreleg. I guess I didn’t have a fever because he didn’t say anything.

“We’re going to have to go back out,” HyperBlitz announced.

“But GentleSketch doesn’t feel well,” Dad refuted, still massaging my stomach.

“I know but… maybe we should let him sleep.”

“Do you think you can sleep?” Dad asked. I only made a tiny whimper.

Dad pushed himself off the bed. I extended my arm, begging him to come back.

“I’m sorry buddy, I can’t rub your tummy forever.”

The stallion paused, examining me. He stepped around the bed to HyperBlitz. Dad whispered something. My conscious was so blurred, I couldn’t catch his words. Hyper raised a brow at Dad. After sighing, he continued to whisper.

Dad leaned to the left of me. “Just rest. Only think of sleep. You don’t have anything else to worry about right now. Just sleep.”

Dad began to sing with Hyper, both in a lullaby like tone. It was a song I recognized, but I didn’t remember the name.

Even as great of a vocalist HyperBlitz is, I can not express how soothing my father’s voice is.

Silence. So quite it would make one’s ears bleed. Darkness. So dark it could make one go insane. I was deaf and blind. Every thought in my head sounded like a scream. I squinted my eyes, well, I think I did. Little fuzzy lights spun around. There was a silhouette in the distance. A tiny pony.

“Filly?” I said, sounding like a bellow. I blinked. Everything went black again.

I could finally see again and there was a light buzz in the air. For a moment I thought HyperBlitz was sideways but I realized I was lying horizontally. I shuffled under the covers. Hyper noticed movement.

“Oh, GentleSketch. You’re awake.”

Sitting up, I asked “How long was I out?”

“A few hours. Like six or something.”

“I really slept for that long?”

“Hey, you’re growing colt who needs sleep.” He started to the exit. “I’ll be back. I’m going to get your dad.”

I snuggled under the covers. I think I slept so long that it made me more tired. I sat up again when the door opened.

Dad’s eyes were on me the moment he entered. “GentleSketch, are you feelin-”

“Hey,” HyperBlitz interrupted. “Light this.”

“Gosh, you can’t give me one second with my son?” Dad went to the counter that held a small stove thong. He shot energy under it, igniting the wood bits.

“That’s what?” I pondered.

Dad answered, “He brought tea. Out off all the things-”

“I told you, it was a random thing. SweetHooves suggested I’d bring some, so I put some in my bad. I forgot about it until now.” The Pegasus acknowledged me. “I thought it may help your stomach.”

“And, oh-” Dad bounced. “I got you a carrot.” He pointed to the vegetable on the nightstand.

“How did you get this?” I wondered.

“I… have my ways.”

I was almost regretful to eat the carrot. Once it was gone, I would have nothing else to eat.

“So are you feeling better?” Dad questioned.

“I guess I’m not as exhausted as I was.”

I crunched into the carrot, savoring the actual good taste. After swallowing I asked, “So is GearClank angry that I wasn’t working?”

Dad opened his mouth to speak but Hyper interfered. “He’s pissed.”

“But-” Dad added, “We worked it out. I said I would make up that time for you. And If I work a little extra, I can get food for you.”

“Here’s your tea,” HyperBlitz said as he tried to pick it up with forehooves.

“Whoa, whoa.” Dad lifted the cup telekinetically, knowing the danger of Hyper’s clumsiness.

“We’re going to have to go out again,” Hyper advised. I nodded. “They said they’ll give us some dinner but I doubt it's any better then the shit we had earlier.”

“I’ll see if there is anything good in it for you,” Dad proposed when going to the door.”

And then I was alone. The sky outside gradually grew darker. I clicked on a lamp and drew in my sketchbook. When I was bored with that, I read the book Mom made me take. I was glad I had brought it with me. I’ll take anything to distract me from my still aching stomach.

Dad and HyperBlitz returned with JumpingJolt.

“So what did you do while we were gone?” Dad asked.

“Just drew, and read.”

Dad sat on the bed. “Is it a good book?”

“I don’t know. It’s a book.”

Dad chuckled, “Well, as your mother says, every book is a good book.” That made me smile a bit.

“Find any food?” I broke silence.

“Um, nah. I don’t think you would have liked it.”

“Hmm. Today seems like it’s been longer than normal.”

“Yeah. Listen, bud,” Dad said, “I’m sorry I’ve put you through this.”

“It’s not your fault,” I protested.

“But I brought you along and-” He hesitated. “ I wanted this to be a good experience. It’s not for any of us.”

My eyes wandered away, like every uneasy conversation.

“Well-,” Dad patted my arm and then jumped off the bed,“I have to go again. I promised to work extra.”

“Are you going to be out all night?”

“ I shouldn’t be. I doubt they’ll make me stay awake all night."

I think Dad lied. When I awoke in the middle of the night, probably from having enough sleep, Dad was not in bed. Maybe he didn’t lie. Maybe he exaggerated the truth, or the rogues misfired his plan.

Chapter XXIV: The Review

Familiar pounding on the door roused me up. I expected Dad to answer it, but the cacophony continued. Finally, HyperBlitz bolted out of bed to answer. GearClank didn’t even say anything for he assumed we knew the drill.

“Alright, it’s time to get up guys,” Hyper announced loudly yet sleepily. He went into the bathroom.

JumpingJolt rubbed his eyes and looked at me. We stared for a long moment. We stopped when HyperBlitz reentered.

His eyes looked across the room. “CharmingRhythm.” He moved to the other side of my bed. Dad was still asleep. “Rhythm it’s time to get up.” Dad didn’t budge. Hyper shook the stallion. “CharmingRhythm!”

Dad groaned, pulling the sheet farther up. Hyper stripped Dad of his blanket.

“Get up dude!”

The Unicorn still stayed put, placing a foreleg over his eyes. Hyper put both hooves on his friend and thrusted him onto the floor with a thud.

“It’s time. To get. The fuck. Up.” Hyper said, leaning to the ground.

Dad’s head rose from behind the bed. He was staring at me with bloodshot eyes, his left with a huge vein that really freaks me out.

“Dad, you look horrible,” I stated.

“Thanks,” He grunted as he stood up.

“Did you even get any sleep last night,” I questioned, concerned.

“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine. I’ve gone on only few hours of sleep before,” Dad insisted.

“What time did you go to bed?”

“I don’t know. But like I said, I’m fine.” Dad began moving slowly.

“Rhythm,” Hyper started, “ When are we going to get the fuck out of here?”

“I don’t know,” Dad admitted.

“Well, we better know soon. The ponies back at home are probably worried about us. We have to get the Haythorn ponies out of here. We need a plan.”

Dad proposed, “We just need to start some sort of hysteria to distract the rogues.”

Hyper looked at Dad as if he was insane. He spoke it too, “Are you fucking crazy? That’s putting everypony in danger.”

“It’s a risk we’ll have to take.”

Hyper clenched his teeth, “Maybe you do need more sleep.”

So we went out to the rogue camp, GearClank bustling us along. I decided I could repeat my action from yesterday: Get some magic aid from Arcane, for WaterGray and myself, only faster this time. I told Dad I would go to the water filter station, for that was the only job I could really do.

“Try to find one of those Haythorn ponies,” He advised

I went to Arcane’s place but he was not there. I helped myself to the potion, hoping he would not miss it. I took a good swig of the magic aid before putting it away. I wanted the amazing feeling of using magic again. I brought the second elixir to the water filter station.

“Um, okay,” WaterGray moped.“I didn’t ask for any.”

“I can take it back,” I said, feeling offended from having done a good deed.

“No… no…” She took the bottle.

Just my luck, I saw a Haythornian. The pink stallion slowly scrubbed a filter. After grabbing a brush, I scrambled over to him.

“You’re from Haythorn, right?” I asked lowly.

“Yeah…” He raised a brow. “What do you want?”

“I want to get you out of here.”

“What?” He replied

“Shh… that’s why I came here with my Dad, to help Haythorn with the rogue problem.”

“Well, good luck,” The stallion snickered. “It’s impossible to get out of here.”

“Not unless we have a plan,” I murmured. “But when we do, how do you want us to give you a signal? What works best for you?”

“A salute? I don’t know…”

“Okay.”

“By the way, my name is EveningGaze… if you care,” He told me.

“Oh yeah, I remember. My friend told me that. And whose the other one?”

“The pony got caught with me? That’s Gale. She’s a green Pegasus with a pink mane, usually wears it in a tail.”

I nodded.

After a good half hour of sanitizing filters, I dumped clean water into the large tanks. I slipped away from the station. I just cannot take doing the same thing over and over again.

While in the middle of the path, I heard somepony call my name weakly. Dad came to me sluggishly. He seemed out of breath somehow.

“I have something for you.” He glanced around, confused.

HyperBlitz arrived at Dad’s side. He gave an annoyed sigh. His wing opened, holding something.

Dad said, “I know you’re not a big fan of beats, but it’s all I could get.”

I levitated the vegetable out of Hyper’s wing. “I’m happy to have anything edible.”

I watched my father nod slowly. “Dad, I’m worried about you.”

“Huh?”

“I don’t like you working this much just for me.”

“But Sketch, you-”

HyperBlitz interrupted, “Rhythm, he’s right. You’ve been working your ass off and they don’t give you anything in return. You had to sneak that,” He motioned to the beat in the orange aura.

Dad stuttered,“Please, I- don’t have the…. I need-”

“To back to work? No. They don’t give a fuck about you so why should you give a fuck about them?”

“I’m not, but I give a fuck about GentleSketch.” It hurt to hear my name and a curse word in the same sentence.

Hyper trying to be sympathetic, “ I know you do, but you’re pushing yourself too-”

“I always push myself. This isn’t anything new.” Dad begun to walk away.

“Hey! you aren’t going anywhere until we have a plan!” Hyper shouted.

“A plan?”

“Yeah, you know.” Hyper rolled a hoof, glancing around suspiciously.

“HyperBlitz… I don’t know when…” Dad idled.

“You don’t know when we are getting out of here?” Hyper muttered. “That’s stupid. We’ve been stuck here for days. I can’t take anymore.”

“Then why don’t you just leave?” Dad retorted, his voice raising.

“Because,” Hyper hushed (ironically). “We have to get the Haythorn ponies. That’s why we came here.”

“I don’t understand why you are getting on me. Why don’t you come up with a fucking plan? It seems like you have more time than me,” Dad growled.

“You usually initiate the plans.”

“Gosh, why are you so dependent on me?”

“You make the good ideas. You make the plans,” Hyper insisted.

“I made a plan. You said it was fucking stupid,” Dad fought.

“Because it was stupid.”

“Can you two please stop,” I begged.

HyperBlitz snapped back to reality. He breathed, “Don’t you see what this place is doing to us?” Dad cocked his head. “We’re fighting, Jolt and I are fighting, you’re sleep deprived, and GentleSketch is starving. This trip has torn us apart, the opposite of what we wanted.”

Dad looked to the ground, ashamed.

“Do you see why we need to get out of here now,” Hyper stated.

Dad responded, “Yes, I know. It’s… all my fault. I shouldn’t have even made this trip. I just thought…” He gazed at me, “A trip would give GentleSketch experience with the world. But it’s been too much experience.”

Hyper placed a hoof on his friend’s shoulder. “It’s not your fault. It’s these damn rogues.” He paused. “But I think it is best we get back to doing something. We don’t want to get in trouble from doing nothing.” We dispersed from loitering.

That evening we were allowed to go to our room a little early(and by that I mean by thirty minutes). HyperBlitz was making me another cup of tea.

“I feel like my stomach is eating itself from the inside,” I complained as I curled up on the bed.

“It probably is,” Hyper said.

Dad glared at him with drowsy, dark, irritated eyes.

“What?” Hyper asked innocently.

I watched JumpingJolt put his hind hoof on a rolled up blanket.

“Does your leg still hurt?” I questioned.

“Yeah, a bit. I haven't been able to rest.”

“It seems like that was forever ago.” I referred to when he pulled his leg. I just started staring, at nothing particularly. I stared passed the space to memories that seemed so distant but so nightmare like.

“You okay?” Dad concerned.

“I…”

Knocking came from the door. Dad was about to open it but HyperBlitz was quicker. “Oh, Crow.”

“Can I come in?”

“Um…”

Crow welcomed himself and closed the door.

“What are you doing here?” Dad queried.

The dark Pegasus came to me. His wing unraveled, revealing a carrot. “It heard you need something to eat.”

I was in awe. “Thank you Crow. Why- how-?”

“I can’t just watch a kid starve.”

“Thank you,” I repeated.

I broke the carrot in two so I could eat one half tonight and the other tomorrow morning.

“Crow,” HyperBlitz begun. “Could I ask you- if I’m allowed to. Or are you going to get us in trouble if I do.”

“I ain’t gonna get y’all in trouble,” Crow promised.

“Oh, then, how did you get in this camp in the first place?”

“Well… It was my brother who suggested comin’ here. We both agreed on not wastin’ pure energy on Hybrids. We not had much access to it to begin with. An’ we both had interest in guns. We decided becomin’ ‘rogues’ would be a good idea. It was only hell to pay from there.”

“What happened? Was it GearClank?” Hyper intruded.

“Damn sure it was GearClank. He’s always had too much power, abusin’ it.”

“Have you ever tried to stand up to him?”

“My brother did. That was a bad idea.” Crow seemed remorsed.

“What happened to your brother?” Dad inputted.

Crow hesitated. “He… he ain’t with us anymore.”

“I’m sorry,” Hyper cood.

“It ain’t your fault.”

Dad tried something else. “Do you think it’s possible to get out of here? Since that’s what we want to do.”

“It wouldn’t try it. GearClank would hunt ya’ll down. An’ if don’t get ya, he’ll blame someone else.”

Dad prompted,“What if we made some planned escape? What if we made an uprising. Mass hysteria, to distract them.”

“That’s probably the best idea,” Crow answered.

“Told you,” Dad taunted HyperBlitz.

“But it be risky.”

“Told you,” Hyper mimicked Dad.

Crow ignored their childish game. “ GearClank got followers. He think I’m one of ‘em, but I’m playin’. He killed my kin and I ain’t never gonna forgive him for that.”

“I’ll get him back for you,” Hyper insisted.

“Don’t. You’d be puttin’ your life in danger.”

“It wouldn’t be the first time,” Dad said. “But Anyway. Do you think if we could actually do this plan, would you help us commence it? We all hate GearClank.”

“I- I don’t know.”

“You’re afraid of him just like the rest of them, aren’t you?” Dad put out.

“I guess ya can call me a ScaredCrow just like they all used to call me.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Ya see, my full name is ScareCrow, but they’d be makin’ fun of me callin’ me ScaredCrow. So I just shortened my name to ‘Crow’.”

“All bullying needs to stop,” Hyper charged. “Including GearClank, he’s gone too far.”

Dad directed to Crow, “Are there any more ponies hate him as much as we do?”

“Plenty.”

“Do you think you can get them with the plan? Have them work together to stop GearClank.”

“I think I can go ‘round camp and talk to some,” offered Crow.

“If you could do that for us, that would be awesome.Just don’t get caught.”

“Gotchya.”

“We just need to signal to the Haythorn ponies when we leave,” Hyper told Dad.

Crow had already left. I liked Crow, but I didn’t like his grammar. I knew he most likely meant the best with his words, and that’s what counts.

Author's Notes:

I may as well upload the chapters I have left. But it's not much. I thought I could finish this story, but I just don't have the motivation for writing anymore.

Chapter XXV: The Revolt

Author's Notes:

I'm only uploading this because I remembered I have a little bit left of this story. It will never be finished sadly. I never had the motivation to finish it.
And most of my motivation and inspirtation is gone in general. I miss him... I miss the good days where I was happy. I want to let him live on in HyperBlitz.

Beep. Beep. Beep. The annoying sound grew louder and louder. I tried to identify the source.

I nudged Dad’s side. “Dad, I think your watch is beeping.”

He turned over. “Huh?”

“Your watch.”

“Oh.” He searched the nightstand to the right. The noise finally ceased.

Dad announced, “Everyone get up. Alright boys, get your things together. We may have to grab our bags and go if things get crazy. I want to leave today.”

We all awoke. I ate the rest of the carrot Crow gave me. I sensed something was wrong. Dad must have sensed it too as he checked the time.

“That’s strange. GearClank usually would have gotten us by now.”

“Hey, be thankful he hasn't,” HyperBlitz blurted out. “It gives us more time to wake up.”

“But,” Dad warned, “what if something went wrong? What if GearClank knows we’re planning. What if something happened to Crow?”

“Eh, it gives him more distraction.”

I joined, “But I don’t want anything to happen to Crow. He’s nice.”

Dad nodded. “And we need him to make our plan work.”

“Should we go check?” I suggested.

“Probably.”

“Well, as long as I’m not being ordered to do work, I’m not doing any,” Hyper concluded.

“Me too!” JumpingJolt agreed.

I followed Dad through the camp. What we suspected was true: GearClank was interrogating Crow. At first we stayed low and listened.

“I thought ya trusted me.Why ya questionin’ me?” Crow defended himself.

“I know what's going on,” GearClank confirmed.

“Whaddya mean?”

“You’ve been talking will all sorts of ponies.”

“And what ‘bout that? I always be talkin’ to ponies. I tell them good mornin’.”

“You’re lying.”

“I ain’t lyin’!” Crow stomped his hoof.

Dad stepped in. “Hey! Why do you keep picking on others?”

GearClank sneered. “You’re one to talk. Why don’t you mind your own business?”

“Because you keep accusing ponies and bullying them.”

As GearClank was focused on Dad. Crow eyed me. He gave me a nod and mouthed ‘I got this’.

“Stop that!” Crow snapped at Dad. “I don’t need nopony defendin’ me. ‘Specially not one who’d been here only a week. You don’t know how it work here. There’s no fighting GearClank, he’s in charge.”

“That’s right,” The other Pegasus affirmed. GearClank was on Crow’s side now and did not question him anymore.

Dad backed away. “Fine.” We retreated.

GearClank shouted “You better get back to work or I’m taking that pretty little leg of yours!”

Dad whispered to me, “Tell the guys they should get to work.”

I played his command. I popped my head in the room door. “You guys should come out so GearClank doesn’t get you.”

Since we may leave, I think I should collect some magic aid.

“Why do you need to many?” Arcane asked.

“Because um… I don’t want to keep coming back for more. It’s a hassle to me and it bothers you.”

“Oh, alright.” The potionest gave me the elixirs in a bag.

Going out, I was called by the black and white amputee pony.

“Uh- um… you.”

“Yes?” I said.

“Y-you,” He spoke quietly and timidly. “I’ve heard… it’s a rumor… you- and your friends- you want to like, l-leave? You want ponies to go against GearClank?”

I nodded.

“B-but he’s powerful. I ... would help but… I’m t-to afraid.”

“Don’t be,” I assured. “We’ll have numbers on our side.” I sounded more confident than I feel about this.

“O-okay.”

I headed to the room. I packed the potion away with my other stuff.

For a while I continued to ‘work’, waiting for something to happen.

I found Crow. “So how is it going? Are you okay.”

“Yeah, I’m fine. GearClank still think I’m on his side. But when he don’t know is there plenty o’ ponies ready to betray him. There so many ponies I thought were his followers. They been waitin’ for a moment like this.”

“That’s great!”

We resumed cleaning and following orders. Crow told me stories of his brother and how great of a guy he was. The Pegasus lamented on missing him. It made me sad, but it filled me with determination to take down GearClank.

“But I’m just a colt,” I insisted. “How can I even help beat him?”

“Ya probably influence more than ya think. When I was yer age, I was everythin’ to my brother. I influenced his choices, everythin’ he did was for me. I’m sure that’s how it like with you and yer father.”

Just as we were talking about him, I heard my father’s voice. “GentleSketch. come with me. Crow, can you get some ponies to gather in the left clearning?

“Yes, I sure can.”

I trailed. “What’s going on?”

“I think we have a chance to strike,” The grayish blue Unicorn told me.

At the end of the path was GearClank interrogating the young mare named DesertDash. The sand coated pony was huddled on the ground, her eyes struck with fear.

“Get your shit together!”

“I’m sorry!” DesertDash pled.

“Sorry isn’t good enough.You had one job and you failed it.”

“It was a mistake. It won’t happen again!”

“Damn right it won’t,” GearClank hissed.

Dad broke in, “What the hell is this about?”

“Not you again,” GearClank grimaced. He rushed over and slammed his hooves down on Dad’s shoulders.

“Why is he doing this to you?” Dad barked at DesertDash.

“I-I sent a pony to the wrong station. It was a mistake!”

“That’s all?” Dad scowled at GearClank.

“One mess up is a lot in my camp,” The olive colored stallion informed.

Dad wrestled free of GearClank’s grasp. “Why do you keep fucking controlling them? This isn’t your camp.”
“Yes it is. They need my guide. I am their leader.”

There were ponies gathering now, some brought by Crow came from the path behind, some came from the clearing on their own.
“You’re not doing a very good job as a leader,” Dad stated.

“I’m doing the same as RainbowDash did!” GearClank claimed.

“RainbowDash wasn’t… isn’t a rogue. She may have been close to one, but she isn’t. She never bullied ponies or took control of them. She is a real leader unlike you.”

“How am I not a real leader?” GearClank challenged.

Dad reorientated himself. “A real leader works alongside their followers, encouraging them to learn. And they don’t abuse their powers.”

The crowd mumbled in an agreeing tone.

“I’ve had enough of your ridicule.” GearClank raised his rifle, pointing at Dad.

“Not this again. Put that thing down.”

Dad swerved the weapon away with his magic. GearClank tried to pull away from his grip, but accidentally fired in the process. A pony in the assembly collapsed with a scream. They bled from a hole in their foreleg.

“Oh my gosh!” Dad gased. “I’m so sorry.” He swiped his head to GearClank. “Don’t you care about what happened?”
GearClank had a blank face. “Why should I?”

The crowd muttered in a uniform disgust.

“Somepony get this mare a doctor! We need to wrap the wound and stop the bleeding,” Dad advised.

“Now you're ordering my ponies around?” GearClank denounced.

“I’m only doing what’s best for them,” asserted Dad.

“No you’re not! You’re a fucking hypocrite!”

GearClank punched Dad in the chest. Dad returned with a blow to GearClank’s jaw. The mob gasped.

“That’s it!” The Pegasus bellowes. “Crow! Take his leg!”

“No,” Crow said firmly.

“What?!”

“I said ‘no’.”

“You’re just denying me now?”

GearClank huffed. “Fine. RiverRush! Take his leg.”

Behind the crowd, the rust colored stallion only glared.

“Wasp?”

The mare beside RiverRush did the same.

“GracefulWaltz.”

The teal Unicorn approached him. “I’ll take his leg as long as you don’t mess up his pretty face.”

“I can’t keep a promise.”

GracefulWaltz came to Dad. “I’m sorry, baby.”

“I’m not your baby.”

Beside that, Dad seemed pretty calm of the fact she was trying to remove his leg. Little did she know that tools were needed to remove it.

“What are you doing?” Dad yapped, pushing her away. I don't think he was referring to his leg.

GracefulWaltz cooed, “I’m sorry GearClank, I think this is just going to difficult.’

A grey coated stallion emerged from the ponies. “I got this.”

“Oh no you don’t,” Dad grumbled and blasted the stallion in the face.

The foe bounded back at Dad with GearClank. Crow leapt out to aid, throwing the grey stallion to the side. I tried to find a place as everypony shifted. Some went to fight, some (like me) were too afraid to move. Allies of GearClank quarreled, but it was obvious there were more rebels. I imagined the allies were only fighting out of fear.

I heard gunfire. For a split second I feared for Dad, but realized it was Crow who had shot his opponent in the hip. A Unicorn choked Wasp with magic. She slammed them with an armored hoof, giving them a bloody bruise. I was petrified . There was so much violence at once.

Another louder shot was fired in the air, followed by GearClank yelling with his Pegasus lungs. “STOP THIS!” Burning yellow eyes scanned the line of rebels left to right. While showing off his rifle his express, “Stop this instant or I’ll shoot all of you!”

Hooves clattered on a roof behind me. HyperBlitz called out “Give up! You’re outnumbered.”

GearClank turned slowly, teeth bared. His gun was pointed right at HyperBlitz.
“What? You’re going to shoot me?”

“No,” GearClank concluded. He peered down. “I’d rather go for where it started.” His weapon now aimed at Dad. My father stood tall with a stern expression.

In a panic, I broke into a sprint and shielded Dad. I had no idea what the hell I was doing.

“GentleSketch, get out of the way!” Dad addressed.

“No,” I said under my breath. At GearClank, I announced, “Y-You wouldn’t hurt a colt.”

“You know I would,” He said. This was true.

“You can’t shoot my dad! I won’t let you!”

“Just watch me. You are pathetic”

“I am not pathetic! None of these ponies are! Together we are stronger than you! You are an idiot to think not!” I may have raised my voice, but my heartbeat sounded louder than my words. “I’m sick of your abuse. I’ve been physically sick of it. You treat your ponies like shit and then call yourself a RainbowDash? You are nothing but a big fucking jerk that deserves a hoof up his throat!” I stopped, beginning to breathe heavy.

“GentleSketch…” Dad muttered in shock.

GearClank looked between me and Dad. He tilted his head and squinted his eyes at me. I felt a cold hoof on my side trying to push me away.

“Just please go-”

GearClank clicked his gun, aimed at me.

“No!” Dad thrusted his body foreword, about to push me.

With a burst of the rifle a sudden pain surged through my upper foreleg. I cried out in agony. Dad held me as I fell to my haunches.
“GentleSketch!”

I glanced at my arm, erupting into tears as I saw the crater into it. The bullet had swiped across my arm, cutting a good half inch out of it.

“How could you do this to a colt?” Dad sneered.

“The same way I’d do it to a stallion,” GearClank answered.

Dad glanced at his mechanical foreleg. There was a whole all the way through it, but it still functioned.

“Dad…” I sobbed. “You said… y-you wouldn’t l-let anything.. bad happened to me!”

“No, no. I’m sorry. No… Sketch. Please I-”

“Get his gun!” HyperBlitz shouted from above.

“What?” GearClank was not expecting Crow to shove the rifle down. GearClank Stuggled for control but only fired into the ground.

“Ya gonna run outta bullets,” Crow mocked.

A pony came down to the right of me. “Here,” Arcane prompted. “Drink this. It will help with the pain.” He handed me a potion. The Amputee pony was behind Arcane, carrying bandages in his much.

The hysteria was on again. Everyone went after GearClank but he was skilled in maneuvering. An ally of his started shooting. While the camp ponies fled from the gun, GearClank got away to Dad.

“You know you can’t win! They are all against you. You’ve proven the monster you are,” Dad announced, standing up.

“It’s time to end this.” The evil buck placed the end of his rifle to Dad’s temple. Dad froze. Everypony froze, knowing it would only make it worse to move. It was silent except for Dad’s heavy breathing.

“Dad…” I cried, as my arm was being bandaged.

“Just… stay… there…” Dad said.

GearClank got a better grip of his gun, a olive green hoof over the trigger.

“NO!” I bounced up, swinging my head with the motion. A spectacle of orange exploded between Dad and GearClank. Magic threw the weapon out of GearClank’s grasp. It landed more than thirty meters away. Ponies held back the now defenseless rogue.
Dad stared at me, bewildered. “Oh my gosh…”

“P-please sit down… we are not done bandaging…” The amputee requested

I remembered my pain and sat down again.

“GentleSketch,” Dad gaped, “that was incredible… that’s the second time you’ve saved me.”

“But the first time, I didn't save your life.”

“You still saved me.”

GearClank bucked and punched and even bit at somepony’s ear. His allies consisted at pulling the rebels away from him. The Pegasus wrangled free and sprang into the air.

“You aren’t taking me down! I’m not going down unless it’s by my own gun!” He raced into the clearing, the crowd respectively after him.

The corrupt rogue leader slammed his hooves on a wooden stage. “Now listen here. You have all crossed the line. If you think it’s over, you are sadly mistaken.” His allies positioned themselves in front of the stage like Celestia’s royal guards. Their guns pointed at the crowd. “We don’t have to make this scene any bloodier than it already is,” GearClank claimed. “Let’s go back to the way things were.”
“But we don’t want to!” Somepony blurted out, I think RiverRush.

I heard one of the guards’ guns click.

“Speak anymore and you’ll be dead.” GearClank threatened. Why was he giving so many chances? He should be completely fed up with them by now.

“Okay, I think you’re good now,” Arcane told me about my condition.

I hopped up, in direction of the crowd. I felt a snag on my tail.

“I’m not letting anything else happen to you,” Dad donned.

“But I-I.” Glancing around. I realized HyperBlitz was nowhere in sight. “We have to find Hyper!”

“Hmm.” Dad slowly paced to the back of the audience. I could only see GearClank from the neck up now.
“Any other comments?” He scowled.

“Yeah!” Shouted anonymous. “Stop being a fucking dick!”

Bang. My heart stop for only a moment, unlike that pony whose heart stopped forever.

The crowd’s mumble grew into a cacophony. They chanted and curse at him. A Pegasus lept out of the mess and dived at GearClank.As I could see between the mob, GearClank took their head and bashed it against the hard wood stage. Blam. That pony stopped breathing.

The corpse’s blood covered his hooves and chest. The stallion laughed. “You think you are all so smart. I’ll have you all dead. Only those who obey me deserve life,” His laugh grew louder and more maniacal. “I am not afraid of blood. It is always welcome in my realm. You should see the looks on your faces! You puny, pathetic-

The crackle of a rifle sounded. Red exploded out of GearClank’s left temple. The volume dropped to nothing.

Chapter XXVI

The dazed crowd searched for the source of the bullet. The gunpony was behind crates on the path left of the stage. The yellow stallion stood up and placed the rifle down. GearClank was murdered by his own gun.

HyperBlitz gaited up the stage stairs. The audience watched him. GearClank’s allies did not attack, for they knew there was nothing to fight for anymore.

“Everypony,” Hyper started loud and clear. “You don't have to fear anymore. The source of your problems is gone.” He paused as the crowd mumbled. “I know it seems oblivious not having any guidance, but I assure you, I know, I’ve seen you work together. You are all capable of turning this place around.You just need somepony who can work alongside you. You don’t have to be like the Resistance. We aren’t here to oppress you. You’ve had enough oppression. Live with your methods, but be kind to you neighbors.”

HyperBlitz idle, eyes wandering. I thought he was going to speak more, but he headed off the stage. The stallion halted and bolted back up. “Could EveningGaze and Gale meet us in the path.”

He truly left the stage this time. The sound of the crowd arose again, but it was not afraid or angry.

“Let’s go,” Hyper said while trotting passed us.

At the start of the path, we waited for the Haythornians.

“Have you guys seen JumpingJolt?” Hyper asked. That made me concerned, hoping he was okay.

The two Haythornians found us. We started to our room.

“Um, I don’t think we should go this way,” Dad advised, pointing at the path with piles of blood and bodies. I immediately looked away.

We snuck through the clearing to another path. We went to the room, where JumpingJolt sat on the bed.

“Thank goodness you’re okay.” HyperBlitz hugged his son.

“Yeah, when things started getting crazy, I decided to stay here away from it,” Jolt explained. I wish I could have gotten away from it and had not seen all I had.

“That’s a good boy.” Hyper ruffled Jolt’s mane.

All of our bags and blankets were strapped to our backs and we were ready to go.

“I can’t believe you did that,” Dad addressed to Hyper as we exited out the door.

“It had to be done.”

“How… do you know use a gun?” I asked, but regretted it immediately.

“I… use to go to a shooting range. Like a long time ago. I never had intent of using a gun ,it was just target practice.”

JumpingJolt joined, “Wait, Dad, you shot somepony?”

“GearClank.”

“Did... you kill him?”

Hyper nodded. “Like I said, it had to be done. He was so corrupt.”

We were almost out of the camp when we heard somepony. “Where are you going?” It was WaterGrey. She gave a confused look.

“We’re leaving,” Dad retorted. “Out of this camp. And these two,” Referring to the Haythornians, “Are going back to Haythorn.”

“You can come with!” Jolt offered.

“No…” WaterGrey said, forlorn. “It’s not like anypony would remember me there.”

Dad hesitated. “Um… okay? Well, you can stay here and fix this place up. You don’t have to worry about GearClank anymore.”

“Why? He’s-”

“Dead,” Hyper confirmed.

WaterGrey was wide eyed and speechless.

At that very moment, a shout came from above. “Wait!” Crow landed. “Before ya’ll leave, I just wanna say thank ya’ll. For doing that. For gettin’ rid o’ GearClank. For encouragin’ us camp ponies.”

“That was mostly HyperBlitz,” Dad credited.

“Well, you were the one to incite it all,” Hyper notified.

“Hopefully those things get put into action,” Dad said. “As much as I believe a group of ponies can work together without a leader, I think this specific group of ponies need one. They need someone to pull them out of the dump.”

Crow shrugged. “We’ll I ain’t sure who be qualified for that job.”

“Why not you?” Dad suggested.

“M-me?” Crow placed a hoof to his chest. “I- I don’t know ‘bout that.”

“Why not?” Dad chucked. “I think you’d be great. You definitely are capable of caring about ponies. You have integrity and I know you’re equipped for work.”

Crow glanced down. “I… maybe…”

Dad tapped his shoulder. “Hey, don’t sweat it. Anyway… we better get going.”

“Thank ya again,” Crow reassured. “Good luck on yer trip home.” The dark Pegasus gazed at me. “Get better soon.” I wondered if he was referring to me starving or the whole in my arm. Maybe both. Crow waved and lifted off back into the camp.

The Haythornians stepped up to us. EveningGaze said, “We thank you a lot too, for getting us out of here.

“It’s no problem,” Dad replied.

HyperBlitz cleared his throat in disagreement.

“Well, we don’t want to slow you down,” EveningGaze expressed. Him and Gale traveled south to their town.

Dad went west. I began to follow him. HyperBlitz stood still, glaring. “Eh, eh! Where do you think you’re going?”

“Um… Home?” Dad turned around.

“Not yet,” Hyper insisted. “We can’t go without any supplies. Haven’t you considered that we don’t have any food?”

“There’s food on the train.”

“But that’s almost a whole day’s walk away. I don’t think we can make it that far. Especially without getting cranky,” Hyper advised.

“The sooner we leave, the sooner we get home,” Dad argued.

“And I understand that. But were in no shape to leave. We need rest and food. I’m sure GentleSketch needs some food.” I looked away on that comment.

“Alright. Then GentleSketch, what do you think? Do you want to go to Haythorn, or go home?”

“I… I… um.” Of course I was under pressure. “I.. I do want to go home but… I want food.”

“Then that settles it, we’re going to Haythorn,” Hyper confirmed.

Before Dad could even say anything, the Pegasus lept into the air. I heard him call out to the ponies we saved “Wait! We’re coming with you!”

We met up with the two again. Dad explained, “Do you think we can come with you? It’s not like we have any food to bring with us.”

“Um alright,” EveningGaze responded. “I’m not sure any of our families can let you stay a night, we don’t have enough room for four ponies. But I’m certain they’ll reward you somehow for saving us.”

We hiked south down the hill toward the streets of Haythorn.

Dad leaned to me. “Are you okay? That was a lot that just happen.”

I bet he thought I was traumatized, which was completely true.

I concluded, “ I… I think I just need to process all of it… although I don’t want to. But…”

“‘But’ what?”

“It’s just that… a lot of ponies… died for our cause.”

“It was bound to happen,” Dad tried to reassure me. “At least it wasn’t any of us.”

I got a bit irate at that statement, scrunching my nose. “Even if they weren't any of us, they were still ponies. Even if you don’t care about them, somebody did.”

After a few moments of silent, Dad whispered, “I'm sorry.”

I let out another thought. “It just seems so surreal that we're finally leaving”

“Do you want to go back?”

“No!” I snapped without hesitation.

“I’m playing with you.” Dad rubbed the back of my neck. “Why does it seem surreal?”

“Because, we were there for so long. It’s strange finally being free, out of the cycle.”

“What’s that look for?” Dad directed at HyperBlitz.

“It’s just the way he uses words. He sounds like HeartFelt.”

“Heh, what do you expect, she has such an influence on him.”

“Is that I bad thing?” I mused.

“Of course not.” Dad wrapped his hoof around me, holding me tight.

“Ow!” I whinnied when he touched my bandaged arm.

“Woops. Sorry!” Dad took his hoof away.

The stallion looked off to Haythorn. He took in a deep breath and exhale. “We’ll, the good thing is that we’ll be home soon. If we leave today, we could be back by tomorrow night.”

“But,” HyperBlitz protested. “I think we deserve rest. We should set out tommorow.”

“Mmm, okay,” Dad mumbled, a little reluctant.

Gale spoke when we got to the streets. “My house is on another road, so I may as we go. Thank you again, guys.”

We stopped at EveningGaze’s house. An orange, middle aged mare answered, happy to see her son again. She praised us for bringing him back.

Dad inquired, “So, do you know anypony who could let us stay a night?”

The mare thought. “Um… well, yes! SugarPine. She is very nice and always takes ponies in.”

“That sounds great. Where would we find her?”

“Um,” She used her foreleg to describe directions. “Go straight down this road for a while. Then take a right on Canterlot Avenue. Keep going until you see basicly the largest house on the street. There are decorations in the year. She is almost always home.”

“Thank you so much.” Dad bobbed his head.

“No, thank you.”

We started down the street again. Dad said aloud “Alright, then our next stop is SugarPine’s house.”

Chapter XXVII

Halfway down the road I was beginning to feel achy already carrying all of my bags. I just need rest and a good meal.

We had to go almost all the way to the end of the street before turning right. About ten houses down was correct house. At least I believe so. It seem like the largest house in the neighborhood. The yard decorations included an Equestrian flag, small windmills shape like flowers, and vibrantly colored rocks. Who has time for this much decorating. Who paints rocks for that matter? (Well, as being an artist, I guess I can see the point.)

We entered the unlocked picket gate. Dad knocked on the door. A few moments later, it opened, a cream colored Earth-pony answering. She pushed her shaggy green mane away from her glasses to properly see us. She appeared to be a few years older than Dad.

“May, I help you?”

“Um, yes,” Dad started. “You see, we came to Haythorn to help with the rogue problem. We ended up getting stuck in the rogue camp for a week. We saved the captured ponies there… but the rogues took our supplies and now we have no food and-um… Long story short: We need a place to stay for a night. Somepony directed us to you.”

“Oh,” The mare said. “Well of course. How many of you are there?”

“Four,” Dad replied.

“Four, hmm.” She looked over Dad to see the rest of us, yet her eyes stopped on me.

She parted through my companions. “Could it be?” Standing in front of me, she said, “GentleSketch?”

“Um… how do you know my name?” I asked, uneasy. I glanced away.

“Oh, it is!” The mare held my shoulders.

“Should I know you?” I questioned, embarrassed.

“Oh, I suppose not. It was quite a long time ago. Nine years now, maybe?

“I’m SugarPine. I took care of you when your mother… left you here in Haythorn, but she had good reasoning.”

“Yeah” I spoke, “I know about that. But.. it was you?”

“Indeed. Oh, and how you’ve grown! But you still have those chubby cheeks!” SugarPine squished my, probably red, face with her hooves.

Dad added, “His cheeks were chubbier but he hasn’t really eaten anything since we’ve been in the rogue camp.” My face was definitely burning now.

“I’m sure I can fix that,” SugarPine assured. “Please, come in.” She beckoned us.

We entered the very roomy house. There were knick-knacks everywhere. This mare sure has a lot of times on her hooves.

“Cedar!” SugarPine called down a hallway. Then came a young beige stallion.

“You remember GentleSketch, right?”

“Of course I do,” he eyed me.

“You were Cedar’s favorite playmate when he was little,” SugarPine informed.

“I feel bad that I don’t remember you guys.” I looked at the floor.

“Oh it’s okay sweetheart,” SugarPine said. “It was a long time ago, and you were really young.”

“And who are these guys?” Cedar asked.

SugarPine pivoted to Dad. “I assume you are his father?” Dad nodded. “And..”

“This is my friend HyperBlitz and his son, JumpingJolt,” Dad replied.

“Oh yes!” SugarPine acknowledged HyperBlitz. “I remember you. You came with HeartFelt when she came to pick up GentleSketch.”

The mare gasped, changing the subject. “Oh, I should get supper started. I’ll make all of you the most splendid meal you have ever had.

“Cedar, darling, could you get these four settled? They can leave their things in the guest room. We’ll have to decided who will sleep where later.”

“Follow me,” Cedar guided. He went through the hallway. We were brought into a room, a bit smaller than my parents’ bedroom. There was a double bed, just like theirs.

“This is the guest room,” Cedar notified us. “Two of you can sleep in here. One of you can sleep on the sofa… but I guess the last one will have to sleep on the floor. Sorry about that. We’ll be sure to give you lots of pillows and blankets.”

“I think we’ll be fine,” Dad confirmed. “I’m sure it is much better than that gross rogue hotel room.”

“Alright.” Cedar left us.

“Why don’t you boys have this room,” Dad suggested. He looked at me. “You definitely need your rest.”

“Should we put our stuff in the living room?” HyperBlitz asked Dad.

“Sure. Might as well.”

Hyper dragged his things out of the room.

“Hmm… I don’t want to wait for food,” I complained aloud.

Dad commented, “Hmm yeah. It’s probably going to be a while before dinner. I can ask her for a little something.”

“No, you don’t have to do that,” I protested. “I don’t want to bother her.”

“Ah, I don’t think she’ll mind. She seems pretty nice.” Dad exited without my consent.

JumpingJolt plopped on the bed, his limbs spread out. “I think I’m going to take a nap.”

I felt misplaced without the guidance of somepony by my side. I decided to tour the large building. It wasn’t that there were many room, it was just very spacious.

Something in my subconscious told me I was here before. I just couldn’t pull out one thing from my memory chamber that I recognized. It was like a house I had been in before in a dream. Déjà vu.

Then, looking around the living room, I remembered something. The fireplace. I recall vaguely sitting there, warmth radiating from the flames. Was it actually cold that day? It is never cold in the North Hills camp, maybe chilly at best.

I was probably about four the last time I was here. Knowing I have good visual memory, wouldn't that ability have picked up by then? Why can’t I recognize more than the fireplace. I at least remembered placement, and how to move around.

Back in the hall, I checked the guest room, two bedrooms, and another room. There were shelves stacked with books. A computer remained on a desk. One wall was halfway covered by crates.

There was a door at the end of the hall. I glanced outside where there was a garden tent and a wind turbine.

I strolled back to the living room. An L-shaped couch and two chairs surrounded a coffee table. On the wall right of me was the fireplace I remembered. All sorts of picture frames and trinkets covered the mantle. I scanned them: little ceramic figurines,glass bottles, and fake flowers. One of the flowers had golden petals and a really strange smile.

In one of the pictures there was SugarPine, her son, and a red stallion I assumed was her husband. Where is he now?

Another picture held all the same colors, except for a new one: light blue. It was me. Why did they keep a picture of me? In the photograph, the tiny me seemed so happy to be next to Cedar. My heart ached for I can’t remember this.

After returning to the guest room, I sat and read my book quietly. About thirty minutes later, SugarPine called everyone for tea. I drank some of my magic aid and then went to poke JumpingJolt.

“Huh?” He mumbled.

“SugarPine asked everypony to come to the living room for tea.”

The colt stretched his forelegs. “Aw, I was sleeping good.”

In the living room, Dad was sitting next to HyperBlitz on the couch. He slide over and gestured me to sit between them. I sat awkwardly. I shivered at the touch of Dad’s mechanical leg.

“How is your leg still working?” I asked at the thought of that.

He glanced at his limb. “ I don’t know. I guess the mechanicals of it were not damaged enough to keep it from working. It may still give me problems. It probably won’t shoot energy.”

“I bet I can get someone to fix it for you,” SugarPine offered.

“It’s alright. You don’t have to go to that trouble. It’s not like we're going Hybrid hunting on the way home.”

“Hmm.” SugarPine changed the subject, “I brought everyone some tea. And help yourself to some veggies.”

I eyed the large platter of sliced carrots and celery. I shot a look at Dad and back at the food. “Go ahead,” He granted.

I picked a carrot with my magic. Dad chuckled at the way I chewed, embarrassed. I hoped I wasn’t crunching too loud.

“Weren’t you making dinner?” Hyper asked SugarPine.

“Yes, but I did start early. It will be a few hours before supper. I’m sure you all needed a snack.” Dad must have told her. “And I thought it would be wonderful to catch up over some tea.”

“C-catch up?” I mused.

“Mm-hmm.”

“Um,” I peered around. “I saw you have a picture of me… why?”

“Well, of course I have one! To remember you. You may not realize it, but you were our favorite guest. You did stay for many months. You were like another son to me, basicly a foster son.”

Dad added, “So you really liked having him around, huh?”

“Of course! He was a joy to have around. He was the most precious little marshmallow.”

“Marshmallow?” I questioned, but nobody explained.

“Yes, he was so nice and sweet. He always drew pictures for everyone. I think I still have some.”

“Um…” I glanced away.

SugarPine continued, directed to me. “Cedar was so upset when you left. He wanted to know when you were coming back.”

“It took nine years,” Cedar, who sat in the other plush chair, said.

“Actually,” Hyper joined, “When we left, GentleSketch wanted to come back. He said he wanted to go home, thinking this was his home.”

I flustered, sipping my tea.

“As much as you enjoyed him, we were glad to have him back,” Dad expressed.

“Is the tea good?” SugarPine jumped the subject again.

“Um… yes, it’s good.” I placed the warm drink down and took another carrot.

“What’s wrong?” Dad sensed my uneasiness.

I hesitated. “It’s… that everyone is talking about me.”

“We’re saying good things,” Dad assured.

“Yeah, but that’s when I was younger. I can’t even that.”

“Aw, you don’t have to be so humble.” Dad ruffled my mane. “Anyway, usually the way you act when you’re younger will predict how you act when you are older.”

SugarPine confirmed, “Ah, yes. He was very humble back then too.”

I countered, “It’s not like we’re talking about anypony else. Shouldn’t you care about getting to know everypony else.”

Dad said, “Sketch, you need to learn how to take some praise once in awhile. I think you need this. It would help your self confidence. It’s not like I get to boast about you a lot. So let me- us- do so now.”

I loosened my posture. I relaxed as Dad’s hoof laid on my shoulder. Maybe I do need this. After all I’ve been through, I definitely need a confidence boost. I let them continue.

“Yes, GentleSketch was as humble and cute as he was smart. He was clever and a quick learner,” SugarPine stated. “I could never seem to hide treats without him finding them.” I laughed a little at the idea of me searching the entire house for treats.

“To be honest,” Cedar spoke up, “I always had him find them for me. But he’d also find anything I would hide, or even find something I forgot where I put.”

“That sounds like our Sketch,” Dad remarked.

HyperBlitz included, “GentleSketch was very intelligent when we- my wife and I- took care of him. He always wanted to learn. When we couldn’t teach him fast enough, we had to bring his mother is.

“You see, both CharmingRhythm and HeartFelt are very smart to begin with. And.. when you have two parents who are smart, you come out with somepony like this,” He gestured to me.

“You know you’re smart, right?” Dad teased.

“Um, yeah.”

Dad laughed. “That’s good. You’d probably use that to your advantage. Your mom does that a lot.”

“And how is HeartFelt?” SugarPine finally asked a question not about me.

“Oh, she’s doing pretty good,” Dad answered, “As she should be.”

“Well, that’s good. I guess I should have expected that. It’s just that when she stayed here, she was always so worried.”

I went to take another vegetable, but realized most of them had been eaten by JumpingJolt. Although he ate more food than me in the rogue came, it was not good food. I took a piece of celery. I watched Jolt crunch into his stalk, and I mocked him.

“She never seemed to get enough rest. She went out and worked, sometimes weeks at a time, to pay for rent, but I told her she didn't need to. We already had enough money, but I guess she wanted to give back. HeartFelt never took care of herself as much as she did GentleSketch. She always put him first. But, I guess that is what a mother in her case would do.”

Dad reported, “Well, I’ll let you know, she’s a lot less worrisome now. She still works hard, but we all have to. Of course, she leave time for fun and family.

JumpingJolt and I started crunching simultaneously behind their conversation. We must have been obnoxious.

“Boys!” Hyper snapped, awkwardly loud. “Leave some for everypony else.”

“Oh, it’s quite alright,” SugarPine admitted. “I can always get some more.”

The cream mare went to the kitchen to retrieve more refreshments. She came back to continue to converse, laugh, reminisce.

I never expected our host at Haythorn to be this nice. SugarPine is a wonderful pony. No wonder she took me and my mother in. She’d probably take anypony in.

Dinner was amazing. I don’t think I have eaten a meal like that in a long time. No, actually, I don’t recall I ever had one like that, at least not at home.

During dinner, Dad and HyperBlitz sorted out who was sleeping where. Hyper would sleep on the floor, for he needed space(which made sense considering how his wings covered Jolt). They only came to that conclusion after arguing that the other should take the couch.

Dad was still conversing with SugarPine in the living room when I headed to bed.

Did I dream last night? I don’t remember. If I did have a dream, it was not long or important. Was she in it?

I awoke feeling refreshed. The house felt cozy and my bones did not ache like the first night in the rogue camp. The air was filled with a sweet, fruity smell. Knowing how good dinner was last night, I couldn’t wait for breakfast.

In the living room, SugarPine’s son, Cedar, sat in a chair. He was reading a book. That reminded me of my mom.

“Good morning, Cedar,” I greeted, feeling strange to say his name.

He looked to me. “Oh… um, good morning.”

“Is it a good book?”

“Oh, uh. Y-yeah,” The Earth-pony replied.

“Well, my mom says every book is a good book,” I remarked.

Cedar smirked, “Yeah, that sounds like her.”

“Do you remember her?” I asked.

“Of course I do,” Retorted Cedar. “She used to read us bedtime stories. Well, when she had the chance.”

There was a pause. Cedar seemed slightly depressed. He was gazing to the left of me. I looked over, turning, only to find myself chasing my tail. Cedar laughed a little. At least I could make somepony laugh.

“What is it?” I asked.

“It’s just,” the young stallion hesitated, his smile fading. “You’re thirteen, and you have your cutie mark.” His green gaze shifted down. “I’m seventeen and I’m still a blank flank.”

“Oh.” I examined my cutie mark: an orange figure of a pencil creating swirled strokes. I went back to Cedar. “Not everyone get their cutie mark young. I’m sure you just have to explore a little.”

“How am I supposed to explore wn I’m always cooped up at home. Anyway, how can I figure out my talent is by my name? What am I: A tree?”

“Well, I’m sure you find it some time,” I encouraged. “My dad was seventeen when he got his cutie mark.” I hoped that made him feel a little better.

“Anyway, not everypony has a specific name or mark. My friend, JumpingJolt’s mom, has a vague name and mark. She’s not really sure what her talent is. But she’s found that she really likes taking care of ponies. She likes to make them feel better.” (Which is perfect because her husband is so clumsy and had a weak immune system)

“Hmm, maybe…” Cedar said, but I wasn’t sure why.

“Boys,” SugarPine called, her head popping out from the kitchen. “Time for breakfast.”

I remembered JumpingJolt was still asleep. I went to the guest room to wake him. However, I took a drink of my magic aid potion before I did.

In the dining room, Dad was helping set things up. Like last night, I was surprised how large the mahogany table was, and how many chairs there were. It was just Cedar and SugarPine here usually. What about SugarPine’s husband? I saw him in the photos on the fireplace mantle. I asked about him.

“Hmm?” The mare hummed through her teeth as she sat down a pot. “Oh yes, Carpenter. He works a lot, usually days at a time. But then he stays at home for days. Too bad he’s not here now. I’m sure he’d love to see you.”

“We can call him,” Cedar suggested. “Maybe he can come home early.”

“Well, we’re going to have to leave today,” Dad proclaimed, making me feel sad.

“You aren’t leaving until I pack a lunch for you,” SugarPine giggled.

Cedar left the room, and said, strangely out of place, “I’m going to call him.” They had a working phone?”

“Would you like some coffee?” SugarPine offered to me as we sat down. “Your father told me you like it.”

I looked to Dad, who sat next to me. “Um, could I?”

“Of course,” He smirked.

His blue magic levitated the kettle, and he poured the brown liquid into a ceramic cup. I tasted it. The coffee was sweetened and had creamer. I wonder where SugarPine got these ingredients. But I assume she has enough money to buy expensive supplies.

“It tastes awesome,” I remarked.

“That’s wonderful,” SugarPine commented delightfully.

Cedar returned to his seat. “Dad says he’ll be home as soon as posible,” He told his mother.

“Splendid,” SugarPine replied

“Well, I’m not sure he’ll come home before we leave,” Dad said. “I want to get back tonight, which means we leave early.

Chapter XXVIII

There were memories. For some reason, being in that snug bed made me remember. I was halfway between sleep and wake. What was this? They were memories, but very hazy. They were not complete pictures, as almost they were in words. As if they were in third person. I could recall what they were about, but could not truly replay them.

I know why I remember the fireplace now. It was raining, just like today. I had been caught in the rain outside. SugarPine brought me in by the fire, a blanket wrapped tight.

There was a moment of me playing with Cedar. We were hide-and-seeking. I hid in a cupboard (hard to imagine I was that small). My friend could not find me, and I was left in there for quite some time. I reemerged, crying, wondering if they had forgot me. SugarPine reassured that they would never forget me.

My vision focused in like a telescope lense. I searched for shapes I recognized. A humming tickled my ears. I realized the humming was the constant patter of rain. A glowing yellow shield shrouded me, droplets being deflected off of it. I turned and there she was.

“So what now?” I pondered, but not in an offensive tone. I spoke as if I was genuinely curious of what the filly had to offer.

The filly pointed her luminous horn. There was a house past the barrier and sheets of rain. The shield began to move as she walked. I opened the door when the spell molded around the wall.

Inside was cozy and warm; a relief from the chilly outside. The smell of a freshly made stew filled the air. It was... SugarPine's house.

I looked to the filly. “I don't get it. Why am I here?”

She gestured a black hoof. I saw a little figure race across the long floor. The beige Earth-pony jumped onto the couch. A light blue cold entered from the hallway.

“This doesn't make sense. If that's me, shouldn't I be seeing this from that perspective? Even if I am older, I should have some memory of it, right?”

Of course, she did not answer me or ever look at me.

Cedar beckoned the smaller pony to leap to the couch. GentleSketch seemed timid to try the stunt. It was a dare. But surely a small Unicorn could not do the same thing a larger Earth-pony could.

GentleSketch rand and lept, but his tiny legs couldn't fully grasp the couch. He lipped and plopped onto the floor. Cedar peered over the edge to see the sobbing colt. SugarPine had entered from the kitchen to investigate. She seemed so much younger. While she still wore her glasses, her hair was less faded shade. Does nine year really change a pony that much?

“I'm sorry, Mama,”Cedar said to her. “I made him try to jump up here.”

The mare leaned down to the blue colt. “GentleSketch, are you okay? Are you hurt?” SugarPine asked.

He shook his head.

SugarPine lifted him up by his underarm. “Alright. It's okay. You're okay.” GentlekSketch rubbed his eye. Gosh, was I that much of a wimp? I still am, aren't I?

“Why don't we all come have some lunch?”

As they paced through the room, as if on queue, the door swung open. I stepped aside, clearing the way, like I was really there. SugarPine halted, a hoof halfway in gait. “HeartFelt.”

I expected to see my mother younger, but I was... dissatisfied. She looked... older. Her eyes were puffy and dark, and her expression bleak. Drenched green facial fur plastered on her face make her features more defined. Didn't she has a shield spell, Or did she just get tired of using it?
“Oh darling, you're soaking,” SugarPine observed. My mother did not seem to acknowlage her. “Why don't you place your things down and come get a towel.” The mare swirled around. “Boys, why don't you go to the dining room, we'll meet you there."
SugarPine proceed to the bathroom. “HeartFelt, come get a towel.”
My mother's body language was averse. Her limp tail dragged across the floor, leaving a pool. SugarPine placed a towel around the Unicorn's shoulders.
“You need to dry off, I don't want you to get sick,” She told her friend.
Mom sighed.
“What's wrong, darling?" SugarPine quizzed as she grabbed another towel. “Why were you out in the rain anyway?”
“I was just coming back and it started raining. I should have just stayed..." The mint green mare finally spoke.
“Oh no, dear you shouldn't be working in the rain. You already work so much.”
“It's not enough.”
“I don't understand why you insist on working so much. You already help around home, and you take care of the boys. You know you don't have to pay me back.
“But.. I don't want to take advantage of your kindness.”
“Oh, don't worry, you're not.”
“That's the thing.”
You're so kind you wouldn't know if you're being played.”
“HeartFelt, I know you never would do that to me. You don't have to pay me to prove it.”
“Well, somepony has to,” Mom scowled. This was out of character for her. I've never seen her take out frustration on another pony. She may express her struggle, but she would not ever burden another.
She continued, “You've been taking care of my son and me for a while now, and I can't seem to keep up with things.”
“What do you-” SugarPine was cut off.
“You don't need me around. I've been acting like shit. You shouldn't be so gracious. I need to leave. I've overstayed my welcome.”
“Leave? Where would you go?”
“I want to find my husband. We should have never been separated in the first place. I don't understand why all of this happened. It was a misleading plan: it was all blurred.”
“Are you taking GentleSketch?”
My mother shook her head. “I don't think I can. I can't put him through that dilemma. It's not worth it. Anyway, you have proven you are more capable to take care of him than I. I'll come back for him once I work everything out with my husband. We have to be suited to take care of our son.”
The Unicorn took in a deep breath and exhaled. “Just... don't tell Sketch just yet. I don't even know when I'm leaving.”
SugarPine bowed her head respectively. “Alright.”
Things were fading. The image of SugarPine's sympathetic face was firmly painted in my head. I must have been transiting from a session of REM. But I quickly, or at least my mind made it quick, to enter the next. All of this made like it was the same dream, only the information lost at the setting change.
I was in an apartment. Was it my own? No, it was of family friends. I saw SweetHooves sitting on her couch. My mother was there too. I could tell this was not in the far past by the mares' appearances.
A look of worry crossed SweetHooves' face. She had become a worrisome pony, but loosened up over the years. Only something distressing could make her act this way.
“I just don't understand. It's just...” SweetHooves paused, her forehooves put together. “I know I keep bringing this up and... I need to stop... but I just can't stop thinking. I'm sorry, I'm annoying you.”
“No, no,” Mom protested. “If you need to talk it out, you can. I'm here. I'll listen.”
“I know. I just overthink things. You're calm.”
“The way I process situations is different than you. That doesn't mean there is anything wrong with you," Mom expressed, intelligently. “Go on.”
“I just don’t get why aren’t back yet, you know?